Welcome back John and today he will be sharing some of his own cooking here with us!! Thank you, John
This is a recipe for a “Gigot D’Agneau” – and it’s one of my favourite fall or holiday meals, thanks to the incredible Chef / Author Patricia Wells!
My wife Alex and I got the chance to cook with Patricia at her house in Provence – an adventure of a lifetime – here we are with Patricia in front of the stove that Julia Child gave her.
It was all part of a cooking adventure with the Author, who hosts cooking classes at her house in Provence, France.
It inspired me to make my family her classic roast lamb shank, which is baked on top of potatoes, onion and tomatoes so that the incredible juices from the lamb soak into the gratin!
Let’s make a roasted lamb shank with provencal vegetables! First, preheat your oven to 400 degrees.
Rub the bottom of your roasting pan with a split piece of garlic. I also lay down a dozen slivers of butter to help the potatoes carmelize…then slice your potatoes and lay them down at the base of your dish…
On top of the potato I spread sliced onion…instead of chopped, I like them spread out as rings, and then I add chopped garlic. The amount is up to you…but a head of garlic and one large onion worked for me…
Next, slice tomatoes over the top of the onion – I used three tomatoes total, and I cut them in a larger chunk as they will melt down a bit during cooking – and then I season the dish with a healthy amount of salt, pepper and fresh thyme…
I used a leg of lamb that was just under six pounds. I got mine bone-in, which I think helps the flavour of the meat…put the lamb shank on an oven rack, which you put directly over the vegetables…season the lamb with salt, pepper and fresh rosemary…then drizzle some olive oil because why not?
I roasted the lamb for about an hour and fifteen minutes…the thicker part was medium rare and the smaller side of the shank was medium, so it worked well for everyone!
I removed the lamb to a cutting board and let it rest for fifteen minutes…here is what that beautiful potato-onion-tomato looked like underneath….
I served the dish with some provencal carrots, slivered and flash fried in a pan with slivered garlic and slices of black olive. On this plate below I also had a Ratatouille as well. Enjoy the south of France!
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This lamb roast looks absolutely delicious – and BEAUTIFUL! I am going to add it to my ‘Have To Make” list. Although, my poor pup will not be happy. She hides and shakes whenever we cook lamb. The scent must be alarming to her for some reason. Weird! I know. She’s just going to have to deal with it. Thanks for sharing you beautiful dish!
Thank you so much for popping over and I trust and hope that you will love it as much as I love lamb. Maybe your pup should have a ‘playdate’ when you prepare this one ♥
Great point!
Ooh, that’s a great idea. Otherwise, we will just let her hide in our room while we dine. 😊
Please send me a picture then I can add it here to the post as an addendum – that would be awesome. Thanks in advance
Thanks for the comment – sorry about your dog not like the smell of lamb…don’t want to alarm her but the dish is almost worth it!
Oh, I agree! The pup will get over it. We will be making this dish. 😊
Enjoy it and keep us posted of the end result
As mentioned John, I think this pup should have a playdate soon!
Gigot is the go-to of choice for so many families here in Grenoble on a Sunday. Your recipe would grace any French table 🙂
Awesome news – I think I need John to come over and prepare it for me, what do you think??
HA! It’s interesting that in the US we don’t make these types of meals very often – like having Turkey once a year…need to do it more!
John you need to do it more often. 😍
I am going to! A day after “lambwich” is a great thing!
Awesome John Enjoy it
Thanks for the comment! I don’t think we make these kinds of dishes enough in the US – this is a classic, it’s delicious and leftovers are sublime!
I have to say that the French DO know a thing or two about cooking ….
YES!
Love it, yes they’re good