Intro
Let’s keep this quick today because 1. you have a video to watch and 2. you need to start marinating your leg of lamb.
Now I realize leg of lamb may not be the most traditional BBQ choice but that’s what I love about it. It’s unexpected. Lamb is also a healthy choice but for me I choose it because it is just tastes so good, especially when it’s marinated in toasted spices, fragrant herbs and creamy yogurt.
If you’ve been following along over the last week then you already have the recipes for your side dishes. This lamb sits on a plate beautifully with the Couscous with Fresh Cherries and the Grilled Vegetables with Mint Yogurt.
I hope you all have a fun, safe, and delicious 4th of July!
* Thank you Lean on Lamb for sponsoring this recipe and the Lamb Burger (which I made again last night and LOVED). As always, the words, recipe, images, and in this case, video, are mine.
Grilled Leg of Lamb
2 1/2 tablespoons coriander seeds
1 tablespoon caraway seeds
1 tablespoon cumin seeds
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
2 tablespoons dried mint
2 cups whole milk greek yogurt, divided
6 garlic cloves, minced, divided
5 lemons
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup water
1 4-5 pound leg of lamb
salt and pepper
For the spice mix: Toast the coriander, caraway, and cumin seeds in a dry pan over medium-high heat until fragrant, about 2 to 3 minutes.
Remove the seeds from the pan and let cool for about 5 minutes.
Grind the spices in a spice grinder then add them to a small bowl and combine with the smoked paprika and dried mint.
For the lamb: Butterfly the leg of lamb and open it up like a book. Generously season with salt and pepper.
Combine 1 cup yogurt with 3 minced garlic cloves and 3 tablespoons spice mix.
Slather the lamb with the marinade, cover then refrigerate overnight.
For the yogurt sauce: In a medium bowl combine the remaining 1 cup yogurt, 3 minced garlic cloves and 3 tablespoons spice mix along with the juice from 1 lemon, 1 teaspoon kosher salt, freshly ground black pepper, 1/4 cup olive oil and 1/4 cup water. Whisk well to combine. Cover and refrigerate. This can be made the day before, in fact the flavor improves after a rest in the fridge.
Grill the lamb: Let the lamb sit out at room temperature for about an hour.
Prepare the grill.
Over medium-high heat, grill the lamb for 10 to 15 minutes per side or until 145°F for medium rare.
Yogurt Sauce
1 cup yogurt
3 tbl spice mix (it’s what is left over)
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 tbl lemon juice
1/4 cup olive oil
1 teaspoon kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
Combine everything in a bowl. Taste and adjust seasoning to your liking. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.
The flavor is best if you make this the day before serving.
Ashley, this is a recipe after my own heart! I am so glad to see more bloggers signing a little praise to lamb! I have always felt, more people should learn about lamb.
Also love the fresh Mediterranean twist to your recent recipes. XO
That photo of you is too cute!
Beautiful photos; lovely video! <3 Have a happy 4th!
Ashley, this looks fabulous, thank you for the recipe! I hope you and your family have a wonderful 4th – and that they got to enjoy that yummy lamb!
Ashley, I just wanted to tell you that I bought your cookbook this weekend and I am in love with it. We just made the Mexican grilled corn last night to go with burgers and it was perfection. I know that recipe barely touches the surface of the gold that is your book, so I’m very excited to try more! And this leg of lamb, btw, looks AMAZING.
OMG this lamb looks D I V I N E!!! The marinade looks delicious and can’t wait to try it – perfect for Summer entertaining ~ Cheers!
Girrrrrl! I’m inviting myself over to your next BBQ. This looks incredible.
Beautiful.
We tried this recipe last night on our Green Egg. It was a smashing success! My father (who is from Iran) said this flavor combination took him back to a small town where they would roast lamb in a similar fashion. Thank you for posting this!
That’s so great! Thank you so much for telling me!
Looks great! I can’t wait to try this 🙂
That looks wonderful. I’ve never cooking lamb before but I think I’m going to try it now. Thank you!