Written by, Chef Paulette Bilsky
One of my most favorite recipes, grilled leg of lamb, came to mind when planning ElectriChef’s sponsorship at the 2017 Coconut Grove Arts Festival. This year my goal was to introduce the CGAF audience to the flavorful techniques of electric rotisserie grilling lamb on my ElectriChef Outdoor Electric Grill.
I knew right away there would be “lamb haters”, but this just inspired me, even more, to create grilled lamb recipes that were not only delicious but easy, flavorful and a proven crowd pleaser when made for my Easter holiday festivities.
The first challenge was to decide what type of lamb I would purchase. There is a huge debate as to whether Australian lamb or American lamb is better. My preference is American Lamb, I have always supported local farmers and will continue to do so!
American Lamb has come a long way because of the interest in the influx of farm to table movement. Many more American farmers have started to raise quality sheep. I did a great deal of research about American Lamb, here are some interesting facts from The American Lamb Board:
I feel the advancement of the lamb industry is the first thing lamb lovers and “lamb haters” should understand before attempting to grill lamb. Once this information is understood, I have been able to dazzle the average griller with the impressive presentation of the rotisserie leg of lamb.
Preparing a leg of lamb cannot be any easier when using a rotisserie. This grilling technique is known to be one of the oldest cooking methods in the world. Historians have placed a significant religious consideration as to why we cook lamb during the Easter season. Even the Pope adopted roasting a whole lamb for his Easter dinner.
I chose to grill a lamb's leg at the CGAF because many people would like to continue this tradition, and the festival comes at a time just before the Easter season. My plan was to incorporate the multi-cultural food environment in Miami. My first recipe at the festival was to keep the traditional Greek Easter rotisserie style lamb's leg.
By: Chef Paulette Bilsky
Serving Size: 12-16
Pro Tip: Lamb can stay in refrigerator overnight, however, the exterior of the lamb may appear to be gray in color. This is perfectly fine if the lamb has been refrigerated properly the entire time.
Pro Tip: By putting the lamb in this location, you have allowed room on the right third of the grill to place other food on the grates while the lamb is on the rotisserie, if desired.
Pro Tip: The internal temperature of the lamb will increase during the resting period so make sure you move the lamb from the grill 5-7 degrees below the desired temperature.
Trussing*¹ is the process of taking butcher’s twine and tying meat such as lamb. The purpose of tying the meat is to keep it in a uniform shape, which helps it cook evenly.
Zest*² is prepared by scraping or cutting from the outer, colorful skin of unwaxed citrus fruits such as lemon, orange, citron, and lime. Zest is used to add flavor ("zest") to foods.
A spit*³ is a long solid rod used to hold food while it is being cooked over a fire in a fireplace or over a grill. This method is generally used for cooking large joints of meat, such as a lamb's leg. In medieval and early modern kitchens, the spit was the preferred way of cooking meat in a large household.
If given the time to rest*⁴ the meat will lose less juice when you cut it, resulting in a juicier and tastier cut of meat. The time taken to rest will depend on its size, but the lamb's leg is best rested for 10 to 20 minutes before carving. Steaks or chops should stand for 5 minutes (but no less than 3) before serving.
What's Next? Subscribe to the blog to be updated when part two of the Lamb Lovers Unite Blog is Posted!