When I’m grilling for a large group of guests, all of whom have different meat doneness preferences, I reach for a butterflied leg of lamb. With the bone extracted and the lamb leg sliced into a slab (which your butcher can do for you), it’s a cut of meat that’s by its nature uneven in a very good way. When you grill it, the thicker parts stay redder than the thinner bits, and both rare meat lovers and their medium to well loving counterparts end up happy, without your having to fuss with various cooking times or putting slices of meat back on the grill after you’ve carved it.
Marinating the lamb with fennel seeds and anchovies gives it so much flavor, it doesn’t even need a sauce. I usually just put out a little pot of mustard for guests to use or not as they see fit.Meat this juicy and flavorful doesn’t lack for a thing.
Note that you can also broil the leg of lamb if grilling isn’ton the agenda.
SERVES 12
1½ tablespoons fennel seeds
1 tablespoon cumin seeds
1 tablespoon coriander seeds
2 tablespoons minced fresh fennel fronds or basil leaves (or a combination)
5 garlic cloves, finely grated or minced
4 oil packed anchovy fillets, minced
1 tablespoon finely grated lemon zest (from 1 to 2 lemons)
1 tablespoon fine sea salt
½ tablespoon freshly ground black pepper
1 to 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, plus more as needed
1 (5½- 6 pound) boneless leg of lamb, butterflied, well trimmed of fat
Mustard, for serving (optional)
1. Heat a medium size dry skillet over medium heat. Stir in the fennel, cumin, and coriander seeds and cook until they are toasted and fragrant, 1 to 3 minutes. Using a mortar and pestle, pound until the seeds start to break down but are not pulverized (or use the flat of a knife to crush the seeds).
2 In a large bowl, combine the crushed toasted seeds with the fennel fronds, garlic, anchovies, lemon zest, salt, and pepper. Drizzle in as much oil as needed to make a paste, then rub the paste all over the lamb. Cover the lamb (or stuff it into a resealable plastic bag), and let it marinate in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours or as long as overnight.
3. When you are ready to cook, heat an outdoor grill to high (or heat a broiler with the rack set 3 inches below the heat source).
4. Grill or broil thE lamb for 7 to 12 minutes per side. For medium rare lamb, you’re looking for an internal temperature of 125°F on a meat thermometer, which will climb to 130°F or 135°F before you slice it. I like it rare, so I usually pull it off at about 115°F. Let the lamb rest (it will continue to cook),loosely covered with foil, for at least 10 minutes before slicing it. Serve the mustard alongside if you like.
Thinking Ahead
Lamb: You can marinate the lamb up to 24 hours in advance