BBQ butterflied lamb

Growing up, butterflied lamb with rosemary and garlic was my family’s go to summer dish when we had friends over.

The lamb was absolutely delicious, full of flavour, and we had leftover cold cuts for our school lunches for a few days afterwards.

Mum marinated the lamb the night before, and when it was time to cook, Dad would disappear with his tray of meat and tongs to the BBQ in the garden below our house (with the dogs following closely behind).

With three daughters, I imagine Dad probably quite enjoyed the peace and quiet (and probably a cold beer), tucked away in the garden behind the brick wall at the end of the driveway.

One butterflied leg serves six people generously (my three teenagers eat a lot). With any luck, you might have some leftovers!

What is butterflied lamb?

Butterflied lamb leg is simply a leg of lamb with the bone cut out.

This means that the lamb flaps out and is relatively uniform in thickness, so it will cook faster on the BBQ or in the oven.

Being a surgeon, it was very easy for my dad to cut the bone out with his sharp knife.

You can often buy lamb legs vacuum-sealed, already butterflied and marinated at the butcher.

As I like to make my own marinade, I ask the butcher to butterfly a fresh lamb leg for me.

I will still ask the butcher to vacuum seal it so that I can just snip the corner of the bag, pour in the marinade and massage it into the meat.

Preparing the marinade

This marinade is as close as I remember to my mum’s original recipe.

It has lots of garlic and rosemary, and the balsamic vinegar gives the lamb a lovely sweetness.

The olive oil helps to keep the meat moist, and it also helps transfer the flavours of the marinade to the meat while balancing the acidity of the vinegar.

I like to blend the marinade with my trusty hand-held blender so that it spreads evenly over the meat, but you don’t have to do this.

Cooking the lamb

I’m no expert when it come to cooking meat, which is why I like to cook this dish.

Cooking the lamb on the BBQ gives it a lovely smoky flavour, with a few better done slices on the ends and pink in the middle.

You can also cook the lamb in the oven, although the cooking time may vary a little.

If you have a meat thermometer, here is a handy guide for determining how well your meat is cooked.

Serving suggestions

I like to serve the lamb with some roasted vegetables and a simple green salad.

These brown butter roasted carrots and salt and vinegar roasted potatoes can be popped in the oven while the lamb is cooking and they’ll be ready to serve with the lamb.

The marinade also works well with skirt or hangar steak.

Best wishes,

Amanda

PS: If you’ve tried this butterflied lamb with rosemary and garlic or any other recipe from At Amanda’s Table, please let me know how it turned out in the comments below.

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