Slow-Roasted Lamb Shoulder with Rice — Kuzu Tandir
Central Anatolian slow-roasted lamb shoulder with garlic, oregano, and bay until the meat collapses with a fork, served over butter-toasted rice pilaf with a yogurt-cucumber sauce and sumac onion.
Turkish
Categories
Nutrition per Serving
Ingredients
For 2 servings
Instructions
Prep
Pat both lamb shoulder pieces dry. Cut slits across each piece of meat and stuff with 8 sliced garlic cloves total (4 per piece). Rub each with 1 tsp oregano, 0.5 tsp cumin, 1 tsp salt, 0.5 tsp pepper, and 10ml olive oil each. Halve both lemons. Dice cucumber, grate 2 garlic cloves, slice red onion thinly. Mix yogurt with cucumber, grated garlic, mint, and salt to taste until smooth. Toss onion with sumac and parsley.
Sear
Heat remaining 20ml olive oil in a large heavy lidded oven-safe pot over medium-high heat 2 minutes. Working in one batch if needed, sear both lamb pieces 3 minutes per side until deeply browned with a dark crust all over.
Build
Return both lamb pieces to pot with bay leaves, juice from both lemons, and 1 cup hot water over medium heat 30 seconds until liquid simmers gently around the meat.
Braise
Cover tightly and slow-cook in a 160C oven 70 minutes until lamb pulls cleanly off the bone with a fork and braising liquid has reduced to deep gold.
Saute
While lamb cooks, melt butter over medium 30 seconds, add rice and toast 1 minute. Pour 1.5 cups hot water with salt to taste, cover, cook over low 12 minutes until tender and liquid is absorbed.
Rest and plate
Lift lamb onto a board and rest 5 minutes off heat. Spoon braising liquid over rice and stir gently until grains absorb the jus. Pile rice onto a warm platter, lay both lamb pieces across, drizzle yogurt-cucumber sauce alongside, scatter sumac onion, and serve with lemon halves to squeeze.
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