Fresh Lamb and Herbs

One of the most delicious Provencal dish is a baked leg of lamb encrusted with fresh herbs. At the prestigious Château de Trigance, Chef Philippe Joffroy has developed a uniquely French treat recipe that uses the three foundations of Provencal cooking to flavor the lamb: olive oil, garlic, and aromatic herbs. A paste of garlic, shallots and parsley is made into a stuffing for the leg of lamb. This is called the persillade. The lamb meat is then seared in butter then baked. Before the final baking time is over, it is taken out to be covered in bread crumbs to give it a golden crust. A mix of vegetables sautéed in the persillade is served alongside the leg of lamb.

Buy your leg of lamb from the butcher or the supermarket (where it can be sold frozen). If you buy it frozen, allot some time to let it thaw inside the refrigerator before using. One of the most popular producers of lamb is Australia, where it is considered a national dish. Hence you will often see Australian leg of lamb in bigger supermarkets. Likewise, producers of this meat also include New Zealand, the United Kingdom and Canada feel free to check out more info about easy gourmet food recipes here.

In terms of flavor, Provencal chefs and cooks are very particular in using fresh and local ingredients, such as the carrots, zucchinis and cucumbers that are served with the leg of lamb. The vegetables are cut lengthwise into thin strips about 3 mm or ¼ inch to resemble tagliatelle noodles, which are traditional type of Italian pasta similar in flatness to fettuccine only wider. Because of this way of cutting, this traditional French dish is given an Italian twist.

To highlight further the aforementioned persillade, the vegetables are sautéed in it. Since the vegetables are not roasted, it helps in keeping its crispness, its al dente quality, which gives the dish an interesting texture. Watch the vegetables during the sautéing so that they do not overcook and turn mushy. Garnish the leg of lamb with fresh Provencal thyme. A nice bottle of Haut-Medoc complements this delectable roast meat.

Ingredients

1 gigot (leg of lamb) about 4 1/2 lbs.

2 garlic cloves

1 bunch of flat parsley

1 shallot

3.5 oz. breadcrumb

3 ½ tablespoons butter

3 carrots

3 zucchinis

3 leeks (white only)

3 cucumbers

1. Remove a slit into the leg of lamb. Remove the center from the garlic. Mince the garlic, parsley and shallots. In a bowl, mix them all well together to make a persillade. Insert the persillade into the slit of the leg of lamb. Roll the meat up and tie with a kitchen twine. Reserve some of the persillade for the vegetables.

2. Pre-heat the oven to 350°F. In a pan, melt the butter. Sear the leg of lamb then transfer into a roasting pan. Roast the meat in the oven 5 minutes.

3. Using a peeler, shred the zucchini, cucumber, carrots, and leeks so it resembles tagliatelle pasta. Blanch the vegetables on boiling water, remove, and then sauté with the persillade. Season with salt and pepper. Set aside.

4. Roll the roasted meat on the bread crumbs then place it back into the heated oven for 30 seconds or so.

5. Spread the vegetables on the serving dish. Remove the lamb from the oven and arrange on top of the vegetables. Garnish with thyme and small tomatoes.