{argentinian lamb dinner party}

Last time the people over at Lean on Lamb sent us a few cuts of lamb, the result was a great morrocan inspired meal and dinner party.  A few weeks back they again offered to send us another package of lamb to create a recipe around and we of course jumped at the chance to have an excuse to throw another dinner party at our place.  This time we kept the recipe and ingredients simple, letting the lamb take center stage accompanied only by a flavorful chimichurri sauce.  One of my all-time favorite dishes is flank steak topped with chimichurri and we thought the Argentinian sauce would also compliment roasted leg of lamb dish.  Chimichurri is very quick to make since it requires few ingredients and even though it packs a lot of flavor, it doesn't overpower the entire meal.  Chris decided to stick with a crowd-pleasing favorite and serve the lamb alongside garlic roasted  potatoes and red onions (see below for the full recipes on the dishes we served). We rounded the meal out with a fresh arugula salad topped with goat cheese, strawberries, radishes, red onion and a balsamic vinaigrette.  

Argentinian Lamb with Roasted Red Potatoes and Chimichurri

Cook Time: 1 hour, 45 minutes
Prep Time: 25 Minutes
Serves: 10-12 guests

Ingredients

Lamb
1 boneless leg of lamb (approx. 4 pounds), butterflied
1 tablespoon of kosher salt
2 teaspoon ground pepper

Chimichurri
1 cup of loosely packed flat leaf parsley
1 cup of loosely packed cilantro leaves
½ cup of extra-virgin olive oil
⅛ cup of red wine vinegar
½ teaspoon of freshly ground black pepper
1 teaspoon of kosher salt
5 garlic cloves minced or run through a garlic press

Roasted Potatoes
4 lb. red potatoes (cut into 1 inch pieces)
2 red onions (cut into one inch pieces)
6 garlic cloves roughly chopped
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper

Recipe

Potatoes
Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F. Combine all ingredients in a large bowl and toss to combine. Line a sheet pan with a non-stick baking mat. Spread potato and onion mixture out in a single layer. Bake for approximately 40 minutes, stirring every 10-15 minutes, until the potatoes are fork tender.  Finish the potatoes under the broiler to make sure they get extra crisp.  

Chimichurri
Combine all ingredients in a food processor and pulse until finely chopped, about 15-20 pulses. Transfer to a sealed container and let sit at room temperature until the lamb is ready to be served. If making in advance, store in the refrigerator but allow to come to room temperature before serving.

Lamb
Remove lamb from the refrigerator and allow to return to room temperature.  After about an hour, generously apply salt and pepper to both sides of the meat.  Turn on your oven’s broiler and position the rack in your oven so that the lamb will sit approximately 4 inches under the heating element.  Once the oven is hot, place the lamb in the oven on a broiling pan.  After 10 minutes the top of the lamb should start to develop a deep brown crust and you can reduce the heat in the oven to 400 degrees F.  Roast the lamb for another 40-60 minutes until the internal temperature of the lamb reaches 130 degrees F for medium rare (the lamb will continue cooking after you remove it from the oven).  If the lamb starts to get too dark on top, place a piece of foil over the top of the lamb.  Transfer the lamb to a cutting board, loosely tented with foil, to rest for 15 minutes before serving.

If using a single oven, cook the potatoes in advance of the lamb and reheat in the oven while the lamb rests.  To serve, cut the lamb in ½ inch slice against the grain. Serve along with the roasted potatoes and topped with the chimichurri.