Yes, that center is quite rare. Yes, it’s supposed to be that way. Lamb, like veal, is delicate and needs to be cooked lightly.
This is my first time roasting a leg of lamb, and I loved it! I got the recipe from a website that had a ton of pictures and even video (that could not be scrolled past) before you could get down to the recipe. I’m not going to do that to you guys.
Ingredients:
5-7 lbs leg of lamb, bone-in (bone provides flavor!)
3 tbs olive oil
salt and ground pepper
6 cloves garlic
3 stems of fresh rosemary
roasting pan (with rack or raised bottom
aluminum foil
Take the lamb out of the fridge at least an hour before cooking. Warm meat cooks more evenly! Rinse the leg, trim any unwanted fat (if the layer is thick, trim it down until you can see meat through it). Pat dry.
Rub the lamb all over with the olive oil. Place on rack in roasting pan. Sprinkle generously with salt and pepper.
Set your oven to broil and adjust the top rack so the lamb will be just under the heating element/flame. Broil the lamb for five minutes. Turn it over, season the other side with salt and pepper, and broil for five more minutes.
Remove the lamb from the oven and set the oven to bake, 325 degrees. Chop the garlic and rosemary until both are minced fine together (remove the leaves of rosemary off the stems- the stems are too tough to chop). Flip the lamb back over to the first side you broiled, and rub/coat the top with the chopped garlic and rosemary.
Cover the lamb loosely with foil. If your roasting pan is tall enough, you might just cover the whole top of it. Roast the lamb for 1 hour, then check. Lamb can be eaten at 135 degrees (rare). You can roast it until it hits 145 if you prefer more “done” meat. Don’t go too far, though. Overcooked lamb ruins its flavor. If the lamb needs more cooking, place it back in for another 15-20 minutes, then check again.
Rest the lamb at least 15 minutes before carving. The lamb will “coast”, continuing to cook a little on the inside due to stored heat.
Carve into slices, and eat. (We had ours with rice pilaf, with some dried rosemary in it.)
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