Some of you long time readers may remember this incident. In about 2005, I smoked a leg of lamb. It was horrible. I don't know what I did or didn't do but I've never tried to cook a leg of lamb again. It smelled weird while smoking and we had Speck, the Dachshund, back then. There was something about that lamb that scared Speck half to death. While it was cooking, he would not go outside and for weeks and weeks, he would not go near the smoker. He would make a huge circle around it but wouldn't get close to it.
The other day Chad was here and he was telling us that Nicole's mom had bought a leg of lamb and had called Chad for advice on how to cook it. He said "Mom, all I could remember was how scared Speck was of that smoker after you smoked that leg of lamb."
Vince and I both thought it was so funny that Chad remembered that incident from 20 years ago. I'm thinking if that same thing happened today, Oscar would be like Speck was and Cooper wouldn't even notice it. But . . I'm not smoking another leg of lamb so we don't have worry about it. :)
This recipe is from Glenn Reynolds (Instapundit . com). I haven't tried it, but it sounds great. When I cook lamb, I use smaller cuts, since I am cooking for one.
ReplyDeleteRECIPE FOR THANKSGIVING LEG OF LAMB:
1 semi-boneless leg of lamb (about 8 pounds)
2 cups merlot
1 cup each worcestershire and teriyaki
2 cloves garlic, crushed (more is better!)
1tbsp sugar
2 oz. olive oil
rosemary, thyme, salt, and pepper to taste
Disposable aluminum roasting pan.
Mix merlot, worcestershire, and teriyaki, plus sugar, and marinate, preferably overnight.
Heat a covered gas grill to high temperature on one side, low on the other.
Rub the lamb with olive oil, garlic and other spices. Place the roasting pan on the “low heat” side. Place the lamb on the “high heat” side of the grill and sear; rotate until all sides are browned. Move to the roasting pan, and turn the “high” side down to low as well. Close the grill cover and cook. If the lamb seems to be browning too much, cover with aluminum foil.
Cook until a meat thermometer inserted all the way to the center reads 140 degrees. (Don’t overcook, or the lamb will be dry and tasteless; the outside can be pretty crispy, but the inside should be rare). Remove, let it rest for a few minutes, and serve. Juices will make an excellent lamb gravy, especially if you add more merlot.
The recipe sounds great but I'm never (I know - never say never!) trying it again. I'm ok with lamb chops on the grill but that's about it.
DeleteJudy that is funny ….I cooked lamb in the oven one time and our dog acted just as strange as your dogs. My husband doesn’t care for lamb so we haven’t tried it again.
ReplyDeleteThat's too funny. I wonder if there's something in the smell that dogs just don't like. I'm glad Speck wasn't the only one who was afraid of it.
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