BBQ Recipes

Barbecue Spiced Lamb by Melissa Thompson

Melissa, aka @fowlmouthsfood is one of the country's most exciting food writers and she knows how to barbecue! We're absolutely thrilled that she has put together this barbecue spiced lamb recipe for Provenance Village Butcher. For more inspo, follow her on Instagram or check out her website, fowlmouths.co.uk
Serves: 4-6 people, depending on hunger, greed and how much other food is available! Warning, this recipe is best started at least one day ahead of when you want to eat it, ideally two.
It'll be delicious marinated for less time but to bring out the best of the union between meat and flavour, it's best left to sit in the marinade for as long as possible.
This recipe is for a rotisserie on a barbecue spit where the reaction of flame and smoke, plus the steady rotation of the meat leads to the most flavoursome meat, slowly cooked, with caramelised edges, sticky sides and smoky depths. It's really good.
If you don't have a rotisserie, you can use this as a marinade for a whole lamb shoulder that you then cook over indirect heat on the barbecue or failing that, in the oven, low and slow for 3 hours @ 130 degrees C before turning things up to 200 degrees C for the final 20 minutes to give it some colour. If cooking in the oven, substitute sweet paprika for smoked.
Ingredients:
1 lamb shoulder (approx 1kg boneless weight)
3-4 lamb necks, approx 600g
2 banana shallots or 1 red onion
1/2 tbsp coriander seed
1/2 tbsp cumin seed
1/2 tbsp white pepper (use black if you don't have it)
1 tbsp sweet paprika
1 tbsp aleppo chilli flakes
4 garlic cloves
Peel of 1/2 a lemon
Peel of 1/2 an orange
2 tbsp pomegranate molasses
3 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp salt

Method:
If the lamb shoulder is particularly fatty, remove some of the fat but this is according to taste - it's important to leave a fair bit of fat to help lubricate the lamb and keep it moist. I leave almost all of it. Trim the necks of any silverskin and sinew.
Slice the lamb against the grain into strips no thicker than 1cm and ideally 8cm long, so they fit on the rotisserie. Slice the necks lengthways into 3 or 4 strips by placing on a board, pressing down with your non-dominant hand and gently bringing the knife from one end to the other. Set aside.
To prepare the marinade, take coriander, cumin, white pepper, paprika, chilli and salt and grind to a powder. Add onion, garlic and lemon & orange zest, pomegranate molasses and olive oil and grind into a paste. You can use the food processor, or a pestle & mortar.
Add lamb to a large bowl and pour over the marinade. Massage the marinade into the meat, ensuring every nook and cranny is covered. Leave for 2 days in the fridge, one day if you don't have 2 days or for at least 4 hours if you've messed up and haven't prepped properly. But know, that as you're eating it, it could have been even better!
Take your spit, set up one side and start loading it up. Try and alternate fattier pieces with those that are less, so to spread out the flavour. Once all the lamb is used up, close the end of the rotisserie and secure. Leave to rest whilst you set up the barbecue.
Light a full chimney's worth of coals. Once white, pour out to one side of the barbecue. Set up a water tray next to them, underneath where the spit will go. Place the lamb spit over the barbecue and start it up. Close the lid. Aim for a temperature of 180 degrees C - adjust the bottom vents to control the temp.
Check the temperature regularly, adjusting the vents and cook for around 1.5 hours. Once the outside is nice and toasty and caramelised, you can start to shave off the edges with a knife, holding a tray underneath. Turn the rotisserie off when doing this, and once one side is shaved, turn it back on until an uncut side is nearest to you.
Once the first layer of cooked lamb is shaved off, turn the rotisserie back on and check back after another 20-30 mins. Keep shaving off the shaved edges, serving as you go, so you/your guests have a steady supply of meat.
Serve with flatbreads, leaves and sauces - I recommend a garlic yoghurt and a tomato salsa.

Enjoy!