This slow cooked lamb shoulder will be the juiciest, most incredible lamb roast you have ever had! With rosemary and garlic stuffed into incisions, it infuses this lamb roast with the most incredible flavour as well as adding a subtle perfume to the lamb gravy.
Lamb shoulder has more flavour and is easier to cook than lamb leg. Virtually foolproof, minimal effort, and incredible meat that is so tender that you won’t need a knife to carve this! Want to upgrade to the Rolls Royce version? Try the Ultimate 12 Hour Roast Lamb or browse the entire Roast Lamb recipe collection.
Slow Cooked Lamb Shoulder is the ultimate lamb roast
Being born into a foodie family, there is always a flurry of emails leading up to a Sunday Night Roast. It usually goes something like this:
My brother (the “serious” foodie): Let’s do a standing rib roast. Dry aged from Victor Churchill (PS A gourmet expensive butcher in Sydney!)
Me: That’s ridiculous. It will cost $100!
Brother: If we’re gonna do a roast, we should do it right. I’m not doing a lamb leg from Coles!
Me: Who said you’re cooking? I’M the Roast Queen, remember?
Brother: Self proclaimed titles carry no weight.
Me: How about a slow cooked lamb shoulder?
Brother: OK. That’ll do. I’ll do the sides.
Sister: I don’t mind. Just tell me what I need to do.
Mum: Send me a shopping list.
And thus the roles and responsibilities for a Sunday Night Roast are set.
Lamb Shoulder
Lamb shoulder is not as popular as lamb leg – and I truly do not understand why. It has more flavour and it’s far juicier. The only “downside” I can think of is that it needs to be slow cooked, it can’t be cooked hard and fast like a classic Roast Lamb Leg that’s cooked until perfectly pink and juicy inside.
On the other hand, because lamb shoulder is a juicier cut, it’s incredibly forgiving so if it’s in the oven for too long, it’s still going to be gloriously juicy.
I love using the technique of stuffing rosemary and garlic into incisions to infuse the meat with flavour. You can really only do this with rosemary because the sprigs are stiff enough to stick into the holes.
And also it works well for this recipe because it is slow roasted – the flavours do not infuse as well into the meat with a traditional roast that only takes 1 1/2 hours or so. So take advantage of it in this recipe!
OK, signing off! Love to hear if this makes it to your Sunday Night family dinner! – Nagi x
My favourite side dishes for roast lamb
More Roast Lamb Recipes
I love a good roast lamb – so I’ve shared a few over the years!
Slow Roasted Lamb Shoulder
WATCH HOW TO MAKE IT
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Slow Roasted Rosemary Garlic Lamb Shoulder
Ingredients
- 1.8kg / 3.5 lb lamb shoulder (bone in) (Note 1)
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp black pepper
- 1 onion, quartered (no need to peel)
- 1 head garlic , cut in half horizontally
- 3 garlic cloves , cut into slivers
- 8 sprigs rosemary
- 1 cup water
Gravy
- 2 tbsp flour
- 2 cups beef broth (or 1 cup red wine + 1 cup water)
- Salt and pepper
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 240°C/465°F (220°C fan forced).
- Rub the lamb with the olive oil, salt and pepper.
- Use a thin, sharp knife to make 12 incisions in the lamb, deep as you can but without piercing through the bottom of the lamb. (See photo in post and video
- Stuff bits of rosemary and garlic slivers into the holes (chopstick helpful!)
- Place the onion, halved garlic bulb and rosemary in the base of a roasting pan. Place the lamb on top. Pour water around.
- Cover with lid or tightly with a double layer of foil. Place in the oven, and TURN DOWN to 180°C/350°F (160°C fan).
- Slow roast, covered: Roast, covered with the foil, for 3 hours. (Note 1 for different sizes).
- Brown it, uncovered: Remove foil, check to ensure there's still liquid in the pan. If not, add 3/4 cup water (otherwise onion/garlic will burn). Turn up the oven to 220°C/425°F and roast for a further 20 to 30 minutes, until the skin is browned and crisp.
- Check if ready: By now, you should be able to part the meat with two forks – if not, just cover and return to oven at 180°C/350°F (160°C fan) until you can do so.
- Rest: Remove lamb from the roasting pan and transfer to a plate. Cover loosely with foil then a couple of tea towels and let it rest for at least 20 minutes, up to a couple of hours (after this, you may want to reheat).
- Serve with gravy (below). If you want to go all out, make Duck Fat Potatoes or Super Crispy Roasted Potatoes!
Gravy
- Tilt the pan and use a spoon to remove all but around 2 tbsp of fat (try to avoid scooping out any juices).
- Place the roasting pan on the stove over medium high heat. Add the flour and stir to mix in with the fat. Cook for 30 seconds.
- Add the stock gradually and stir to combine. Use a potato masher to mash the onion and garlic, making sure that all the garlic squeezes out of the skin.
- Allow it to simmer for 1 to 2 minutes until it is just before your desired consistency (it will thicken a bit as it cools), then remove from the stove. Season to taste with salt and pepper, strain into bowl being sure to squeeze all juices out of garlic etc, then transfer into gravy jug.
Recipe Notes:
- Smaller lamb shoulder (around 1 kg) – cut down roasting time while covered by 20 minutes (doesn’t change by much, shoulder meat needs a minimum time to breakdown);
- Boneless lamb shoulder – reduce covered cook time by 20 minutes. A 1.8kg bone in lamb shoulder will weigh about 1.3kg with the bone removed;
- Rolled boneless lamb shoulder (~1.1 – 1.3kg) – cook time per recipe.
- 2 x ~1.5kg/3lb shoulders – fit into one pan (they will shrink, so ok if touching), add 30 minutes to cover slow roast time.
Originally published February 2015, updated with new photos, new commentary and video – AND Life of Dozer added!Nutrition Information:
BEST OF SUNDAY SUPPER ROASTS
Life of Dozer
Hmm. Not surprising he’s interested in what’s going on here….
Hi Nagi
I am totally bowled over by your delicious recipes, your detailed explanations and especially by Dozer! I too live in Sydney and would love to know where you pick up such a great shoulder of lamb? They usually look like scraggy bones in Coles! Also I amcooking for 8 on Sunday (including a few small kids) so would you suggest 2 small shoulders or is it possible to find huge ones? Thanks again for being such a find for cooks everywhere!
Hi Lia – thank you for the compliment! I get my shoulder from a local butcher – one called Devitt’s in Narrabeen. It’s super good value there, and they sometimes get ones up to 1.8 kg! I know what you mean about the supermarket ones, they are so dismal looking 🙂 Go the butchers!!
Thanks so much Nagi! Will let you know how it goes!
What about a rolled shoulder of lamb. How long in oven please.
So very tasty! And easy! Lamb shoulder, and your suggestions, are welcome discoveries — thanks!!!
and especially if we can find pastured lamb, so very healthy, too —
Sorry but I can’t miss a chance to suggest: buy meat from farmers who pasture their animals, because it’s healthier for us and for the animals and for the environment. Yes, it costs more — so — just buy meat less often, and have more all-veggie meals. And when you do serve meat to your friends and family, it should be as delicious as this!!!
Thank you for the tip Rena! I whole heartedly agree 🙂 N x
Hi Nagi,
Could you please tell me if beef broth and beef stock (liquid) are the same thing? I couldn’t find broth on the woolies website, but several types of stock are available.
Cheers! 🙂
Hi Alison! Yup, liquid beef stock is beef broth 🙂 I find the term beef stock very confusing because it refers to beef stock powder as well as the liquid!
Hello again!
I forgot to ask, since I’m planning to make the crunchy roast potatoes, your notes say to add the pan of oil into the oven at step 8 of this recipe, but that’s when the roast is being taken out of the oven. Is there a good time to put the oil in while the roast is still in the oven, so it has time to heat up before putting the potatoes in the oil?
Apologies if I misread the notes/if it’s a silly question! I’m still learning the magic skill of multitasking in the kitchen. 🙂 Really excited to make this one!
That’s totally ok Alison! Sure thing, just pop the oil in the oven when you take the foil off and just keep an eye on the oil and make sure it doesn’t over smoke too much before the lamb is taken out of the oven 🙂 N x
Hi Nagi,
This has been a hit in our house – three hungry kids love it as a Saturday night ritual.
Do you have any recommendations on what any leftover lamb could be used for?
Keep up the great recipes!
Cheers
Lamb Flautas…. small flour tortillas rolled up like a taquito…stuffed with shredded lamb…. and fried. Delicious!!! This is also the way I do the day after Thanksgiving with the Turkey. You can add mild fire roasted green chilis to either protein to add a latin flavor or leave them out if you don’t like them. Both ways are great!
Hi! The lamb joint is in the oven as we speak, I’m using a 1kg deboned shoulder, could you advise on what cooking time I should allow? I want to make sure I don’t mess it up as I can’t see it in the oven because of the foil! Thanks in advance… so excited!! x
Hi Lydia! Same cook time will be fine, don’t stress! Shoulder is VERY forgiving! 🙂 N x
Can’t wait to try this! Does it matter which shelf you put the lamb tray on in the oven when you begin to slow cook it? (Fan forced oven)
Just the usual middle shelf is fine Angela! N x
Wonderful recipe Nagi! Only thing I did a little extra was a squeeze of lemon and stuffed some anchovies in with the garlic and rosemary. It was perfectly tender and will make it again for sure.
Great to hear you enjoyed this Sue! Thanks for letting me know 🙂 N x
Nagi, I tried this recipe and it was perfect. Used a dutch oven and the roast was so tender. This will be my go to lamb recipe from now on
So pleased to hear you enjoyed this Don, thanks for taking the time to come back and let me know! N xx
Hi Nagi. Just wanted to let you know that I followed your recipe this afternoon, using a Dutch oven though, and it was perfect. Everybody loved it. Melt in the mouth tender!
Thank you!
FANTASTIC to hear Pete!! Thanks so much for letting me know you enjoyed this 🙂 N xx
I made this for an early Easter. It was fabulous. This will be my go to for leg of lamb. The potatoes take on a delicious flavor! Definitely a must try for anyone on the fence about making this.
I’m so pleased to hear that Danielle! Thanks for letting me know! N xx
This recipe looks so good I went to the butcher and requested a shoulder roast, but received what appears to be a rib roast because there are markings as if for pork chops (but it’s lamb). He said to leave it in the oven at 350 for two hours – does this sound right? Thanks!
Hi daphne! Omg no please don’t do that, it’s criminal!! It sounds like you got a rack of lamb cutlets which is a SUPER tender delicate cut which is not very fatty so you want it to be blushing pink inside. How much does it weigh and how many bones? Do you have a meat thermometer? The way to cook it is to put a rub on then sear all over in a pan with oil then roast until the inside is 130f for medium rare, 140f for medium. Lamb racks are super expensive here in Australia, I would never cook it beyond medium at most! N xx
the lamb joint i am using is only .75 of a kilo,so do i reduce the cooking time?
Gosh that’s a small shoulder! I think 2 hours covered will be fine 🙂 N x
I was wondering what the theory behind you putting the oven up to 220c then down to 160c then up to 220c again? Just looking at other recipes they left it at 160-180c. Just worried I’ll stuff my first attempt up for the dinner I’m holding 😣
Hi Jen! The high temp gives the roast a lovely brown crust, the low temp is for the slow cooking part 🙂 N x
I used a 1.3kg deboned rolled shoulder and it turned out perfect, even when my oven didnt reach the second lot of 220c. Thankyou! everyone raved about it 😄
That’s terrific to hear Jen! 🙂 N x
I saw that episode of Jamie Oliver also. It was his Birthday program. I’ve wanted to do lamb shoulder ever since. Thanks for posting this. I’ll try it soon.
Hope you do, it’s so good! 🙂
Hi Nagi!
I love al your recipes and I am really looking forward to trying this one out!
Just wondering if you could use Dutch carrots instead?
Thanks,
D x
Thankyou, it was perfect. The best lamb I’ve ever cooked.
I have used this recipe several times now and it works every time. I also through desiree potato’s in.
My tip is that I do half of the carrots and potato’s from the start along with the lamb, onions and garlic. I put the remaining carrots and potato in with one hour to go. I find that the first batch goes really slushy and is good to leave for the gravy part.
For the gravy I do include a good splash of red wine along with 2.5 cups of chicken stock. I will try putting some star anise in next time.
Hi Nagi,
I am wanting to cook this (with your potato recipe also), but I also have some chickens to cook for an hour at 180C.
Could you recommend a way to do this if at all possible?
I was thinking of cooking the lamb at 160C for 2.5 hours and then putting the temperature up to 180C for an hour (take the chickens out) and then up to 220C for the potatoes. Do you think this would work without risking the tenderness of the lamb?
Hi Kelly! Which potato recipe? If the Julia Child Dauphinoise or Easy Potato Bake, do that first, then the lamb (cover in foil) then chicken. Then reheat potato in microwave and blast the lamb uncovered in oven to crispy outside (it will be wet from standing under foil) and reheat slightly while the chicken is cooking 🙂 Oh, but if you’re doing the crunchy potatoes, I would do lamb first, then potatoes, THEN chicken then while chicken is resting, blast potatoes again in hot oven to recrisp and reheat 🙂 Hope that helps! (PS Lamb holds are really well even with reheating because shoulder is such a juicy cut. The chicken is what won’t reheat as well 🙂 )
Yes, I’m doing crispy potatoes. Thank you so much! 🙂
“A Sunday Night Roast family gathering is always an event in my family. ”
I guess a “gathering is an “event” … no? So I guess you’re right in this case…..about the “gathering” always being an “event”…….In both cases, of course, we’re talking family……….how the family gathering is a family event…….it’s clever and I really like how you tie the two separate things together both to family….and then you set them side-by-side…….it’s almost like a noun becomes an adjective…….or even a verb !! It’s really very German way of writing ! Very philosophical !!! COOL !!!!
😂