Lamb shoulder is the PERFECT ingredient if you’re wanting all the epicness of lamb, with the cooking time cut down in a big way. These lamb shoulder recipes will have you making a beeline for the lamb section at your local supermarket every grocery trip!
Not only is it a super quick way to get your lamb fix, but it’s also super versatile. You can add lamb shoulder to noodles, spice up your san choy bow or even make super flaky, tender massaman lamb pies. These are the recipes you are going to want to add to your weekly recipe rotation – STAT.
So many recipes to try, so little time!
What is lamb shoulder good for?
Lamb shoulder is a hard working part of the animal, which means the meat from the lamb’s shoulder is full of flavour, but also has a tendency to be quite tough and chewy if not cooked correctly.
Since lamb shoulder takes longer to become tender it is important to use it whilst cooking things that require slower-cooking. Stews and roasts are both really good choices for when you are cooking with lamb shoulder.
You can use lamb shoulder to make noodles, to add to curries, to make slow-cooked pies or to even make slow-cooked pulled lamb to stuff in sandos or bao buns!
How long does it take to cook a shoulder of lamb?
If you’re a lamb recipe newbie and you’ve mostly spent your time making ground lamb recipes or even lamb leg recipes, lamb shoulder is definitely different! When cooking lamb shoulder, especially a whole shoulder, slow roasting at a low temperature is definitely the best way to go. If you’re cooking your lamb shoulder in the oven you’re looking at a cooking time of between 3.5 and 5 hours.
I know what you’re thinking, that’s a big gap in cooking times, but don’t stress, it’s totally weight dependent. The bigger your lamb shoulder, the longer it’s going to need in the oven. If you have a smaller lamb shoulder, you can get the cooking time cut down. But if your lamb shoulder is large, it will definitely take longer to cook!
Cooking low and slow will mean you get a super tender, super succulent lamb shoulder – every time!
