Serves: 2-3 - Time:
This recipe started off as one thing and morphed into another as I was cooking. I find some of my favourite dishes are created that way. If you want to serve a larger number, say six people, buy a whole shoulder, double all the ingredients and cook for about 5-6 hours. I serve the lamb and chickpeas with some lightly spiced, roasted cauliflower and cherry tomatoes.
Ingredients
- 1.1kg half shoulder of lamb, bone-in
- 2 garlic cloves, peeled and sliced
- 150g natural greek yogurt
- 2 tablespoons rose harissa
- 1 teaspoon pomegranate molasses
- 1 x 400g tin chickpeas, drained and washed
- 1 tablespoon finely chopped mint leaves
Method
- Make deep incisions into the lamb with the tip of a sharp knife and stuff the garlic slices into each one. Mix together the yogurt, harissa and pomegranate molasses and spread all over the lamb. Leave at room temperature for one hour (or cover and chill for up to 24 hours)
- Heat the oven to 170˚c, fan oven 150˚c, mark 3. Put the lamb in a roasting tin and pour 200ml water around the meat. Cover loosely with foil and cook for 2 hours. Take off the foil and continue to cook for a further 1 ½ hours.
- Turn the heat up to 200˚c, fan oven 180˚c, mark 6. Lift the lamb out of the tin onto a carving board and leave to rest for 5 minutes. Spoon off as much fat as possible from the tin then pour in the chickpeas. Cook for 15 minutes. Meanwhile carve the lamb into large, rough chunks. Stir the meat into the chickpeas and warm through for 5 minutes. Sprinkle over the mint just before serving.
