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Meat, Maghreb and Middle East

Moroccan style roasted lamb shoulder with roasted vegetables

This Moroccan style roasted lamb shoulder serves 4 people and takes 4.5 hours in the oven, an easy recipe at €5.40 per person. The key is slow cooking under foil, which steams the meat tender before it browns alongside the vegetables. You shred it with a fork and eat it with bread.

Tonight I'm giving you a homemade mechoui, a lamb shoulder that slow roasts in the oven, rubbed with cumin butter, with roasted vegetables, meant to be eaten with your hands and bread.

Moroccan style roasted lamb shoulder with roasted vegetables
Total time
4 h 30
Difficulty
Easy
Cost per person
€5.40
Calories per person
760 kcalcalculated by Kiloach, your weight coach
Season
Winter, Fall

This roasted lamb shoulder promises meat that pulls away from the bone on its own, scented with cumin and paprika, with a golden skin that crackles under your fork. The spiced butter melts slowly into the meat for hours, turning it tender, almost confit, while keeping that bold lamb flavor lifted by warm spices. The roasted vegetables around it soak up the pan juices and pick up the same aromas.

This is a Sunday dish, the kind you start early in the afternoon so your home fills with its smell while the oven does the work. Mon Chou designed it for family meals or gatherings with friends, meant to be shared in the middle of the table, pulled apart and eaten with your hands and bread. Plan plenty of time, but there is almost nothing to do during cooking.

The ingredients

4 people

Butcher

  • Lamb shoulder with bone 1.8 kg

Dairy

  • Butter 80 g

Pantry

  • Ground cuminoften in the pantry 2 tbsp
  • Paprikaoften in the pantry 1 tbsp
  • Saltoften in the pantry 1 pinch
  • Pepperoften in the pantry 1 pinch

Fruits and vegetables

  • Garlic 5 cloves
  • Potatoes 800 g
  • Carrots 4
  • Onion 2

Bakery

  • Round bread 1

Allergens Lactose, Gluten

The step by step recipe

  1. Mix the soft butter with the cumin, paprika, crushed garlic, salt and pepper.

    Take the butter out of the fridge ahead of time, it works into a paste more easily.

  2. Score the skin of the shoulder in a crisscross pattern and rub it generously with the spiced butter, then wrap it in foil.

    The deeper the cuts, the more the butter soaks in.

  3. Roast at 150°C and let it cook slowly. 3 h 30

    The meat is ready when the bone pulls away without effort.

  4. Add the potatoes, carrots and onions in large chunks to the pan and open the foil, then raise the oven to 200°C. 40 min

    Coat the vegetables in the cooking juices, they brown and pick up the flavor.

  5. Let the shoulder rest for 10 minutes and shred it with a fork, serving with the vegetables and bread. 10 min

    Keep the juices in the pan, spoon them over each plate.

Our tips to get it right

  • Pick a bone in shoulder rather than boneless, it gives more flavor and the meat pulls away more easily by the end of cooking.
  • Check the meat halfway through without opening the foil too often, every opening lets out the steam that keeps the meat tender.
  • If you do not have a large roasting pan, use a lidless cast iron pot, it holds heat better around the meat.

The variations

  • Swap the cumin and paprika for ras el hanout for a more complex, more fragrant flavor.
  • For a meat free version, make the same recipe with a whole large cauliflower rubbed in the spiced butter and roasted with the same vegetables.
  • For a faster cook, ask your butcher to cut the shoulder into pieces, which brings the oven time down to around 2 hours.

What to serve it with

  • Round bread to soak up the juices
  • Tomato and red onion salad
  • Plain yogurt with garlic

Storage

Keep leftovers in the fridge in a sealed container for 2 to 3 days. The shredded meat freezes well with a bit of its cooking juices for up to a month. Reheat gently in a pan or in a covered oven dish so it does not dry out.

Questions about this dish

Can you prepare the shoulder ahead of time?

Yes, you can rub the shoulder with the spiced butter the night before and keep it in the fridge under plastic wrap. It picks up even more flavor before cooking.

Can you replace the butter with olive oil?

Yes, swap the butter for the same amount of olive oil for a dairy free version. The flavor shifts slightly but the meat stays just as tender.

How do you know when the shoulder is cooked enough?

The bone should pull away easily when you tug it with a fork. If it still resists, put the meat back in the oven under the foil for another 20 to 30 minutes.

Can you make this recipe with leg of lamb?

Yes, a leg of lamb works with the same method, but it needs slightly less cooking time since it is leaner. Start checking it at the 3.5 hour mark.

How long does it take to make a Moroccan style roasted lamb shoulder with roasted vegetables?

Count 4 h 30 in total, prep and cooking included. The recipe is rated “easy”.

How many calories are in a Moroccan style roasted lamb shoulder with roasted vegetables?

About 760 kcal per serving, for a recipe meant for 4 people. Calories are calculated by Kiloach, your weight coach, the app that partners with Mon Chou.

How much does a Moroccan style roasted lamb shoulder with roasted vegetables cost?

About €5.40 per serving, or €21.60 for 4 people, based on average supermarket prices.

What allergens does this recipe contain?

This recipe contains lactose, gluten. Always check the labels of the products you buy.

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