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Smoked lamb shoulder with salsa criolla

Smoked lamb shoulder served with salsa criolla and flatbreads

Smoked lamb shoulder with salsa criolla

Name: Smoked lamb shoulder with salsa criolla
Prep time: 1 h
Cook time: 4 h 30 min
Total time: 5 h 30 min
Yield: 6
Ingredients: 2½ kg bone-in lamb shoulder; 3 tbsp vegetable oil; 10g ground coriander; 10g ground cumin; 10g carraway seeds; few dashes of Worcestershire sauce; 5 garlic cloves; 1 red pepper roughly chopped; 2 red onions chopped; 1 green chilli chopped; 1 red chilli chopped; 2 tbsp apple cider vinegar; 500ml lamb stock; 6 flatbreads; handful of parsley chopped; 100g chillies; 500g peppers; 2 large red onions; 250g tomatoes; 1 garlic bulb; 50ml extra virgin olive oil; apple cider vinegar; 30g mint leaves chopped; 300g banana shallots sliced; 20g sumac; 1 tsp sugar; 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil; 70ml red wine vinegar

Chris Roberts

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Serves 6

More effort

Prep: 1 hr

Cook: 4 hrs and 30 mins

plus at least 1 hr marinating and cooling

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Cook lamb shoulder on a barbecue – fire and smoke deliver a real depth of flavour. Enjoy with punchy salsa criolla, sumac shallots and flatbreads

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Ingredients

Nutrition

Units:

MetricUS

2½ kg bone-in lamb shoulder
3 tbsp vegetable oil
10g ground coriander
10g ground cumin
10g carraway seeds
few dashes of Worcestershire sauce
5 garlic cloves
1 red pepper

roughly chopped
2 red onions

chopped
1 green chilli

chopped
1 red chilli

chopped
2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
500ml lamb stock
6 flatbreads
handful of parsley

chopped

For the charred salsa criolla

100g chillies
500g peppers
2 large red onions
250g tomatoes
1 garlic bulb
50ml extra virgin olive oil
apple cider vinegar
30g mint leaves

chopped

For the sumac shallots

300g banana shallots

sliced
20g sumac
1 tsp sugar
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
70ml red wine vinegar

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Nutrition: Per serving

kcal1064
fat59g
saturates21g
carbs59g
sugars18g
fibre13g

high
protein68g
salt1g

Method

step 1

Pierce the lamb all over using a sharp knife. Drizzle over the oil, then sprinkle over the spices, a good pinch of salt and black pepper, and the Worcestershire sauce. Massage the shoulder well until the marinade becomes a paste and chill for at least 1 hr or overnight in the fridge.
step 2

Prepare the barbecue – you will need a low temperature, around 125-140C with ashen coals (I put some lit coals onto unlit coals, and a fist-sized chunk or two of seasoned cherrywood to flavour the lamb. If using a gas barbecue, see tip.) Cook the lamb for 2-3 hrs (it will be cooked at this point), then transfer to a flameproof roasting tin. Peel the garlic and add to the tin with the red pepper, onions, chillies, vinegar and stock. Cook for another 1-2 hrs until the lamb is 92C when a temperature probe is inserted, or the shoulder blade slides out easily.
step 3

While the lamb is cooking, prepare the salsa. Put the chillies, peppers, onions and tomatoes directly into the embers, or on the gas barbecue flame. Remove each ingredient once blistered. The chillies will only need 30 seconds or so, but the onions will need at least 15 mins. Roast the garlic bulb to the side of the embers or flame until soft. Leave everything to cool, then squeeze the onions and garlic out of their skins. (Keep the charred skin on everything else.) Chop all the veg, discarding the stems and seeds, then put in a bowl. Drizzle over the olive oil and pour in the vinegar to taste. Add a good pinch of salt and black pepper, then stir in the mint.
step 4

For the sumac shallots, put the shallots in a bowl, then sprinkle over the sumac, sugar and a pinch of salt. Drizzle in the olive oil and the red wine vinegar, and mix well.
step 5

Once the lamb is cooked, remove from the tin, pull out the shoulder blade and put the meat on a platter. Tip the veg and juices from the tin into a food processor, or use a hand blender to blitz everything together and create a chilli sauce. Serve with the flatbreads and the chopped parsley sprinkled over.

Recipe tips

COOKING ON GAS If cooking on a gas barbecue, soak 150g cherrywood chips for 30 mins, then wrap the wood chips in a foil pouch and cut a hole in it. Cook the lamb at 125C-140C for 2 hrs, then remove the wood chips and cook the lamb for 1 hr 30 mins, or until very tender.

WHAT IS SALSA CRIOLLA? Hailing from Latin America, this spicy mix of ingredients, meant to accompany meat dishes, is thought to have evolved from Spanish cuisine, with its inclusion of olive oil and vinegar, alongside peppers, garlic, tomatoes and herbs.

Recipe from Good Food magazine, August 2023

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