Rolled lamb shoulder with olives and borlotti beans
This flavour-packed lamb shoulder cooked in olive tapenade, borlotti beans, cherry tomatoes, oregano and black olives serves up to six hungry guests. If using dried borlotti beans, they will need to be soaked for at least six hours ahead of time.
For a vegan version, try Sarit and Itamar's borlotti bean stew.
Ingredients
- 1.8kg/4lb deboned lamb shoulder (if you have the bones too, all the better)
- 150g/5½oz jar olive tapenade
- 1 lemon, zest only
- 1 garlic clove, finely chopped
- 6 sprigs fresh oregano (or 2 tsp dried oregano)
- 500g/1lb 2oz borlotti beans (from 1kg/2lb 4oz pods if fresh or, if dried, 250g/9oz soaked overnight – see Recipe Tip for more information)
- 60g/2¼oz pitted black olives
- 300²µ/10½´Ç³ú cherry tomatoes
- 5 sprigs fresh oregano
- 1 garlic bulb, broken into cloves, unpeeled
- salt and freshly ground black pepper
Method
Lay the deboned shoulder flat on a chopping board and season well with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Mix the tapenade with the lemon zest, garlic and oregano in a small bowl, and rub the mixture all over the lamb in a thick layer. Roll the lamb and tie it up, using some butcher’s string so that it resembles a log. It doesn’t need to be perfect – it tastes great even if it’s wonky, so don’t spend ages getting it straight. Wrap and place in the fridge for a couple of hours or leave overnight.
Preheat the oven to 220C/200C Fan/Gas 7 and place the lamb in a deep saucepan that has plenty of space for the rest of the ingredients. Roast the rolled lamb for 20 minutes, or until it is a lovely golden-brown colour. Remove from the oven and add the rest of the ingredients to the saucepan. Reduce the oven temperature to 180C/160C Fan/Gas 4.
Add 300ml/10fl oz of water to the pan (don’t be tempted to add more, and don’t worry if the water doesn’t cover anything – the secret is to let the cooking juices braise the beans). Cover with a tightly fitting lid and return to the oven. Cook for an hour.
Carefully remove from the oven, baste really well with the juices that have formed in the bottom of the saucepan, cover again and return to the oven for another hour. Repeat the basting and return to the oven for the last 30 minutes.
Carefully remove the lamb shoulder from the saucepan, cut away the string and transfer the cooked beans and all the juices to a large serving platter. Top with the lamb and serve at the table, cutting off thick slices for each guest.
Recipe Tips
If you use dried borlotti beans, soak them in plenty of cold water for at least six hours. Once soaked, bring them to a boil in plenty of fresh water, cook for 10 minutes, then strain and proceed as in the recipe.