I’m so excited for this tasty braised lamb shoulder recipe! But first I should start with where I got this lamb from. I’ve befriended the people over at Cultivatr, an online farmers market in Calgary. They work with a lot of local farms around Alberta and bring together some unique and delicious ingredients. It’s perfect for a chef like me! I also really like the digital setup instead of the traditional bricks and mortar farmers market. This lamb shoulder came from Lambtastic Farms, in Vulcan, and the flavor is crazy good!
I used lots of garlic and onions, and good quality beef stock. Sauteing the onions and garlic give the broth extra flavor and everything is added to a crock pot with the rosemary and freshly seared lamb shoulder.
The braised lamb shoulder will cook for about 4-5 hours at a nice low simmer. The key is to not let the crock pot come to any sort of boil. This can cause the lamb to become very tough, even when you pull it apart. You have been warned! Let the braised lamb shoulder take it’s sweet time. You’ll be happy you did!
After this braised lamb shoulder has been pulled and cooled, I add it to a pan with a tasty mix of maple syrup, lemon juice, and fresh orange juice. I find the acid mixes well with the lamb and the sweetness of the maple syrup pairs well too. What’s nice about this lamb is that the quality is really good so there’s not too much of a gamy taste.
I paired this recipe with some tasty spiced rice and some lemon honey glazed carrots! What a great recipe for colder weather am I right?
- Lamb
- 1.5 lb lamb shoulder
- 1 L beef stock
- 1 cup of sliced white onion
- 3 cloves of sliced garlic
- 3 sprigs of fresh rosemary
- juice and zest of 1 orange
- 2 tsp of garlic powder
- salt and pepper to taste
- Sauce
- 1/4 cup maple syrup
- the juice of two oranges
- the juice of one lemon
- Reserve another half lemon to adjust seasoning
- Heat up 2 Tbsp of olive oil in a large pot and saute the onions and garlic until well caramelized. The garlic should be golden brown but not burnt.
- Add in the beef stock and let come to a simmer.
- Season the lamb shoulder with the garlic powder, salt and pepper.
- Heat up 2 Tbsp of olive oil in a pan and brown the lamb on all sides.
- Add the hot liquid, fresh rosemary and the lamb into a slow cooker and simmer for 3-4 hours, or until the lamb shreds easily.
- Add the shredded lamb to the pan and add the sauce ingredients. Let the lamb simmer for another few minutes to allow the liquid to reduce and concentrate in flavor. Check for seasoning and add a little squeeze of lemon juice in right at the end.
- Serve with rice or roasted sweet potatoes and a vegetable of your choice.
What’s great about this braised lamb shoulder is that you can eat it by itself, or eat it other ways as a tasty taco, or serve it as a complete meal with roasted potatoes, rice or even a salad! Bonus is that for all of my low oxalate readers this recipe is defintely on the list of kidney friendly recipes!
Thanks again to Dan at Cultivatr for the free samples and I look forward to helping grow this concept by sharing recipes using other tasty ingredients from Local farms around the YYC area!
If you want a great side dish to go with this lamb I highly recommend my goat cheese and cauliflower mashed potatoes!
