Herb Crusted Roast Lamb

My Herb Crusted Roast Lamb is a brilliant recipe for your next Sunday roast or dinner party, with perfectly tender, rosy pink lamb surrounded in a bright green fresh herb and lemon crust. Served with plenty of mint sauce and some Mediterranean roast vegetables, this is a meal the whole family can enjoy.

My Herb Crusted Roast Lamb is a brilliant recipe for your next Sunday roast or dinner party, with perfectly tender, rosy pink lamb surrounded in a bright green fresh herb and lemon crust.

Served with plenty of mint sauce and some Mediterranean roast vegetables, this is a meal the whole family can enjoy.

Herb Crusted Roast Lamb sliced on a plate with Mediterranean roast vegetables.

Ingredients

To make this seriously tasty lamb roast, you’ll need the following main ingredients:

  • Lamb: The star ingredient! I recommend using deboned lamb leg / boneless leg of lamb, which is often available already rolled and tied at the supermarket or from your butcher. If it’s not ready-rolled, it’s simple enough to tie it up yourself with butcher’s twine or kitchen twine.
  • Fresh Herbs: Lamb loves fresh herbs. I like to use a mixture of parsley, chives and thyme with a little lemon or orange zest to make the herb crust (or Gremolata). You can alter the herb mixture to suit your tastes. As the crust is fresh rather than roasted, you can use soft herbs like basil or even mint if you like. You’ll also need some Dijon mustard to stick the crust to the lamb. Note: I use a food processor for the parsley, but I always cut the chives by hand.
  • Roast Vegetables: Lamb is glorious with Mediterranean flavours, so I like to serve it with some roasted potatoes, red onions, tomatoes, garlic and olives, all seasoned with oregano. I like to roast plenty of garlic with the vegetables so that people can add as much or as little to their lamb as they like.
  • Olive oil, salt and pepper: Roast your lamb and vegetables with plenty of good quality olive oil for the best flavour.
Rolled deboned Lamb Leg on a plate with fresh herbs.
Mediterranean Vegetables for roasting ready to go into the oven. Potatoes, tomatoes, red onions, olives, garlic and fresh herbs.

Instructions

Roasts might seem intimidating, but in fact, they are one of the easiest of all meals to cook, great for feeding a crowd and the oven does most of the work. There are really just a few main stages:

  1. PREPARE: The first step is to take the lamb out of the fridge at least 45 minutes to an hour before you want to cook. Allowing the lamb to come up to room temperature means it will cook evenly. Heat up your oven to 170°C (350°F) Fan forced (because we are cooking multiple dishes at once, we want that air moving the heat around). Chop up all your vegetables and toss with olive oil and oregano. Rub the lamb all over with olive oil and brown well in a skillet or frying pan.
  2. ROAST: Roast the lamb and the vegetables for 60-75 minutes, until a thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the meat reads 55°C (130°F) for medium-rare, or 60°C (140°F) for medium-well. Tent the vegetables with foil if they are browning too much. Trust me when I say a digital thermometer or meat thermometer is absolutely life-changing! There’s a link to one like mine in the recipe card.
  3. REST: Remove the lamb from the oven, cover with foil and then a couple of tea towels and rest for 15-20 minutes. Resting the meat allows it to finish cooking and redistributes the juices making for a gloriously tender roast.
  4. MAKE THE CRUST: While the lamb is resting or roasting, chop your herbs nice and fine and mix with the lemon zest. When the lamb has rested, rub it all over with Dijon mustard, then roll it in the beautiful green herbs.
  5. SERVE: All that’s left to do is to transfer everything to a serving platter, slice up your lamb and tuck in. Don’t forget plenty of mint sauce on the side!

The complete ingredient list and detailed instructions are in the recipe card at the bottom of the page.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Can I use other cuts of lamb to make this dish?

This recipe was written with rolled lamb leg in mind. You can use lamb shoulder though I find it is a little fattier, so I prepare to cook it closer to medium well. The herb crust is also delicious with lamb backstrap, though, of course, this has a vastly reduced cooking time.

Can I make herb-crusted leg of lamb in advance?

Lovely rosy lamb has to be cooked at the time you are planning to serve it. However, the leftovers make fabulous lamb sandwiches or wraps!

Roast Lamb with fresh herb crust, sliced, showing perfect rosy pink, medium-rare interior.
Roast Lamb with fresh herb crust, sliced, showing perfect rosy pink, medium-rare interior. Mediterranean Roast vegetables on the side.
Roast Lamb with fresh herb crust, sliced, showing perfect rosy pink, medium-rare interior. Mediterranean Roast vegetables on the side.

Roast Lamb with Herb Crust Recipe

Herb Crusted Roast Lamb

Herb Crusted Roast Lamb

Jay Wadams
My recipe for Herb Crusted Roast lamb is super simple, flavoursome and looks absolutely stunning on the table thanks to a beautiful green fresh herb crust. Serve with mint sauce and some Mediterranean-inspired roast vegetables. Ideal for Sunday lunch or a special occasion.
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Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour
Resting Time 20 minutes
Serves 4

Ingredients
 

for the lamb:

  • 1 kg boneless lamb leg, rolled and tied
  • 1 Tbsp olive oil
  • sea salt and black pepper

for the roast vegetables:

  • 750 g potatoes
  • 4 tomatoes
  • 2 red onions
  • 100 g Kalamata olives
  • 2 small heads of garlic
  • 2 Tbsp olive oil
  • 2 tsp dried oregano

for the fresh herb crust:

  • 1 bunch parsley
  • 1 bunch chives
  • 1 bunch thyme, leaves only
  • zest of 1 lemon or orange
  • 1 Tbsp Dijon mustard

to serve:

  • mint sauce

Instructions
 

  • PREPARE: Remove the lamb from the refrigerator 1 hour before cooking. Line a large roasting pan or baking dish with baking paper and heat the oven to 170°C Fan Forced. Cut the potatoes into large dice, quarter the tomatoes, slice the onions chunkily and halve the garlic bulbs. Transfer to a large rimmed baking sheet and toss with the olive oil and oregano. Season well and set aside.
  • BROWN THE LAMB: Pat the lamb dry with a paper towel, rub all over with olive oil and season well. Heat a large frying pan or skillet and brown the lamb well on all sides over medium-high heat, taking care to really brown the fatty side for the best flavour. Transfer lamb to the prepared roasting pan with the fat side up.
  • ROAST LAMB AND VEGETABLES: Transfer the lamb and vegetables to the oven with the vegetables below the lamb (see notes for non-fan forced ovens). Roast for approximately 60-75 minutes, or until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the meat reads an internal temperature of 55°C (130°F) for medium-rare, or 60°C (140°F) for medium-well. Tent the vegetables with foil if they are browning too much.
  • MAKE HERB CRUST: While the lamb is roasting, finely chop the parsley, chives and them and zest the lemon or orange. Mix well in a small bowl then spread over a plate.
  • REST LAMB: It is important not to skip this step! Place lamb on a cutting board, cover with foil and then a couple of tea towels or a towel and rest for 15 minutes. This allows the lamb to finish cooking (the temperature will rise up to 5°C in this time) and relaxes the meat so the juices are evenly distributed. Keep the roast vegetables warm.
  • ROLL THE LAMB IN HERBS: Uncover the lamb, brush it all over with Dijon mustard, then roll in the chopped herbs, turning to cover completely. Transfer to a warmed serving platter or carving board, then slice and serve with the roasted vegetables (seasoned well with salt and pepper) and mint sauce. It's nice for people to squeeze the softened and caramelised garlic out of the bulbs and add as much or as little as they like to the lamb.

Notes

No fan-forced oven: If possible, try to roast the vegetables side by side with the lamb or surrounding it on a large oven tray. You’ll need to increase the temperature to 180°C / 350°F. If you only have a very small oven, then you’ll need to choose another side dish that can be served cold or prepared on the stovetop such as mashed potato and green veg.
Resting the lamb: This step is imperative as it allows the meat to relax and redistribute its juices, making for a more tender and delicious roast.

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Nutrition

Serving: 3slices | Calories: 1026kcal | Carbohydrates: 44g | Protein: 47g | Fat: 74g | Saturated Fat: 28g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 6g | Monounsaturated Fat: 35g | Cholesterol: 183mg | Sodium: 599mg | Potassium: 1732mg | Fiber: 8g | Sugar: 7g | Vitamin A: 1130IU | Vitamin C: 58mg | Calcium: 103mg | Iron: 6mg
Tried this recipe?I’d love to hear how it went! Please leave a review or a star rating and let me know how it was! Use the hashtag #daysofjay on Instagram so I can see your delicious creations.
Course | Main Event
Cuisine | Australian
Ⓒ | Jay Wadams
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Jay Wadams
Jay Wadams

Jay Wadams is a cookbook author, food photographer and Le Cordon Bleu Gastronomy and Nutrition graduate. Based in Italy 🇮🇹 Germany 🇩🇪 and Australia 🇦🇺.

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