It is a recipe for a succulent fall-apart tender lamb shoulder that’s gradual cooked in a wealthy massaman curry sauce, introduced in a grand roast lamb centrepiece kind. My present most-made lamb shoulder recipe. Bought 5 minutes to make it? 🙂
5 Minute Fall-apart Massaman Lamb Shoulder
This recipe goes to save lots of you on these events when it’s essential to serve a bunch and are pressed for time, but nonetheless eager to make one thing that appears spectacular. I imply, we’ve got a status to uphold, in spite of everything! 🙂
You actually simply put all the things in a pan, which takes all of 5 minutes, then go away it within the oven to gradual roast for 4 hours.
And what comes out is extraordinary. The lamb meat is succulent fall-apart tender, swimming in a to-die-for massaman curry sauce with comfortable potatoes that actually soften in your mouth.
Plus, it may be made the day earlier than as a result of it reheats 100% completely (can’t say that about most roasts!) and it’s child pleasant as a result of Massaman curry isn’t spicy.
Cynical? Don’t blame you!
If it sounds too good to be true – I don’t blame you for being cynical! This recipe works very particularly as a result of it’s slow-roasted (permits time for the sauce and meat to develop flavour), we’re utilizing lamb meat (extra flavourful than hen, pork and beef) and since we’re utilizing a richly flavoured curry sauce because the braising liquid.
Want extra proof? Head over to the Massaman Lamb Shanks. Identical methodology. Glowing critiques!
Substances in Massaman Lamb Shoulder
A shortcut on this recipe is that we use retailer purchased curry paste. Actually, do-it-yourself Massaman Curry paste doesn’t work for this recipe as a result of it’s too recent! We want the concentrated flavour of retailer purchased.
Additionally, as talked about above, utilizing lamb here’s a deliberate alternative. Actually, conventional Massaman Curry is made with beef however I go for lamb as a result of it’s a stronger flavoured meat.
1. Lamb shoulder
Lamb shoulder is a reduce of lamb that must be cooked lengthy and gradual to present the powerful meat fibres time to interrupt down and turn into tender. You may’t cook dinner shoulder to blushing pink like a conventional Lamb Leg, it’s simply too powerful.
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The place to get it – Nowadays, you will discover shoulder in common grocery shops right here in Australia. It was cheaper than lamb leg however now it’s about the identical value. However, it’s extra succulent and has higher flavour than lamb leg!
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Get bone in as a result of the meat is juicier. Belief me on this, I’ve examined bone-in and boneless aspect by aspect. The distinction is phenomenal! (See FAQ for extra data).
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Different lamb cuts – For lamb shanks, use the Massaman Lamb Shanks recipe (it’s barely completely different). Boneless lamb shoulder will work however scale back the cooking time by an hour.
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Different proteins – I don’t suppose beef chuck would add sufficient flavour into the sauce for this methodology of cooking (ie no searing meat prior). Beef quick ribs do work (scale back bake time by about 1 1/2 hours, it was nice). Pork shoulder may also work however I haven’t received my head round how good pork is with massaman curry sauce. Tasty, however maybe higher with beef or lamb? Rooster received’t work as a result of it might’t be cooked lengthy sufficient to present the sauce ample time to develop sufficient flavour. Keep in mind this recipe is designed with comfort in thoughts which implies we’d like slow-cooking time for flavour creation!
2. THE CURRY PART
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Massaman Curry paste – Maesri is my most well-liked model. Not all curry pastes are made equal! Extra on this beneath.
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Cinnamon and star anise – Flavour enhance of two dominant spices in Massaman curry paste.
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Coconut milk – As utilized in conventional Massaman Curry sauce. Search for a coconut milk that’s no less than 80% coconut! Very economical manufacturers will be as little as 30% which barely style of coconut. I take advantage of Ayam (89%).
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Rooster inventory/broth – To create quantity to make a braising liquid to principally submerge the lamb, in addition to including depth of flavour into the sauce. A shortcut – conventional Massaman Curry is made by braising items of beef in liquid to make a do-it-yourself inventory which is used for the sauce.
Get low-sodium so your sauce doesn’t find yourself too salty. (Although it received’t be a catastrophe should you don’t get low sodium as the large hunk of lamb + potatoes will soak up the salt).
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Potato and onion – historically included in conventional Massaman Curry. Use complete child potatoes, round 3cm/1.2″ large is right, in order that they maintain collectively and turn into fantastically comfortable and creamy inside. ⚠️ Don’t use cubes of reduce potato as they are going to disintegrate and make the sauce grainy!
3. Maesri curry paste
Right here is the undisputed king of all retailer purchased Thai curry pastes – Maesri. Eating places use it, cooks use it, and meals obsessed folks like myself are mad for it.
And it occurs to be bought at common grocery shops and it’s the most cost effective (at present ~$2.00).
I take advantage of it for all my Thai curries after I don’t have time / elements to make the curry paste from scratch – Purple, Inexperienced and conventional Massaman beef curry. And some other recipe calling for a dollop or two of curry paste, from the peanut dipping sauce for Thai Satay Rooster to Thai Coconut Pumpkin Soup to Purple Curry Pot Roast Rooster!
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The place to seek out Maesri curry paste – At your native grocery retailer! It’s bought at most metropolitan Coles and Woolworths grocery shops in Australia (Asian part), at Harris Farms, virtually all Asian shops (it could be un-Asian to not carry it!) and right here it’s on-line in the US, Canada* and UK.
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Can’t discover it? Use any Massaman Curry paste you will discover. My private order of desire (Aussie manufacturers) – Ayam, 5 Tastes and mentioning the rear is Volcom (it’s all the time too candy).
* Obscenely costly, please attempt to get to an Asian retailer!
Methods to make Massaman Lamb Shoulder
2 straightforward steps -put all the things right into a pan, bake 4 hours! You may also use your gradual cooker – see recipe notes.
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Sauce – Put the curry, coconut and inventory in a roasting pan. Whisk till lump free (together with pesky coconut milk lumps).
💡If making forward to reheat tomorrow, use a ceramic, glass or enamel coated forged iron baking dish moderately than a metallic one. I sometimes attempt to keep away from holding meals in any kind of metallic pans in a single day. Simply to be cautious!
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Lamb the wrong way up – Put the lamb shoulder in then flip to coat within the sauce. Then prepare it so it’s the wrong way up within the sauce. ie fats cap aspect / meaty aspect down, crimson boney aspect going through up. This fashion many of the meat is submerged within the liquid so it braises.
Scatter the onion, cinnamon, star anise and potatoes across the lamb.
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Gradual roast excessive then low – Cowl with foil. Roast for 1 hour 220°C/425°F (200°C fan) to get the warmth going contained in the pan (it’s an enormous hunk of meat there, which takes some time to warmth up), then3 hours at 180°C/350°F (160°C fan) or till the meat is fork-tender. Which means that it is best to have the ability to pry the meat aside with two forks with none effort.
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Brown it – Take away the foil and punctiliously flip the lamb over so. Spoon some sauce over then pop it again within the oven for half-hour till the floor is a beautiful deep golden brown.
Making forward? After browning, let it absolutely cool uncovered then refrigerate in a single day. On the day of, simply reheat it within the oven coated for 1 hour. See recipe notes for instructions!
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Skim fats – Take away it from the oven and let it relaxation for 10 to fifteen minutes. Skim off the surplus fats fro the floor of the sauce utilizing a big spoon. There will probably be a good quantity – round 1/2 to three/4 cup (125 – 180 ml). Lamb shoulder is a fatty reduce, and that’s the reason it’s so tasty! Don’t attempt to get all of the fats as a result of in any other case you’ll lose an excessive amount of sauce. And bear in mind, fats = flavour!
💡When you refrigerated in a single day, you may elevate sheets of the fats off the floor of the sauce however you’ll want to scrape all of the sauce off the underside!
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Garnish and serve – When you’re posh (I’m not), switch all the things right into a serving dish then sprinkle with the crimson chilli slices and coriander/cilantro. Serve with rice and tongs – no carving knife required right here, this isn’t the carving type! See the part beneath for varied serving kinds.
Serving kinds
An odd-sounding heading maybe, however it should make sense as soon as I clarify! Listed here are the three methods I’ve served this lamb prior to now few months (it’s been repeatedly used since I invented it, so helpful for teams):
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Lazy format for acquainted folks eg household, informal lunch with the group – Go away the entire lamb shoulder within the roasting pan. It does get a bit messy because the meat-tearing progresses because the bone will get in the way in which, and likewise there are pockets of fats that I discover folks are likely to keep away from and go away within the pan. However, it’s much less work for me to serve, and the entire lamb seems to be spectacular! 🙂
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Meat absolutely eliminated – This one is simple for friends to serve themselves although lacks the visible affect of an entire lamb shoulder. Take away all of the meat off the bone and separate into large-ish serving-size chunks. Take away and discard giant identifiable pockets of fats. Squidge meat in sauce, garnish, serve with giant serving spoon.
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Bone eliminated, lamb in-tact – It is a good option to have visible affect of an entire piece of lamb but it surely’s simpler to serve as a result of the bone is eliminated. You actually simply seize the bone and slide it out of the meat, taking care to maintain the lamb in tact. As a result of the meat is so tender, it ought to slide out effortlessly.
What to serve with Massaman Lamb Shoulder
Rice is important, for sauce soaking. Jasmine is my first choose (being Thai and all) although basmati is gorgeous with it too, given the Indian affect of Massaman curry. They each have a slight fragrance of flavour that goes so nicely with this dish however I’m certain no one would snob different rice sorts on supply! 🙂
I’d recommend choosing a light-weight and recent aspect salad as this dish is kind of wealthy. It’s pictured above with an Asian Slaw on the aspect. Some extra ideas: Leafy Asian salad, Chang’s Crispy Noodle Salad, Smashed Cucumber Salad, Japanese Slaw, Glass Noodle Salad (skip the hen), or any recent greens/salady issues / blanched greens you need tossed with my easy 4 ingredient Asian Sesame Dressing.
Get pleasure from! – Nagi x
Massaman lamb shoulder FAQ
Make per recipe, preserve it complete and let it absolutely cool (takes about 2 hours). Cowl and refrigerate (24 hours finest, as much as 3 days). Take it out 2 hours prior. Reheat 1 hour at 180°C/350°F (160°C fan) coated in foil.
It reheats 100% completely which is a singular characteristic right here as a result of it’s uncommon {that a} “roast” fashion dish to have the ability to be reheated with out lack of high quality. For instance, I might by no means try this with a lamb rack or prime rib!
As many as you may snug match within the oven, although it’s possible you’ll want to extend the roasting time should you crowd the oven. I can match 4 in my normal dimension 60cm oven, 2 shoulders in 2 giant pans. I’ve used giant disposable aluminium trays to make cleansing up simpler and likewise as a result of they match 2 lambs.
Sure, however it’s not fairly pretty much as good as a result of it lacks the long-roasting-time caramelisation you get on the floor of the lamb and sauce. Gradual cook dinner for 10 hours then end within the oven to brown / scale back sauce (~ 1 hour).
As a result of when butchers reduce into the meat to take away the bone they’re reducing the flesh which creates extra escape routes for juices.
I as soon as made my 12 hour lamb shoulder utilizing a bone-in and boneless lamb shoulder and in contrast the burden of the lamb meat after roasting. The distinction is extraordinary – the bone in lamb meat retains about 20% extra juices so the meat is way extra succulent.
YES. Proof right here – that recipe makes use of the identical methodology however makes use of shanks as an alternative of shoulder. It’s a beloved reader fave!
See in publish for why this recipe works though it’s really easy.
It makes extra meat so this dish serves extra. And since lamb shoulder is fattier than lamb shanks, I begin with extra liquid within the braising sauce so the sauce on the finish is barely thinner and fewer wealthy. The primary time I made it simply switching the shanks for shoulder, the sauce was simply too wealthy and likewise there wasn’t sufficient for all of the meat.
Additionally – roasting temp. Beginning with a 1 hour excessive warmth blast is essential for this recipe, it cuts the entire roasting time down by an hour.
Sure, it’s on the massive aspect. Sometimes you will discover that butchers carry smaller ones round 1.4 – 1.7kg and grocery shops carry bigger ones ~2kg as much as 2.5 kg. The bigger lamb is technically mutton, not lamb, from a sheep that’s older. Lamb from youthful sheep is extra tender and can cook dinner quicker so should you use a small shoulder, verify if the meat is tender a little bit earlier.
4 days within the fridge, 3 months within the freezer. Reheats 100% good!
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Fall-apart massaman lamb shoulder
Prep: 5 minutes
Prepare dinner: 4 hours 30 minutes
Resting: 15 minutes
Primary
Thai-ish
Servings6 – 8
Faucet or hover to scale
Forestall display from sleeping
Directions
Abbreviated recipe:
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Whisk curry, coconut and inventory, put lamb in the wrong way up. Add spices and potatoes, foil cowl, roast 1 hour at 220°C/425°F (200°C fan), 3 hours 180°C/350°F (160°C fan) or till fall-apart. Uncover, flip lamb, half-hour. Garnish, serve!
Full recipe steps:
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Preheat the oven to 220°C/425°F (200°C fan-forced).
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Whisk the curry paste, coconut milk and hen inventory in a pan till lump free. Put lamb shoulder in, flip to coat within the sauce then place it so it is the wrong way up (ie meaty / fats aspect down).
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Place the onion, cinnamon sticks, star anise and potatoes across the lamb. Cowl with foil.
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Gradual-cook – Roast for 1 hour. LOWER the oven to 180°C/350°F (160°C fan) then roast for an extra 3 hours. (Notice 5)
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Verify – Take away foil and use forks to verify the meat is just about “fall-apart-tender”.
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Brown – Flip the lamb over, spoon over sauce. Bake uncovered half-hour or till deep golden.
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Serve – Relaxation for 10 – quarter-hour. Spoon off as a lot or as little extra fats off floor, discard. Combine sauce nicely (it is fairly runny, if it was thicker it would be too wealthy). Switch to a serving dish, should you like, sprinkle with chilli and coriander. Serve! (Notice 6 for serving kinds)
Recipe Notes:
Different meat that can work: boneless quick rib
2. Massaman curry paste – finest is Maesri model, bought at most Woolworths (see right here) & Coles in Australia, in addition to Harris Farms and Asian shops. Additionally occurs to be the most cost effective at ~$2.10 a can.
In any other case, use no matter model you will discover (my preferences: Ayam, 5 Tastes and lastly Volcom).
3. Coconut milk – not all coconut milk is created equal. Search for manufacturers which can be no less than 80% coconut for higher coconut flavour (verify the elements), I take advantage of Ayam which is 89%.
4. Potatoes – small ones ~3cm / 1.2″ is right. Maintain them complete or halve, with pores and skin on. Don’t use peeled cubes of potato, they are going to disintegrate and make the sauce grainy.
5. Oven temps – Preliminary excessive temp roasting is to get warmth contained in the lamb and liquid, cuts down on gradual roasting time by an hour.
Gradual cooker – 10 hours on low. Switch all the things to a pan (lamb the wrong way up), 180°C/350°F (160°C fan) half-hour, flip lamb, 30 – 45 minutes till properly colored and sauce lowered (take away lamb and scale back in oven extra if wanted). Helpful, however, oven roasting is best flavour (higher caramelisation). 🙂
6. Serving fashion – When it’s simply acquainted folks, I’ll simply serve the lamb complete, within the pan. For straightforward serving (eg my mom’s aged group of mates!), I’ll take away the meat, discard the bone and extra fats (there’s a good quantity of hidden pockets), then form of squidge giant shreds of lamb within the sauce, and garnish to make it fairly. For impressive-but-easier serving (like my mates), I preserve the meat complete (it seems to be good!) however slide the bone out (the meat is so tender it ought to come out effortlessly). That approach folks don’t must navigate across the bone.
7. MAKE-AHEAD BRILLIANCE – One of many uncommon roasts that reheats virtually 100% completely (in actual fact, the sauce flavour will get higher with time), making it glorious for making forward for gatherings. Use a ceramic or glass baking dish, absolutely cool (complete) then refrigerate in a single day within the dish. Take out of the fridge a superb 2 hours prior, cowl loosely with foil, reheat at 180°C/350°F (160°C) for 1 hour (2 shoulders every in separate pans took 1 hour quarter-hour).
Diet per serving assuming 8 servings. It’ll serve 6 comfortably with rice and a single aspect salad (lamb meat + the sauce is fairly wealthy), as much as 8 should you had a few sides.
Diet Data:
Energy: 478cal (24%)Carbohydrates: 18g (6%)Protein: 48g (96%)Fats: 24g (37%)Saturated Fats: 14g (88%)Polyunsaturated Fats: 1gMonounsaturated Fats: 6gLdl cholesterol: 142mg (47%)Sodium: 502mg (22%)Potassium: 1100mg (31%)Fiber: 3g (13%)Sugar: 2g (2%)Vitamin A: 2250IU (45%)Vitamin C: 18mg (22%)Calcium: 75mg (8%)Iron: 7mg (39%)
Lamb shoulder is a agency favorite for entertaining
See?
Lifetime of Dozer
When you instructed me 10 years in the past I’d be sitting on the ground of a buying centre with a canine watching a lightwall till the advert for my e book signing got here up, I’d have checked out you want I’m loopy.
As a substitute, folks have been me like I’m loopy!! 😂
Right here’s a enjoyable little video I put collectively of Dozer’s go to to Warringah Mall yesterday to take a look at our lightwall! In truth, I used to be a little bit disillusioned. I used to be secretly hoping for an enormous picture of Dozer. I do know, I do know, I’m such an ungrateful brat! 😈
