Serves 6 - 8
Ingredients
- 1 leg of mutton on the bone, about 2.5 to 3kg
- 6 medium jacket potatoes
- 3 bulbs of garlic, halved horizontally
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
- A couple of handfuls of organic meadow hay, optional
For the green herb sauce
- 1 handful of flat leaf parsley, leaves picked
- 1 small handful of mint
- 1 tbsp capers
- 2 tsp mustard
- 1 small garlic clove, grated
- 3 to 4 salted anchovy fillets in oil
- 1 tbsp cider vinegar
- 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil, plus extra if needed
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
Method
Heat the oven to 200C. Place the mutton leg in a large roasting tray and rub it all over with the olive oil. Season generously with salt and pepper and roast for 45 to 50 minutes, until the meat has taken on good colour and is already smelling delicious.
Remove the tray from the oven. Arrange the potatoes and garlic halves around the mutton, turning the potatoes through the fat once or twice as you go. Season the potatoes and garlic lightly with salt. If using the hay, tuck it around everything like a loose nest. Cover the tray with a sheet of baking parchment followed by a sheet of foil, crimping it tightly around the edges to keep the steam in.
Turn the oven down to 160C and return the tray to the middle of the oven. Cook for a further 2½ to 3 hours, or until the meat is really tender and yielding when pressed.
While the mutton cooks, make the green herb sauce. Place the parsley and mint on a board and chop finely with a sharp knife. Add the capers, mustard, grated garlic and anchovies and continue chopping until everything is fairly fine. Spoon into a bowl, add the vinegar and olive oil and season with salt and pepper to taste. The sauce should have a loose consistency, a little like a dressing, so add a splash more oil or a tiny dash of water if it seems too thick.
When the mutton is ready, remove the tray from the oven and leave the meat to rest, still covered, for 20 to 25 minutes. Then remove the foil and parchment and carefully lift the mutton onto a wooden board or serving platter. Serve with the potatoes and garlic, spooning over any tray juices, and pass the green herb sauce at the table.
