The Dish | Slow Cooked Lamb with White Wine and Potatoes

After all the holiday cooking exhaustion, here’s a beyond simple lamb recipe from Alison Roman’s website that literally cooks itself. Liberally seasoned with salt and pepper overnight, the lamb goes in the oven for 10-12 hours (yes — not a typo — this is the cooking time!) and emerges a dish worthy of your most discerning guests. It can even be made 3-4 days ahead, stored in the fridge, and reheated in the same pot in a 275 F oven. Just toss a green salad and voila! It is truly a winner in our household.

INGREDIENTS:

• 4-5 pounds bone-in lamb leg or shoulder, untied. (If you can’t find bone-in lamb, use 3-4 pounds of boneless leg or shoulder)
• Kosher salt and ground black pepper
• 750ml dry white wine, such as pinot grigio
• 2 pounds waxy potatoes, such as Yukon Gold or large fingerlings, peeled or unpeeled halved or left whole, if they are on the small side
• 2 heads garlic, unpeeled and halved crosswise
• 1 lemon, halved crosswise
• 1 bunch oregano, marjoram, or thyme

GARNISH:

• Olive oil
• 1 lemon
• 1-2 cups tender herbs such as parsley, dill, chives, and mint
• Greek yogurt or labneh seasoned with salt, pepper, and garlic

DIRECTIONS:

• A day ahead (at least), season lamb very well with salt and pepper. Leave in the fridge for 12-24 hours if you can; if not, just put it straight into the pot.
• Preheat oven to 275 F.
• Place in a large (8-quart) Dutch oven or other heavy bottomed casserole dish with a tightly fitting lid.
• Scatter potatoes, garlic, lemon, and oregano (or marjoram or thyme) around lamb and pour the wine over everything. Give a good glug of olive oil over everything for a nice thick layer.
• Place casserole in oven and DO NOT LOOK or peek for 10 hours (and closer to 12) if your lamb is on the larger side. Lamb is resilient, so don’t worry if it cooks for 11 hours when you meant 10.
• Remove from the oven and set aside to cool slightly. Transfer lamb and vegetables to a serving platter. The lamb will pull apart and fall off the bone and that’s okay. Spoon the potatoes and bits of garlic over the meat and then top with herbs and another good pour of olive oil. Serve alongside yogurt sauce and lemon wedges.