Zinfandel-Braised Leg of Lamb (Slow Cooker)

"This is a real change of pace for lamb and for the slow cooker! By reducing the wine before placing it in the slow cooker, you give the dish a more rounded flavor."
 
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photo by Tarteausucre photo by Tarteausucre
photo by Tarteausucre
Ready In:
8hrs 15mins
Ingredients:
12
Serves:
6
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ingredients

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directions

  • Unroll lamb; trim fat. Sprinkle evenly with1/2 t. salt and 1/2 t. pepper. Reroll lamb; secure at 1-inch intervals with kitchen twine. Sprinkle evenly with flour.
  • Heat oil in a nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add lamb to pan; cook 6 minutes, turning to brown on all sides. Place lamb in electric slow cooker.
  • Add juniper berries, allspice, and garlic to skillet; cook over medium heat 2 minutes or until garlic is lightly browned. Add wine to pan, scraping pan to loosen browned bits; cook until reduced to 1/2 cup (about 3 minutes). Scrape wine mixture into cooker; add basil and bay leaves. Cover and cook on LOW 8 hours or until lamb is tender.
  • Remove lamb from cooker; keep warm. Strain cooking liquid through a sieve into a small bowl; discard solics. Add remaining 1/2 t. salt and remaining 1/2 t. pepper to cooking liquid; stir. Remove twine from lamb, and discard. Break lamb into chunks with 2 forks. Serve lamb with cooking liquid over egg noodles.

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Reviews

  1. Made for ZWT-8 as I'm esp fond of Icelandic lamb & adore my slow cooker. I've been slow-cooking lamb for 10 yrs, but there are differences in our methods w/the meat used & the finish. I suppose they can be found (or pre-ordered), but I've never seen a boneless & rolled leg of lamb. I've only seen bone-in lamb legs sold for oven-roasting or grilling. We do have what's called "supakjot" (literal translation = "soup meat"), but I promise you it's unlike any soup meat you've ever eaten. It's fantastic & includes the shanks, riblets from racks of lamb if the lamb chop tenderloin is removed, lamb cutlets, etc. That's what I used for your recipe & was faithful to it til I removed the meat to rest. The slow cooker lamb liquid is always richly flavoured & this was esp so. DH has a strong preference for coos cous vs noodles - So I strained the liquid, returned it to the slow cooker & added cous cous to absorb the liquid. Then I served the lamb meat w/the cous cous beside it. Both the lamb meat & the cous cous were outstanding! Thx for sharing this recipe w/us.
     
  2. Five stars on ease of cooking! I was looking for something I could "set & forget", and this fit the bill. I don't have the greatest luck with the slow cooker, though, so my expectations were low. I didn't have juniper berries, so I looked on line for substitutes, and one suggestion was rosemary. How can you go wrong with rosemary and lamb? Also, I didn't have Zinfandel, I had a red blend of cab, merlot, and zin (Menage a Trois). Otherwise, I followed the recipe exactly - had a 2.5lb BLOL, etc. Mine was done after 6 hours. I turned it off until dinner time, then set it back to low. The "sauce" was very greasy - I had to degrease before using it. I found the lamb on itself to be very tender, but not very flavorful - it definitely needed the sauce on it. The sauce was very thin, I think if I make it again I'll thicken for more of a gravy consistency. I would definitely make it again for a non-grill option for BLOL.
     
  3. Was just about to post this from March 2009 issue of Cooking Light. Thanks for saving me the typing.
     
  4. YUM YUM YUM, it should be a crime to leave the dog at home to have to smell this all day. I halved the recipe for 2 dinners and a lunch. Did not have juniper berries, or whole allspice, subbed for some ground instead. Very good, this will be put in our rotation. Thank you for posting! Made for ZWT 5
     
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RECIPE SUBMITTED BY

I didn't start cooking until my early 20's, even though I come from a family of accomplished and admired home cooks. While I grew up watching my Italian grandmother in the kitchen, I remained uninterested in trying anything on my own. As a young lady, I was known for being particularly ignorant in the kitchen, with no idea how to even make a hot dog! All this changed, however, when I got engaged. I realized it was time to let my inherent talents out of the bag. At the time, the New York Times had a weekly column called The 60-Minute Gourmet by Pierre Franey. Each week, I would follow these recipes diligently, and taught myself to cook that way. From there, I began to read cookbooks and consult with relatives on family recipes. At my ripe old age now, I feel I know enough to put together a very pleasing meal and have become accomplished in my own right. Having an Irish father and an Italian mother, I'm glad I inherited the cooking gene (and the drinking one too!). One thing I have learned is that simpler is always better! I always believe cooking fills a need to nurture and show love. After being widowed fairly young and living alone with my dog and cats, I stopped cooking for awhile, since I really had no one to cook for. I made care packages for my grown son occasionally, and like to cook weekly for my boyfriend, so I feel like I am truly back in the saddle!!
 
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