Greek Lamb Shoulder Roast with Potatoes

Slowly cooked boneless lamb shoulder roast is shown over gold potatoes.

Greek Lamb Shoulder Roast with Potatoes

A slow roasted Greek lamb shoulder, boneless or bone-in, with Greek lemon potatoes. Tender, juicy meat with rich flavor.

5 from 7 votes

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Prep Time: 10

Cook Time: 2 45

Total Time: 2 55

Servings: servings

Calories: 590kcal

Author: Milena Perrine

Ingredients

2.5 lbs lamb shoulder boneless or bone-in*
¼ cup olive oil
2 lemons medium sized, juice of + 1 teaspoon zest**
2 shallots halved
4-6 cloves garlic
3-4 sprigs rosemary leaves removed
1 tablespoon coarse salt + pinch or two more for the potatoes
1 teaspoon pepper + pinch or two more for the potatoes
3 lbs baby potatoes***
1 tablespoon dried oregano
2 cups stock chicken or vegetable or water, might use less

Instructions

FOR OVEN LAMB SHOULDER ROAST

1. Bring the lamb shoulder to room temperature. Trim any excess fat, but leave a good amount of fat cap on top. Preheat the oven to 450 F.
2. In a suitably sized roasting pan toss the potatoes with olive oil, half the lemon juice, oregano and a bit of salt and pepper.
3. Combine 2 tablespoon olive oil, remaining lemon juice, 1 teaspoon lemon zest, rosemary leaves, salt, pepper, garlic and shallots. Puree using a handheld or counter top blender. (Alternatively mince garlic, shallots and rosemary leaves and combine with the rest of the ingredients). Spread all over the lamb shoulder and place it over the potatoes.
4. Add enough stock or water to cover the potatoes just over halfway. Place in the oven for 10-15 minutes.
5. After 10-15 minutes lower the heat to 300 F and loosely tent the roasting pan with foil. Place back in the oven for 60 minutes. After 60 minutes remove the foil and continue roasting low and slow for another 90 minutes or until desired tenderness is reached. You may baste the lamb shoulder occasionally with the drippings from the pan.

FOR GRILLED LAMB SHOULDER ROAST

1. Preheat the grill to 450 F.
2. Prepare the potatoes and lamb shoulder as described above and place in a suitable roasting pan. Roast for 10-15 minutes (grill lid down).
3. Lower the grill temperature to 300 F. Loosely cover the roasting pan with foil. Slow roast for 60 minutes then remove the foil. Continue roasting for about 90 more minutes or as needed, occasionally lifting the lid to baste the lamb shoulder.
Greek lamb roast is all about fork tender meat, not a pink center. Disregard internal temperature and slow roast until desired tenderness is achieved. A rule of thumb is about 60 minutes per pound of lamb shoulder, but this varies based on the size of the meat and whether boneless or bone-in.

Notes

*a bone-in shoulder of the same weight will have less meat so perhaps purchase one closer to 3 lbs for the same number of servings.

** Adjust quantity of lemon juice per taste preferences. While the paste rubbed over the lamb can take on extra lemon juice, the potatoes can occasionally taste too lemony for some people. Feel free to reduce the lemon juice you toss the potatoes in or eliminate it altogether. Lemon tartness can vary greatly so taste the lemon juice before you use it and make adjustments accordingly.

***use quantity as a guideline, you want to have as many as needed to fill the roasting pan - do not overcrowd it.

Nutrition