Slow Roasted Hoisin Honey Lamb Shoulder

This dish will truly be the centerpiece of any special dinner. Cooked low and slow—the resulting meat is super tender and redolent with five spice, orange and rosemary and finished with a hoisin honey glaze—it’s bursting with bold flavor that stands up to and complements the lamb. Uncovering the lamb for the last 20 minutes will reduce any liquid in the pan to a saucy consistency—so definitely serve with rice or rustic bread to soak everything up.

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Serves 4

INGREDIENTS

5-pound lamb shoulder (bone in)
8 sprigs rosemary, divided
2 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon kosher salt
2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 teaspoon five spice powder
3 cups red wine (1 bottle), or beef stock
1 head of garlic, cut in half horizontally
2 yellow onions, quartered
1 orange, quartered
¼ cup honey
2 tablespoons hoisin sauce

METHOD

Preheat oven to 300F.

Mince 4 sprigs of the rosemary. Rub olive oil all over the lamb, then season all over with salt, pepper, five spice and minced rosemary.

Add red wine and 3 cups of water to a deep roasting pan, along with remaining rosemary, garlic, onion and orange in the center to form a raft. Lay lamb shoulder, fat cap side up, atop.

Cover tightly with a double layer of tin foil then roast for 5 to 5½ hours, checking periodically—if there is no longer any liquid in the pan then add enough water so that there’s about ½” in the pan.

In the meantime, mix honey and hoisin sauce together in a small bowl.

Remove foil, baste with juices (again, add a bit more water to the pan if there’s not enough), then brush with hoisin and honey mixture.

Raise heat to 425F then return to oven and roast for another 30 minutes. Remove from oven, tent with foil and let rest for 20 minutes and serve with pan juices.