Source video by Jamie Oliver on YouTube. This recipe was adapted with strict source-fidelity rules and is marked for human review.
Jamie builds a spice paste in a food processor: a thumb of ginger, a whole bulb of garlic, a red onion (peeled and quartered), salt and pepper, 1 tbsp of mustard seeds, a handful of almonds, a generous pinch of cumin, 2 fresh chillies, a lug of olive oil, 1 tbsp of vinegar and 2 tbsp of yoghurt. The paste smears over a whole lamb shoulder; deep two-inch knife slits stuff with curry leaves. Original: 220C for 20-30 min, then 130C for 3-4 hours pullable. Adapted for the slow cooker: a quick 220C sear in the oven for 20 minutes to build the crust, then transfer to the slow cooker on Low 8 hours. The tray juices then get a fresh round of mustard seeds, curry leaves, green chilli, coriander stalks, chopped tomatoes and coconut milk on the hob to become the curry sauce. Serve with rice, lemony salad and poppadoms.
Slow cooker notes: Original is a two-stage oven roast: hot for the crust, then long and low for the pull. Adapted for the slow cooker: keep the high-heat oven sear (20 min at 220C) because that crust is the dish's signature; you can't get it in a slow cooker. Then transfer to the slow cooker, pour in a glug of water around the lamb (about 200 ml) and run Low 8 hours. The tray's been freed up by then, so make the curry sauce on the hob: mustard seeds, curry leaves, chilli, coriander stalks, tomatoes and coconut milk simmered in any rendered lamb fat that came across.
Ingredients
- lamb shoulder, whole, bone-in, scored deep with knife slits
- 1 thumbfresh ginger, peeled
- 1garlic bulb, whole, peeled
- 1red onion, peeled, quartered
- 1 tbspmustard seeds
- whole almonds
- ground cumin
- 2fresh chillies
- olive oil
- 1 tbspvinegar
- 2 tbspnatural yoghurt
- salt and black pepper
- fresh curry leaves, picked off the stalks
- 200 mlwater (for the slow cooker)
- 1 tspmustard seeds (add late)
- fresh curry leaves (add late)
- fresh green chilli, sliced (add late)
- coriander stalks, chopped (add late)
- tomatoes, chopped (add late)
- coconut milk (add late)
- lemon, juiced to taste (add late)
Method
In a food processor, whizz the ginger, a whole bulb of peeled garlic, the quartered red onion, the 1 tbsp of mustard seeds, the handful of almonds, the pinch of cumin, the two fresh chillies, a lug of olive oil, 1 tbsp of vinegar, 2 tbsp of yoghurt and a pinch of salt and pepper to a paste.
~5 minScore the lamb shoulder all over with a knife, going about two inches deep, twisting on each plunge. Stuff curry leaves down into each cut. Spread the spice paste under and over the meat, working it into the slits.
~10 minSit the lamb in a roasting tray. Splash a little water around it, drizzle olive oil over the top. Roast at 220C for 20 minutes to set the crust.
~20 minLift the lamb (with the tray juices and curry leaves) into the slow cooker. Add 200 ml of water around the base. Lid on. Cook on Low for 8 hours, until the meat pulls apart with a fork.
~480 minLift the pulled lamb onto a serving platter to rest. Pour the slow cooker juices into a saucepan; spoon off any pure fat that rises (keep a tablespoon of it for the sauce).
~5 minHeat the reserved lamb fat in the saucepan over medium heat. Add 1 tsp of mustard seeds; they'll pop. Add fresh curry leaves, sliced green chilli and the chopped coriander stalks. Stir-fry briefly.
~2 minAdd the chopped tomatoes and a tin of coconut milk. Bring to a boil; taste, add a pinch of salt and a squeeze of lemon to lift.
~4 minPour the sauce over the pulled lamb. Scatter the reserved coriander leaves over the top. Serve with basmati rice, poppadoms and a lemony green salad.
~3 min