A couple of weeks ago I received an email from Kathy, one the readers. She was inquiring about Gigot and how she should go about making it.  I immediately called my mom, the roast expert, and asked for the recipe as I had never made lamb roast before.  I have to tell you I love roast, always have, always will.  All the credit for this love affair goes to my mom because she makes roasts pretty often.  I love making roasts because they are not only easy but also because they are the perfect make a little ahead type of dish. Anyway all of the Gigot talk lit a fire under my buns and I decided to make it and post.  The timing of course could have not been more perfect given that the holidays are coming and this is a fabulous dish to have at your table.

There are a few different variations of this recipe, but for today I am going to post the most simplistic form of Persian Lamb Roast also known as Gigot! More recipes to come in the future!!

This recipe is good enough for a crowd of 6 to 8 people.

Ingredients

5 lb lamb (boneless lamb leg)
3 carrots
3 stalks of celery
12 garlic gloves
2 cups mint
2 cups parsley
2 tbsp dried tarragon
1 onion
salt & pepper
oil

Cut carrots, celery, and onion in big chunks.  Prep herbs by removing the bottom portion of the stems. All the players pictured above are the aromatics for the roast. The smell of lamb can be super strong but garlic and mint do a good job of reducing it!

If your roast is pre-tied, great, if not you will need to tie your leg of lamb. Make small incision in the meat and push a piece of garlic inside the meat.  Repeat all over the lamb. Make sure that this is done all over the roast.

Generously season meat with salt and pepper. Saute in some oil until all side are brown.

Add the veggies around the roast.

Then add fresh herbs and 1 tablespoon of tarragon. Add 1 cup of water, cover and cook for an hour and half on medium low.  During the cooking time check on the meat often to make sure that the liquid doesn’t completely evaporate and also baste the meat with juices. Gigot can also be roasted in the oven. But for this recipe I did it on the stove top.

The roast will be ready when the internal temperature will reach 130°.  Remove lamb from the pot and cover with aluminum foil and let rest.

In the mean time strain the juices for the sauce.

If possible discard the fat on top.  Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper and add 1 tablespoon of tarragon. Bring to a simmer and allow to reduce by 1/3.

Cut roast in thin rounds.Pour the sauce on top or serve in a bowl along the roast.

The Gigot tasted great and it came out nice and tender.  The key is to not overcook your roast. The sauce made it over the top delish!  have to say that the only difficult part of this recipe was taking pictures of the final product. I have to say that taking a picture of this roast was by far the most challenging photo experience.