Barbecued lamb leg on brick with chimichurri
Australian television personality (My Kitchen Rules) and chef Colin Fassnidge believes in mastering the basics, embracing cheaper cuts of meat, minimising waste and having a wellstocked pantry. Know for his nose to tail cooking, he is also a great advoca
Barbecued lamb leg on a brick with chimichurri
Serves 6-8
Here’s my barbecue hack for lamb, which takes things to the next level! You will need one clean household brick to make this dish, and you’ll need to start the recipe the day before.
Ingredients
1 x 3kg lamb leg, bone in
3 bunches of rosemary, leaves picked from one bunch
1 bunch of marjoram, leaves picked 20 pickled white anchovy fillets
10 garlic cloves, halved olive oil, for brushing and drizzling rock salt and freshly ground black pepper juice of 2 lemons
CHIMICHURRI
1⁄2 small red onion, diced
3 garlic cloves, smashed
grated zest and juice of 1 lemon, plus extra if needed
3 thyme sprigs, leaves picked
handful of mint, leaves picked and roughly chopped
handful of flatleaf parsley, leaves picked and roughly chopped
handful of coriander, leaves picked and roughly chopped
1 teaspoon finely chopped deseeded bird’s eye chilli
1⁄2 teaspoon toasted and ground cumin seeds
150ml extravirgin olive oil
Method
Using a small paring knife, slice 20 small incisions into the lamb to make 20 small pockets on the top and bottom of the leg.
Stuff the pockets with the picked rosemary and marjoram leaves, anchovy fillets and garlic. Brush the lamb leg with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Refrigerate, uncovered, overnight.
The next day, preheat a gas barbecue grill on high for 1 hour before you want to start cooking.
Soak a regular house brick in a bucket of cold water for 1 hour. Place the brick in the middle of the barbecue grill and scatter the remaining rosemary bunches on top. (this acts as a trivet, which keeps the lamb away from the hot grill and stops it from overcooking).
Place the lamb leg on top of the brick, close the lid and leave for 10 minutes to come back up to temperature. Reduce the heat to low and cook the lamb for 20 minutes, turn it over and cook for a further 20 minutes, or until the lamb is caramelised all over, with an internal temperature of 54degC on a kitchen thermometer.
Meanwhile, place all the chimichurri ingredients in a blender or the bowl of a food processor and blitz to a chunky or smooth sauce, depending on your preference. Taste and add a little extra lemon juice for acidity if you think the sauce needs it.
Remove the lamb from the barbecue and set aside to rest for 30 minutes. Season with salt and pepper and drizzle with olive oil and the lemon juice.
Carve the lamb and serve with the chimichurri on the side.