Grilled Rotisserie Lamb With Harissa and Herbs

The Accidental Locavore’s Internet friend, Jeff Parker, posted this great sounding lamb recipe a few months ago. Months of bad weather and strange weekend plans kept this from happening until this past weekend, when finally, lamb met rotisserie and, boy, was it good! Don’t be afraid of butterflying anything. It’s super easy to do and sounds terribly impressive when you tell your friends, “Well, first I butterflied this _______,” doesn’t it? Butterflying is just a matter of taking a knife and essentially using it to unroll a piece of meat. I used about a 3-pound boneless leg of lamb (gives you a running start on the butterflying) and it fed 4 people with just enough left over for a big sandwich. Yum! I started with Jeff’s recipe, but since I’m incapable of following directions, made a few changes. This needs to marinate overnight, so plan ahead.

• 3-pound boneless leg of lamb, butterflied
• 1/3 cup harissa (use more if your harissa is mild, or your heat tolerance is high)
• 5 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped
• ¼ cup mint, coarsely chopped
• ¼ cup cilantro, coarsely chopped
• Salt and pepper to taste

In a small food processor or mini-chopper add the garlic, mint and cilantro. Pulse until finely chopped. Add the harissa and process until you have a chunky paste. Lay the lamb out flat on a work surface. Smear the lamb with most of the harissa paste. Roll it back up and tie it, about every two inches with butcher’s twine. Spread the rest of the harissa on the outside of the lamb. Put in a Ziploc bag and refrigerate overnight.

An hour before you’re ready to cook, remove the lamb from the refrigerator. Remove the lamb from the marinade and toss the bag. Run the rotisserie rod through the lamb and fasten with the end pieces (you know how your rotisserie works). Light the rotisserie part of your grill and attach the rod with the lamb and close the grill cover. Check the lamb after about 30 minutes, it should be 135° for medium-rare. Remove from the heat and let it sit for about 15 minutes. Remove the rotisserie gear, slice, serve and enjoy!

My verdict: I knew I’d be sorry I waited so long to try this, and I was! It’s delicious. I served it with some couscous and a mélange of sautéed summer squash. The only downside was that either our lamb was too small or the grill was too hot. We cooked it for about an hour and it ended up quite well done. However, it was still juicy and tender, just not as pink as I would have liked it. I made a version of Jeff’s yogurt sauce (see below for recipe)and it was a wonderful accompaniment with the meal. If you should be so unfortunate as to not have a grill with a rotisserie (trade it in immediately!), don’t tie up the lamb and just grill it flat, about 15-20 minutes a side.

Yogurt Sauce

• 2 cups Greek yogurt (or homemade)
• 2-3 good sized cloves garlic, grated or run through a garlic press
• Salt to taste
• 2 tablespoons cilantro, finely chopped
• 2 tablespoons mint, finely chopped
• ¾ cup cucumber, peeled, seeded and cut into 1/4″ cubes

Add all the ingredients to a small bowl. Stir well to combine. Refrigerate until ready to serve.