Whole Leg of Lamb Slow-Roasted Over an Open Fire
Argentinian-style leg of lamb on traditional meat hooks over an open fire
We recently stayed at Ou Skool outside Robertson, a beautifully restored old school building tucked away near the Marloth Nature Reserve and surrounded by mountains.
The accommodation is an absolute paradise if you enjoy cooking. Along with a well-equipped kitchen and wood-fired pizza oven, the indoor braai has traditional meat hooks that allow you to hang ingredients over the fire and cook them Argentinian-style.
I obviously had to try it.
We hung a whole leg of lamb over the fire together with honey and thyme-basted butternuts, mini red cabbages basted with balsamic vinegar and a whole pineapple. Everything cooked slowly from the heat of the coals, picking up plenty of smoky flavour and caramelisation.
This is not a quick midweek recipe. It is the type of cooking you do with friends, a glass of wine and nowhere else to be. The lamb develops a beautifully dark crust while remaining tender inside, and the hanging vegetables and pineapple make impressive sides without needing additional cooking equipment.
Serves: 8
Preparation time: 35 minutes, plus optional overnight marinating
Cooking time: approximately 2½–3½ hours
Resting time: 20 minutes
Ingredients for the leg of lamb
1 whole bone-in leg of lamb with the shank attached, approximately 2.5–3 kg
4 garlic cloves, peeled and sliced
20 g fresh rosemary
15 g fresh thyme
1 tablespoon dried oregano
1–2 teaspoons cayenne pepper
2 tablespoons olive oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Ingredients for the herb and chilli brine
250 ml water
60 ml red wine vinegar
1 tablespoon sea salt
zest of 1 lemon
1 small shallot, finely chopped
15 g fresh parsley, finely chopped
10 g fresh tarragon, finely chopped
2 red chillies, thinly sliced
1 teaspoon dried oregano
½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
Ingredients for the honey and thyme butternuts
2 small butternuts
3 tablespoons honey
2 tablespoons olive oil
10 g fresh thyme
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Ingredients for the balsamic mini red cabbages
4 mini red cabbage
60 ml balsamic vinegar
2 tablespoons olive oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Ingredients for the fire-roasted pineapple
1 whole ripe pineapple
1 tablespoon olive oil
Cooking equipment needed
A sturdy tripod or braai fitted with a hanging rail
Strong butcher’s hooks and chains
Meat thermometer
Basting brushes
Sharp carving knife
Large wooden board
How to prepare the herb and chilli brine
1Combine the water, red wine vinegar and salt in a bowl. Mix until most of the salt has dissolved.
Add the lemon zest, shallot, parsley, tarragon, chillies, oregano and cayenne pepper.
Cover and refrigerate overnight if you have time. This allows the flavours to develop.
Before cooking, pour approximately 60 ml of the clean brine into a separate container and keep it refrigerated. This portion will be used when serving. Use the remaining brine only for basting the lamb.
How to prepare the leg of lamb
Make small incisions across the leg of lamb using the tip of a sharp knife.
Push the sliced garlic, rosemary and thyme into the incisions.
Rub the lamb with olive oil and season generously with salt, freshly ground black pepper, oregano and cayenne pepper.
Cover and leave the lamb to marinate in the fridge overnight. If you do not have time, you can cook it immediately, but the overnight marinade will give you a better result.
Remove the lamb from the fridge approximately 45 minutes before cooking.
How to prepare the hanging sides
Cut the butternuts in half lengthways and scoop out the seeds. Mix the honey, olive oil and thyme together, then brush the mixture generously over the butternut. Season with salt and black pepper.
Remove any damaged outer leaves from the mini red cabbages and cut each cabbage in half through the core. Keeping part of the core attached will help prevent the leaves from falling apart while cooking.
Mix the balsamic vinegar and olive oil together. Brush the mixture over the cabbages and season with salt and black pepper.
Peel the pineapple while keeping it whole. You can leave the crown attached for presentation. Lightly coat the pineapple with olive oil.
Attach the butternuts, cabbages and pineapple securely to individual hooks. Push the hooks through the firmest part of each ingredient so they do not fall into the fire as they soften.
How to cook everything over the fire
Make a large fire using good-quality hardwood. Allow it to burn down until you have a deep, even bed of hot coals. Keep a smaller fire burning alongside it so you can add fresh coals when needed.
Secure the lamb firmly through the thickest part of the shank using a butcher’s hook. Make sure the hook passes through enough muscle to support the weight of the lamb throughout cooking.
Hang the lamb approximately 50–60 cm above or alongside the coals. You want steady radiant heat rather than flames touching the meat.
Slowly rotate the lamb every 15–20 minutes so it cooks evenly.
Brush or splash a small amount of the herb brine over the lamb each time you turn it. The surface should gradually develop a dark, caramelised crust without burning.
Continue adding coals when needed and adjust the height of the lamb if it is colouring too quickly.
Once the lamb has been cooking for approximately 1½ hours, hang the prepared butternuts around the fire. Depending on their size, they will need approximately 60–90 minutes to soften.
Add the red cabbages and whole pineapple for the final 45–60 minutes of cooking.
Turn the sides regularly. Baste the butternuts with the honey and thyme mixture and brush the cabbages with the balsamic mixture every 15 minutes.
Allow the pineapple to rotate slowly over the heat until it is golden and caramelised on all sides. The natural sugars will darken quickly, so move it further from the coals if it begins to burn.
Use a meat thermometer to test the thickest part of the lamb without touching the bone. Remove it at approximately 55–58°C for medium-rare or 60–63°C for medium. The internal temperature will continue rising slightly while the meat rests.
Place the lamb on a wooden board, cover it loosely with foil and leave it to rest for at least 20 minutes.
Remove the vegetables and pineapple from the hooks. The butternut should be soft inside with caramelised edges, and the cabbage should be tender while still holding its shape.
Carve the lamb into thin slices and spoon over a little of the clean brine that was set aside before cooking.
Arrange the lamb on a large serving platter with the honey and thyme butternut and balsamic red cabbage. Slice the roasted pineapple into thick rounds or wedges and serve alongside the lamb.
Enjoy! Please tag me on Instagram if you’ve made this recipe - I’d love to see it!
More recipes
Below the newsletter block, you will find some more recipes.
There are a lot of different types of meats you can cook on the braai. How about this Prime Rib Roast with Exotic Mushroom Sauce and Pak Choy? You can also make a Leg of Lamb on the braai or a Lemon & Herb Peri-Peri and Rosemary Deboned Leg of Lamb. I’ve also made Ostrich Fillet Kebabs with Nectarine and Rosemary on the braai.
Other than meat, South Africans also love to put seafood on the braai. This braaied snoek recipe with plum jam is a winner.
If you’re looking for a side on the braai, you can either make this pull bread with pesto, mozzarella and Hellmann’s mayonnaise, or make traditional braai broodjies (keep an eye out for my secret ingredient). If you have leftover gammon, these gammon braai broodjies are also to die for.
About Shawn Godfrey
Photo credit: Niki M Photography
Shawn Godfrey is an entrepreneur based in Cape Town, South Africa. After the Covid-19 lockdown saw his business in financial distress, cooking was the creative outlet that helped to keep him sane. To keep track of his recipes, and encourage friends and families to join him, he starts his instagram account The Roasted Dad.
Fast-forward to late 2021 - on a whim Shawn (encouraged by his wife Lianne) enters MasterChef South Africa. It is a crazy time of life: running a 200 people business and struggling to keep it profitable, two small children with a third on the way, and about to move into a new house. But when Shawn gets selected to be one of the 20 contestants participating in the fourth season of MasterChef South Africa, he decides to go all in. Leaving his 7-month-pregnant wife to look after their then three and one-year-old children, he battles it out and comes back home five weeks later with the trophy and a million rand prize money in his pocket.
It all started with an Instagram account, but The Roasted Dad is so much more now. Shawn has stayed his entrepreneurial self and whilst he hosts Private Dinner Parties and Cook-with-Me Demos, does Restaurant Take-Overs, he still runs the lighting company and several other businesses.
On his blog, Shawn shares Restaurant Reviews and Accommodation Reviews, and gives an insight into the wild and wonderful life he leads together with his wife Lianne, and their three children Aiden (8), Olivia (6) and Harvey (4).
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