How to Cook Medieval Andalusian Lamb

One of my favorite parts of recreating the Middle Ages is exploring the different foods a Medieval cook would have had available and the ways they put them together. This recipe for “Stuffed and Roast Mutton; Called 'The Complete'” is from a 13th Century cookbook known as the "Anonymous Andalusian." I first made it as part of a four-course feast for more than 100 people at a Medieval event. This dish was incredibly well-received: probably the favorite course of the evening! In the original recipe it calls for an entire ram to be stuffed with meatballs, flat bread and egg yolks as well as various types of poultry that had been fried and stuffed with bread and almonds and then roasted whole! While this may wow your dinner guests, it exceeds the scope of most everyday cooks--myself included. Instead, I've adapted it to serve 10 to 15 guests as a stuffed leg of lamb.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderate

Things You’ll Need:

• 6 to 8 lb. Leg of lamb
• 1/2 lb. Chicken breast
• 1 cup Bread-crumbs
• 2 Eggs
• 1 tbsp Pepper
• 2 tsp Ginger
• 1 cup Almonds, ground
• 1/2 cup Chicken broth
• 1/2 cup plus 2 tbsp Olive oil, divided
• 1/2 cup Soy sauce
• 2 tbsp Thyme
• Kitchen twine

1. Leg of lamb, ready to be deboned. Debone your leg of lamb.
   
   The best way is to start at the knobby hip-joint on the meaty end of the leg and make several short cuts through the thinnest portion of the meat to the 'knee'. There will be a slight change of direction here down to the thin end of the leg. Once boned, set aside.
2. Roast and shredded chicken breast. Roast your chicken breasts until completely cooked. You could even go so far as to boil them with vegetables to make your own stock for the next step, or you could truly cut your time and microwave the chicken breasts. Once cooked and cooled, shred the chicken breasts and place them into a large mixing bowl.
3. Stuffing ingredients Combine the bread-crumbs, eggs, pepper, ginger and ground almonds with the shredded chicken and then add as much chicken broth and oil (up to 2 tbsp.) as needed to get a good mixture that sticks together but is not soupy or thin.
4. Ready to roll! Lay out your boned leg of lamb and arrange it into as rectangular a piece as you can with the smoother side of the meat face down. Spread the chicken mixture evenly on top of the lamb and then, starting with the long edge, roll the lamb into a cylinder.
5. Once it is sprinkled with the sauce it is ready for the oven. Place kitchen twine around the lamb-roll about 3 inches from one end and tie a knot, leaving a very long tail. String the twine to half-way down the roll, hold this in place and loop the tail under the roll and under the section you're holding and pull tight like you're wrapping a package. Repeat this about 3 inches from the other end of the roll, tie a knot and trim away the extra twine.
6. Combine the soy sauce, olive oil and thyme.
7. Put the stuffed, trussed lamb into a roasting pan, sprinkle it with the sauce and place into a 350 degree F oven for 1 1/2 hours or until the temperature in the center of the roll reaches 165 degrees. Baste the roll periodically with the soy sauce mixture while it is cooking.
8. Good enough to eat! Once the roast comes out of the oven, let it rest for 10 minutes, remove the twine and slice into 1-inch thick portions for serving.

Tips & Warnings

• Take your time carefully cutting the meat away from the bone doing your best to keep the leg in a single piece to make it easier to roll up later.
• Chicken is done when it reaches a temperature of 175 degrees F
• Medieval bread crumbs were made from hearty bread leftover from the previous day that were then grated into smallish pieces. This sort of bread crumb tends to soak up a lot of moisture but it also helps stretch more expensive ingredients.
• The original recipe calls for “split and pounded almonds”, so leave yours somewhat coarse.
• Using a flexible cutting mat or placing the lamb on a sheet of aluminum foil or plastic wrap can help with the rolling process.
• Soy sauce is being used as a substitute for the Andalusian condiment murri naqi, which is a salty, fermented sauce of grain and seasonings.
• Once trussed, the lamb can be wrapped in plastic wrap and then aluminum foil and frozen for up to two months with no loss of flavor. Defrost the lamb slowly in the refrigerator before roasting.
• To round out the meal, I suggest couscous and turnips seasoned with soy sauce, walnuts and caraway seeds.
• The 'knee' may seem a little tricky to bone around, but use a thin, sharp blade and take your time: the result will be worth the effort.
• Excess fat on the outside of the lamb can cause flare-ups and smoke once in the oven. Trim away most of the excess fat from the leg as a safety measure--the taste will not suffer!
• Do not over-stuff your lamb! If there appears to be too much filling for your leg of lamb, discard the extra before you truss it. An overstuffed lamb will fall apart when sliced and make serving very difficult.
• If the lamb begins to brown too much before it is done, place a foil tent over the roll to prevent further browning while it finishes.