I love lamb and can not wait to try this!!! I did however just buy a 4 lb pork shoulder….can I use it for this recipe? I promise I will do the lamb for the next round!!
So glad you shared this recipe! This must be the one you talked about on your podcast with Heléne Yorke :) I am totally making this for family dinner on Sunday.
Thank you Alison, my recipe for Christmas dinner! My family has vetoed turkey in favour for lamb. (I may have to have some turkey though) PS I love your YouTube videos and your me BOOK is awesome.
Alison! Halp! I sent my beautiful husband to get a 4-5 lb lamb shoulder and he came back with a 7.65 lb lamb shoulder. Along with adjusting the other ingredient ratios, does it need to cook longer? Hotter? Halp!
Hi! I'm so sorry I'm almost certainly too late for this--definitely not hotter, and likely not much longer-- I would check at 12 hours and see what's up, but imagine it will be gorgeous and cooked through then even at a larger weight. I mostly worry you have a pot large enough!
My shoulder was on the heavier side too, 6.5 pounds. I did the same measurements as the recipe said and didn’t add more. Will everything be okay and for the same amount of time?
I have friends coming over in 2 weeks and I will be making this lamb recipe as well as the chickpeas. This is the type of recipe that I love -- a long braise in the oven. I am thinking of also making the Pumpkin Brown Butter Cake again from Sweet Enough since I made it for Canadian thanksgiving and it was a huge hit. Thanks so much for developing this lamb recipe with potatoes; it looks amazing!
JoS -- THANKS so much for giving me the heads-up about your and Alex's experiences with this recipe, it's greatly appreciated! I just bought my 5 pound bone-in leg of lamb as I saw the cut and size that I needed at the grocery store yesterday and have placed it in my freezer as my dinner is not for a couple weeks. This is a premium cut of meat so it's such a shame that this happened to both of you. I will need to find another recipe to use as I don't want what you experienced to happen to me. Many thanks again for taking the time to reply to my post. You're a lifesaver!!
I think the recipe can be a winner, but it needs adjustments from the current instructions. I’d start checking it at 6-8 hours and then add liquid as needed.
Yes! Despite everything being burnt, dry, brown and crispy, the flavors really shined through. This could be a winner, but it definitely needs more liquid and a little more supervision in the oven.
I agree; just some tweaking is required. Fyi, I found another recipe for slow roasted leg of lamb that cooks for 6 hours for 5 pound bone-in lamb; the first half hour at 430 F (fan), then 320 F (fan) for remainder of time. You need to check halfway through to turn the lamb; requires 1000 ml liquid. This is the recipe I will be using this time so hopefully it turns out.
Hi all! I'm sorry those two that had bad experiences, but plenty others have had it work beautifully, truly wish I could help troubleshoot. As you see in the video (no food styling or tricks done on camera...) it is what it is with the ingredients and amounts listed, and it works! I've made it dozens of times and never once added more liquid, it's never burned, never dried. Some of the liquid will evaporate as is expected, but never close to anything resembling burnt. Every oven/pot is different I suppose, but my oven and pots are as basic as they come!
Delighted to learn that we're having an intimate christmas eve dinner at home, instead of going to visit the in-laws. This will be the perfect dinner! One thing, my husband doesn't love chickpeas. Any suggestions on a good replacement bean?
I love Home Movies and AR so, so, so much. My favorite chef bar none. Immediately when this came out Tuesday I knew what my plans were for the weekend. I bought the most beautiful lamb shoulder from my butcher, found Italian garbanzo beans, picked up produce from the farmer's market. I woke up at 6am on a Sunday to put the lamb in so it would be ready for my guests to arrive at 6pm for dinner. I cook often and consider myself a proficient home chef. I've successfully cooked a lamb shoulder before. I followed the recipe to a tee - both the lamb and the chickpeas were completely ruined when I finally let myself peek after they had braised for 11 hours. I have an oven thermometer to gauge the correct temperature of my oven. Everything was burnt to an absolute crisp and I'm worried both my Le Cruset dutch ovens may not recover. When I was putting the lamb in, I thought to myself: this recipe needs more liquid - stock, even water. Wish I'd gone with my instinct. (Still love AR though, just not this recipe)/
SAME thing happened to me on Saturday and I came to the comments to see if it happened to anyone else. I followed the recipe exactly. Used a 5lb. bone-in leg of lamb. Rancho Gordo dried chickpeas. Cooked at 275 degrees (also have an additional thermometor to measure temp in oven) and the chickpeas were completely dry at 11 hours and the lamb had less than one cup of liquid left and the part not submerged (most of it) was very dry. I am an AR stan but something about these recipes is off.
I promise nothing about them is off! Lot of success stories out there…the video is also just…the recipe. Again, no tricks or manipulations, it just is what it is.
Just double checking/confirming:
Everyone is using heavy bottomed dutch oven, lid is on, non-convection, and 275 Fahrenheit (not Celsius?)- with oven thermometer to make sure oven isn’t running hot?
Just to chime in... I made this last night with 4lbs of boneless shoulder and it turned out great! Y'all put an ENTIRE bottle of white wine in there *and* covered the pot, right? Mine had 8-10 cups of liquid in there when the braise was done when following these steps. I also used a 5L Le Creuset, idk if the pot size would matter.
Only thing I wish the recipe noted -- it's probably smart to add more salt to the pot before the braise, even if you've seasoned the lamb overnight.
Yes, used an entire bottle of pinot grigio and covered the pot with the lid. A full 750ml of wine = ~3 cups, so not sure how you ended up with 8-10 cups of liquid at the end.
Jumping in to say this exact same thing happened to me!! And have similarly NEVER been led astray by an AR recipe. I got a 5.5 lbs lamb leg for Easter Sunday. Didn't have a larger dutch oven so used my 5.5 Qt le Creuset pot and used less potatoes so it would all fit. Put it in a 275 Farenheit oven for 12 hours overnight (alongside the chickpeas) and when I woke up both were burnt and crispy. There was no liquid whatsoever remaining in the chickpeas and only about a cup of liquid remaining in the lamb. I have a gas oven (no convection).
oh no! I'm truly sorry this happened to you. I have been trying to figure out how this is happening to some people while others (myself and others on this thread included) haven't had any issues! I wish I could be there to troubleshoot...my instinct is it's the oven or the pot...but having made this exact recipe in several kitchens over the years and have never had an issue, I truly am stumped. Genuinely sorry this has happened, though!
I also had this experience, sadly. I wonder if our ovens run hot. I also HATED cooking overnight. Never again. I have no idea how you do that in your apartment. The smell overwhelmed us all night long. My husband smelled burning, so I was up at 4am checking them. I took the chickpeas out because I assumed it was them, but when I woke this morning they were undercooked (those burned on bottom of pot) and my lamb and potatoes looked burned to a crisp. Just hoping as I let them sit, liquid will produce and it will be edible. Was very much looking forward to this and it seemed so simple and perfect! Agree with others, your recipes, including all instructions, never fail me. This one is sadly a disappointment.
Just a thought - was the oven on convection? I have read that conventional is preferred for braises. Or too big of a pot so that the liquid did not come up the sides enough?
Same thing happened to me! I checked at the 9 hour mark and there was hardly any liquid left and meat was really dry. I used a 5lb bone in leg and wonder if the shoulder would be a better pick since it is fattier? I have an oven thermometer, temp was right at 275 F, and in a heavy bottomed Dutch oven, lid on, convection off. I agree with JOS’s comment on another thread that checking at the 6 hour mark and adding more liquid probably would have fixed the problem. It’s not totally lost though, just dry. I’ve got guests coming over soon, so am currently attempting to rehydrate with broth and serving with labneh to counterbalance the dryness!
large limas tend to fall apart regardless....but it is quite low and slow. bad answer, but my recommendation would be to try it, and if they fall apart (which I would assume they sort of will, but not always a bad thing), turn it into fava aka puree them with garlic and serve as a dip.
Made this last Saturday (cooked for 12 hours over Friday night) and it was phenomenal! Used a five pound bone-in lamb shoulder and followed the recipe exactly. Wowed the guests. There was plenty of liquid left in both the chickpeas and the lamb. Wonder why different people had such different experiences.
I love lamb and can not wait to try this!!! I did however just buy a 4 lb pork shoulder….can I use it for this recipe? I promise I will do the lamb for the next round!!
I love how you single-handedly plan my christmas eve dinner every year. It's like I'm cheating.
Before cooking these recipes, please read the comments above by me (JoS) and Alex Andorfer about our experience making these dishes.
We need an Alison Roman gift guide😍
So glad you shared this recipe! This must be the one you talked about on your podcast with Heléne Yorke :) I am totally making this for family dinner on Sunday.
What would you serve as a snack before dinner?
Any dessert recommendations?
Thank you!
The lamb & potatoes, chickpeas and sautéed greens were so delicious (and easy!)
I made the wonderful labne dip & potato chips for a snack and the lemon fennel semolina cake for dessert!
Thank you Alison, my recipe for Christmas dinner! My family has vetoed turkey in favour for lamb. (I may have to have some turkey though) PS I love your YouTube videos and your me BOOK is awesome.
Can’t wait to make this! Is there anyway in the future to have metric conversions in the printable recipes?
Sincerely, an Australian fan! :)
Can't wait to make this for Christmas! Which dried chickpeas do you love? And which chopped chilis?! Please and thank you :)
AR loves Rancho Gordo (https://www.ranchogordo.com/) for beans.
Please read the comments above by me (JoS) and Alex Andorfer about our experience cooking this recipe.
Alison! Halp! I sent my beautiful husband to get a 4-5 lb lamb shoulder and he came back with a 7.65 lb lamb shoulder. Along with adjusting the other ingredient ratios, does it need to cook longer? Hotter? Halp!
Hi! I'm so sorry I'm almost certainly too late for this--definitely not hotter, and likely not much longer-- I would check at 12 hours and see what's up, but imagine it will be gorgeous and cooked through then even at a larger weight. I mostly worry you have a pot large enough!
My shoulder was on the heavier side too, 6.5 pounds. I did the same measurements as the recipe said and didn’t add more. Will everything be okay and for the same amount of time?
I have friends coming over in 2 weeks and I will be making this lamb recipe as well as the chickpeas. This is the type of recipe that I love -- a long braise in the oven. I am thinking of also making the Pumpkin Brown Butter Cake again from Sweet Enough since I made it for Canadian thanksgiving and it was a huge hit. Thanks so much for developing this lamb recipe with potatoes; it looks amazing!
Please read the comments above by me (JoS) and Alex Andorfer about our experience cooking this recipe.
JoS -- THANKS so much for giving me the heads-up about your and Alex's experiences with this recipe, it's greatly appreciated! I just bought my 5 pound bone-in leg of lamb as I saw the cut and size that I needed at the grocery store yesterday and have placed it in my freezer as my dinner is not for a couple weeks. This is a premium cut of meat so it's such a shame that this happened to both of you. I will need to find another recipe to use as I don't want what you experienced to happen to me. Many thanks again for taking the time to reply to my post. You're a lifesaver!!
I think the recipe can be a winner, but it needs adjustments from the current instructions. I’d start checking it at 6-8 hours and then add liquid as needed.
Yes! Despite everything being burnt, dry, brown and crispy, the flavors really shined through. This could be a winner, but it definitely needs more liquid and a little more supervision in the oven.
I agree; just some tweaking is required. Fyi, I found another recipe for slow roasted leg of lamb that cooks for 6 hours for 5 pound bone-in lamb; the first half hour at 430 F (fan), then 320 F (fan) for remainder of time. You need to check halfway through to turn the lamb; requires 1000 ml liquid. This is the recipe I will be using this time so hopefully it turns out.
Hi all! I'm sorry those two that had bad experiences, but plenty others have had it work beautifully, truly wish I could help troubleshoot. As you see in the video (no food styling or tricks done on camera...) it is what it is with the ingredients and amounts listed, and it works! I've made it dozens of times and never once added more liquid, it's never burned, never dried. Some of the liquid will evaporate as is expected, but never close to anything resembling burnt. Every oven/pot is different I suppose, but my oven and pots are as basic as they come!
Delighted to learn that we're having an intimate christmas eve dinner at home, instead of going to visit the in-laws. This will be the perfect dinner! One thing, my husband doesn't love chickpeas. Any suggestions on a good replacement bean?
This looks delicious!!! I don't have an 8-qt Dutch oven. Could I use a 3lb piece of bone-in lamb and a 5.5-qt? How would that affect the time?
yes! I would do it for about half the time (with half the wine and half the potatoes) for 3lbs- thats pretty tiny.
Thank you! I wish I could do the larger cut but sadly I don't have a larger Dutch oven.
I love Home Movies and AR so, so, so much. My favorite chef bar none. Immediately when this came out Tuesday I knew what my plans were for the weekend. I bought the most beautiful lamb shoulder from my butcher, found Italian garbanzo beans, picked up produce from the farmer's market. I woke up at 6am on a Sunday to put the lamb in so it would be ready for my guests to arrive at 6pm for dinner. I cook often and consider myself a proficient home chef. I've successfully cooked a lamb shoulder before. I followed the recipe to a tee - both the lamb and the chickpeas were completely ruined when I finally let myself peek after they had braised for 11 hours. I have an oven thermometer to gauge the correct temperature of my oven. Everything was burnt to an absolute crisp and I'm worried both my Le Cruset dutch ovens may not recover. When I was putting the lamb in, I thought to myself: this recipe needs more liquid - stock, even water. Wish I'd gone with my instinct. (Still love AR though, just not this recipe)/
SAME thing happened to me on Saturday and I came to the comments to see if it happened to anyone else. I followed the recipe exactly. Used a 5lb. bone-in leg of lamb. Rancho Gordo dried chickpeas. Cooked at 275 degrees (also have an additional thermometor to measure temp in oven) and the chickpeas were completely dry at 11 hours and the lamb had less than one cup of liquid left and the part not submerged (most of it) was very dry. I am an AR stan but something about these recipes is off.
I promise nothing about them is off! Lot of success stories out there…the video is also just…the recipe. Again, no tricks or manipulations, it just is what it is.
Just double checking/confirming:
Everyone is using heavy bottomed dutch oven, lid is on, non-convection, and 275 Fahrenheit (not Celsius?)- with oven thermometer to make sure oven isn’t running hot?
I did all of that, except did not double check oven temp.
Same thing happened to me. It was devastating.
Just to chime in... I made this last night with 4lbs of boneless shoulder and it turned out great! Y'all put an ENTIRE bottle of white wine in there *and* covered the pot, right? Mine had 8-10 cups of liquid in there when the braise was done when following these steps. I also used a 5L Le Creuset, idk if the pot size would matter.
Only thing I wish the recipe noted -- it's probably smart to add more salt to the pot before the braise, even if you've seasoned the lamb overnight.
This is my experience as well....I will not rest until we resolve this!
Yes, used an entire bottle of pinot grigio and covered the pot with the lid. A full 750ml of wine = ~3 cups, so not sure how you ended up with 8-10 cups of liquid at the end.
Exactly. At the end of 11 hours, there was about 1 cup of liquid remaining.
Jumping in to say this exact same thing happened to me!! And have similarly NEVER been led astray by an AR recipe. I got a 5.5 lbs lamb leg for Easter Sunday. Didn't have a larger dutch oven so used my 5.5 Qt le Creuset pot and used less potatoes so it would all fit. Put it in a 275 Farenheit oven for 12 hours overnight (alongside the chickpeas) and when I woke up both were burnt and crispy. There was no liquid whatsoever remaining in the chickpeas and only about a cup of liquid remaining in the lamb. I have a gas oven (no convection).
oh no! I'm truly sorry this happened to you. I have been trying to figure out how this is happening to some people while others (myself and others on this thread included) haven't had any issues! I wish I could be there to troubleshoot...my instinct is it's the oven or the pot...but having made this exact recipe in several kitchens over the years and have never had an issue, I truly am stumped. Genuinely sorry this has happened, though!
I also had this experience, sadly. I wonder if our ovens run hot. I also HATED cooking overnight. Never again. I have no idea how you do that in your apartment. The smell overwhelmed us all night long. My husband smelled burning, so I was up at 4am checking them. I took the chickpeas out because I assumed it was them, but when I woke this morning they were undercooked (those burned on bottom of pot) and my lamb and potatoes looked burned to a crisp. Just hoping as I let them sit, liquid will produce and it will be edible. Was very much looking forward to this and it seemed so simple and perfect! Agree with others, your recipes, including all instructions, never fail me. This one is sadly a disappointment.
Just a thought - was the oven on convection? I have read that conventional is preferred for braises. Or too big of a pot so that the liquid did not come up the sides enough?
Nope, it was a conventional oven and I used the same 7.5 quart Le Cruset Dutch Oven used in the video.
Same thing happened to me! I checked at the 9 hour mark and there was hardly any liquid left and meat was really dry. I used a 5lb bone in leg and wonder if the shoulder would be a better pick since it is fattier? I have an oven thermometer, temp was right at 275 F, and in a heavy bottomed Dutch oven, lid on, convection off. I agree with JOS’s comment on another thread that checking at the 6 hour mark and adding more liquid probably would have fixed the problem. It’s not totally lost though, just dry. I’ve got guests coming over soon, so am currently attempting to rehydrate with broth and serving with labneh to counterbalance the dryness!
Alison! Can I replace chickpeas with large Lima beans or will they fall apart? Thanks
large limas tend to fall apart regardless....but it is quite low and slow. bad answer, but my recommendation would be to try it, and if they fall apart (which I would assume they sort of will, but not always a bad thing), turn it into fava aka puree them with garlic and serve as a dip.
Made this last night and it was stunning - perfect thing to eat after trimming the Christmas tree!
I’m so glad you had success with it!
I have a chickpea allergy (annoying, I know). Is there an alternative legume you would suggest that would work well in this recipe?
Made this last Saturday (cooked for 12 hours over Friday night) and it was phenomenal! Used a five pound bone-in lamb shoulder and followed the recipe exactly. Wowed the guests. There was plenty of liquid left in both the chickpeas and the lamb. Wonder why different people had such different experiences.
it really is a full mystery....i am struggling to figure it out myself!