Chefs share the best ways to cook lamb

Moroccan inspired

TV chef Andi Oliver’s go-to way to make lamb is inspired by a trip to Morocco.

“I poach it first in a bunch of incredible spices,” she reveals. “When the lamb is tender, you take it out and add half the volume in very thinly sliced onions to the cooking liquor. Take the poached shoulder and baste it with olive oil and melted butter and put it in a very high oven – get it really crispy. So you reduce the onion and the poaching liquor, then pour that back over the crispy lamb shoulder or leg.”

Spit roast

If you want to go all-out, why not try cooking the lamb whole?

Ioannis Grammenos, executive chef at Heliot Steak House, says: “One of my all-time favourite ways to have lamb for spring is as a whole spit roast, cooked with just salt and pepper on charcoal for around six to seven hours until crispy.”

Slow-cooked

Anisa Karolia, author of The Ramadan Cookbook, recommends nihari – an Indian stew cooked with lamb or beef.

It’s a “quite soupy” dish and, if you don’t have a slow cooker, you can cook it on a low heat on the stove for a few hours. “You’ve got lots of aromatic flavours in there,” says Karolia. “It’s often made with a specific nihari spice blend, featuring bay leaves, cinnamon, cardamom, fennel, coriander, cumin and more.”

With spring flavours

“My daughter loves lamb – last night I cooked lamb chops because that’s what she asked for,” says author Su Scott.

“I like to cook it really, really simply – we love making lamb cutlets. Salt and pepper, grill it really beautifully to medium rare, with the fat nicely caramelised.”

To and freshness, Scott uses spring flavours. “I baste it with a nice, zingy mint and orange zest dressing on top to lift it,” she says.

GOES WELL WITH