Dateline: March 9, 2021 Lamb-Ho! Smoker Alert

It was a glorious day, in the 60's, sunny and just aching for a smoke.  I kind of went a little crazy and ordered from Costco and got a boned leg of lamb that I am currently smoking.

The afternoon began with checking up on the smoker, cleaning out the detritus, rust, errant pellets, etc. and I tested it out, and it lit things so I was happy I didn't need to do anything more than that.  

I searched on the web for a recipe for smoked lamb and decided that those that I found were, well, frankly, meh!  So I went to town to create something I would like.

Smoked Lamb with Moroccan Spices

1 5-6 lb boned leg of lamb

8-10 cloves of garlic, peeled

2 inch piece of fresh ginger, peeled

1 T fennel seeds

1 T coriander seeds

1.5 t ground black pepper

2 t sweet paprika

1 T tajine spice powder

1 t salt

neutral oil

1.  Heat smoker to 250° F with wood or pellets of your choice.  I am using maple.

2.  In a grinder, grind up garlic and ginger into smallish pieces, add fennel and coriander seeds and grind again, then add pepper, paprika, tajine spice, and salt.  Grind again and add enough oil to allow the blades to turn and grind everything up to a nice paste.

3.  Rinse the lamb leg.  If it is in netting, carefully peel back the netting half way and trim most of the fat off of that half.  In the pocket where the bone was, smear some of the paste and pull net back up.  Turn lamb roast around and peel the other part of the netting down and finish removing the fat and smear some past inside any bone cavities that may be on that half.  Pull of the netting, push the leg into a semi uniform shape and slather it with the remaining spice paste.

4.  Slice a large onion into 1/2 thick rings and place on the bottom of a foil roasting pan.  Place the lamb on top of the onion slice and let rest for about 1 hr while the smoker settles into its temp.

5.  When smoker hits its temp, add the lamb and close the lid.  This should smoke for about 3-4 hours, depending on your preferred lamb doneness.  Mine has been in for 3 hours and it needs to go longer.  It's just starting to develop a nice bark and get caramelized on the outside.  Smells great!

6.  Allow to rest and carve it up how ever you would like it.

Note:  This was excellent.  I am very proud of myself for concocting it!  It can be made in the oven set at 250° and still be excellent!