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Lamb leg marinated in yoghurt and pecans with chickpeas

Name: Lamb leg with yoghurt marinade recipe
Yield: 4
Ingredients: 120g pecans; 50g flat-leaf parsley, roughly chopped; 50g coriander, roughly chopped; 6 garlic cloves; 20g fresh turmeric, roughly chopped; 20.00 ml coriander seeds, ground; 1 tsp cumin seeds, ground; 250g natural yoghurt, plus extra, to serve; 1.5kg lamb leg, deboned, butterflied (ask your butcher and see notes); 400g canned chickpeas; Vegetable oil, to shallow-fry

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Lamb leg marinated in yoghurt and pecans with chickpeas — Lamb leg with yoghurt marinade recipe

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by delicious. team

delicious. team

Aug 22, 2024

"The yoghurt will tenderise the lamb and create a great crust with the pecans." - Alanna Sapwell-Stone and Matt Stone

Recipe note: Begin this recipe a day ahead

This recipe is by Alanna Sapwell-Stone and Matt Stone

120g pecans
50g flat-leaf parsley, roughly chopped
50g coriander, roughly chopped
6 garlic cloves
20g fresh turmeric, roughly chopped
1 tbs coriander seeds, ground
1 tsp cumin seeds, ground
250g natural yoghurt, plus extra, to serve
1.5kg lamb leg, deboned, butterflied (ask your butcher and see notes)

Crispy chickpeas

2 (400g) cans chickpeas, drained
Vegetable oil, to shallow-fry

Method

1.

Place the pecans, herbs, garlic, turmeric, and spices in a food processor and whiz to a paste. Add the yoghurt and whiz until combined. Season to taste.
2.

Place lamb on a chopping board. Using a sharp knife, score the lamb on both sides, then brush all over with three-quarters of the yoghurt marinade and place in a large bowl. Reserve remaining marinade. Cover reserved marinade and lamb, and chill overnight.
3.

Preheat oven to 180°C/200°C fan-forced. Place a wire roasting rack in a large baking dish and top with the lamb. Roast, uncovered, for 45 minutes for medium or until cooked to your liking (see notes). Rest lamb for 10 minutes before slicing.
4.

Meanwhile, for the chickpeas, place chickpeas in a large tea towel and pat dry. Heat 2cm oil in a heavy-based frypan over medium-high heat. Taking care of the oil splattering, shallow-fry the chickpeas, in two batches, for 3-4 minutes until golden and crisp. Using a slotted spoon, transfer to a baking tray lined with paper towel and set aside to drain. Season to taste.
5.

To serve, slice lamb and arrange on a serving platter. Drizzle over reserved marinade and serve with crispy chickpeas and extra natural yoghurt alongside.

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Recipe Notes

You can also cook the lamb on a charcoal-fired barbecue with a lid, or on a gas-fired chargrill barbecue with a lid. You want to heat the barbecue to medium heat. Start with the fat side facing up. This will caramelise the cut side of the lamb and give the fat side a chance to start setting without the dripping fat causing flames.

Once this side is nicely coloured, turn heat to medium-low and flip to fat-side down. Cook for about 20 minutes, then turn to low and flip lamb over again. We like to cook the lamb leg to a high medium, so it’s just blushing pink after being rested. Recommended butterflied lamb cooking times are 12 minutes per 500g for rare, 15 minutes per 500g for medium and 18 minutes per 500g for well done.