Cordero means young lamb, whereas Lechazo means suckling lamb. Asado is the Spanish word for roasted, so when combined, we are talking about one of my favourite Spanish dishes. Whenever I am in Spain I make my way to a restaurant that is equipped with a traditional oven (pictured below) ideal for producing this delicious roasted suckling lamb dish.
Cordero Asado can be cooked with just the lamb, but this recipe involves cooking the lamb on a a bed of sliced potatoes, onions and garlic. This is a typical dish in Castilla Y Leon and Castilla la Mancha.
Ingredients
This dish can typically serve anywhere between 4-10 people. A small leg is appropriate for 2 people.
- Half a suckling lamb or quarter of a lamb. In fact any large portion or even a leg of lamb will do. I tend to buy the whole lamb and butcher it myself.
- potatoes (waxy potatoes work best - quantity depends on you)
- 2 large onions
- 4 or 5 whole garlic cloves
- 5 tablespoons of olive oil
- 150ml of dry white wine
- 300 ml of water
- 2 tablespoons of Sherry vinegar (other wine vinegar will do the job)
- juice of 1 lemon
- 8 sprigs of fresh thyme
- 8 Sprigs of fresh rosemary
- 2 cloves of garlic finely minced
- salt
- freshly ground black pepper
Preparation
Rub the lamb with the olive oil, season it generously with salt and pepper and rub the minced garlic, thyme and rosemary over the surface of the lamb. Let the lamb sit for an hour (or better still overnight) to absorb the flavours.
Peel and cut the potatoes into slices about 2cm thick and place on the bottom of a earthenware pan (or a roasting tin if you haven't got earthenware big enough). Slice the onions and mix them with the potatoes and whole peeled garlic cloves.
Put the white wine, water, vinegar and lemon juice into a pan and bring to the boil.
Place the lamb on top of the potatoes, onions and garlic and pour about half of the liquid over the meat.
Cooking Method
Place in a preheated oven at 230ºC for 15 minutes. Then turn the heat down to 190ºCand continue to roast it. Baste with the remaining liquid from time to time. If the potatoes soak up too much of the liquid you can make more. You want the meat to by crispy on the surface, but moist and falling apart once cooked - which requires some moisture in the cooking process.
Cooking time will vary based on the size of the meat. I allow 20 minutes per 500g.
Served with the potato that is cooked with it, a fresh green salad and a quality Spanish red. My wine recommendation would be a Tempranillo from DO Rioja or DO Ribera del Duero, or better still a Monastrell from DO Yecla, Enjoy!
