Recipe: Leg of Lamb Braised Seven Hours

Name: Leg of Lamb Braised Seven Hours
Prep time: 45 min
Cook time: 240 min
Total time: 285 min
Yield: 10 servings
Ingredients: 1 large leg of lamb weighing 3 kg (6.5 lb), boned by your butcher (keep the bone broken in half); 4 thin strips of bacon; 3 yellow onions, peeled and cut into large cubes (mirepoix); 3 beautiful sandy carrots, peeled and cut into large cubes (mirepoix); A pinch of fresh thyme flowers; 1 bay leaf; 50 g (1.75 oz) dried cèpe mushrooms, crushed; 2 cloves, crushed; A little fresh parsley; 2 dl dry white wine; 2 dl prepared beef stock; 1 tablespoon duck fat (or goose fat); Salt and freshly ground pepper; For the inner stuffing:; 150 g (5.25 oz) fatty bacon cut into small cubes; 1 small garlic clove, germ removed and crushed; 150 g (5.25 oz) farmhouse ham cut into small cubes; 50 g (1.75 oz) shelled pistachios; 50 g (1.75 oz) cooked veal tongue cut into small cubes; Salt and freshly ground pepper

By chef patrick Asfaux 4.9/5 (90 reviews) · 🍳 82 made it

Prep 45 min

Cook 240 min

Total 4h45

Servings 10 serv.

The leg of lamb braised seven hours is also called leg of lamb Brayaude-style. The first recipe for this dish was published in the cookbook by Cuisinier Durand in 1830.

The cooking is done hermetically in a very low oven (120°C) for 7 hours, just as it was once done in bread ovens that cooled slowly. The inside of the leg receives a rich stuffing of bacon, ham, pistachio and veal tongue that flavors the meat from within.

Ingredients for 10 servings

Adjust for

servings

1 large leg of lamb weighing 3 kg (6.5 lb), boned by your butcher (keep the bone broken in half)
4 thin strips of bacon
3 yellow onions, peeled and cut into large cubes (mirepoix)
3 beautiful sandy carrots, peeled and cut into large cubes (mirepoix)
A pinch of fresh thyme flowers
1 bay leaf
50 g (1.75 oz) dried cèpe mushrooms, crushed
2 cloves, crushed
A little fresh parsley
2 dl dry white wine
2 dl prepared beef stock
1 tablespoon duck fat (or goose fat)
Salt and freshly ground pepper

For the inner stuffing:

150 g (5.25 oz) fatty bacon cut into small cubes
1 small garlic clove, germ removed and crushed
150 g (5.25 oz) farmhouse ham cut into small cubes
50 g (1.75 oz) shelled pistachios
50 g (1.75 oz) cooked veal tongue cut into small cubes
Salt and freshly ground pepper

Step-by-step directions

1 In a bowl, mix all the stuffing ingredients, then place this mixture inside your leg of lamb and tie it well so nothing escapes during cooking. Brown it quickly in duck fat on all sides.

2 Preheat your oven to 120° (gas mark 4). At the bottom of a large Dutch oven-style pot, place the four bacon strips and the broken lamb bone wrapped in a small, clean white cloth to avoid finding small bone fragments in the vegetables. Place the lamb on top, season with salt and pepper, then add the onions and carrots around it, as well as the crushed cloves, parsley, thyme, bay leaf and dried mushrooms if you have them.

3 Pour in the white wine and beef stock, bring to a boil and season very lightly.

4 Put the lid on your pot and seal it hermetically with a flour-based paste (luting paste) all around it, then place it in the oven.

5 For the cooking, here is my suggestion: the evening before, put your pot in the oven at 6 p.m. and program it for midnight, but leave the pot untouched until the next day. This way, you will get a cooking method « in the old-fashioned way », as it was done long ago by placing the pot in a bread oven that would cool down very slowly.

6 To serve your seven-hour leg of lamb, break the seal, remove the lamb with 2 slotted spoons and place it on your cutting board, let it rest a little, remove the strings and cut thick slices.

7 If you prepared it the day before, cut your slices while cold, bring your sauce to a boil then keep it warm in a water bath before the meal and arrange on a shallow dish the shank meat on one side and the thick slices with the vegetable garnish (from which you will have removed the bay leaf and the small bone pocket) on top.

8 This recipe, if you prepare it well, will be a great culinary treat for your friends. Indeed, the blend of aromas combined with the taste of lamb is truly remarkable.

9 If you want to make your seven-hour leg of lamb a more complete dish, add at the beginning of cooking 1 kg (2.2 lb) of peeled potatoes (Bintje) cut into large cubes or turned, adding an extra 1 dl of stock. You can also skip the white wine and add only beer as they do in Alsace.

10 You can make this same recipe with chamois, isard, mouflon or even wild boar, multiplying the cooking time according to the weight.

11 You can also stuff your seven-hour leg of lamb with a block of cooked foie gras.

Chef's tip

Leg of lamb braised seven hours is the Sunday dish when you've invited people over and want to show you know how to cook. It's not technically complicated, just long. The magic is in the very slow cooking that makes the meat almost melt, and that internal stuffing that spreads its flavors everywhere. It's really an autumn and winter dish. Spring lamb is too fresh, too light for this cooking. Wait until September-October, when the animals have grazed all summer and the meat has taken on color and fat. The dried porcini mushrooms bring umami that cuts any heaviness. The bone broken in two at the bottom of the pot isn't for looks: it enriches the stock with gelatin. For wine, go for a fairly full-bodied red but not too young. A Côtes du Rhône village, a Gigondas, or a Beaujolais cru (Brouilly, Côte de Brouilly). If you prefer white, a Châteauneuf-du-Pape white clings well to the stuffing's aromas. For accompaniment, keep it simple. Creamy mashed potatoes, or simply steamed potatoes with fleur de sel. The vegetables from the pot (carrots, onions) stay in the sauce. Nothing more. The meat is so loaded with flavors it needs nothing else. Serve the sauce in a separate sauceboat.

Frequently asked questions

Why wrap the bone in a white cloth?

The bone releases small fragments during long cooking. The cloth traps these pieces and prevents you from finding them in your sauce or on plates. Use thin, clean fabric that doesn't bleed color.

How long does cooked leg of lamb keep in the refrigerator?

Three to four days maximum in an airtight container with its sauce. You can also freeze it for up to two months. Thaw slowly in the cold the day before reheating at 60°C in a water bath.

Can dried porcini mushrooms be substituted?

Yes, dried chanterelles or morels work well. Or 100g of finely chopped sun-dried tomatoes if you can't find them. Just avoid watery mushrooms (button mushrooms) where the umami wouldn't come through as well.