Lamb is the meat of the season during spring, often served roasted on Easter Sunday.
While mint or rosemary are traditionally paired with a flavoursome leg of lamb, this recipe by the chefs at Aldi is a little different.
Not only does it use an air fryer rather than a traditional oven, but swaps classic herb pairings for oregano to give it a Mediterranean twist.
The lamb is perfect on its own or served with a classic roast dinner, but is even better served with Aldi’s cous cous and feta nuggets.
With just 30 minutes of preparation and 50 minutes of cooking required, this meal is easy to whip up for four people in a hurry.
Method
Start by preheating the air fryer to 200C, then make a start on infusing the lamb with flavour.
To do this, bring the lamb out of the fridge and let it get to room temperature before making four slits, not cuts, in the top of the lamb leg.
Next, wash your hands thoroughly then peel and halve each garlic clove lengthways and put the chunks into each slit. Rub the lamb with the olive oil and sprinkle over the oregano along with a little salt and pepper for extra flavour.
Place the half leg of lamb in the air fryer basket and cook for 10 minutes at 200C. Lower the heat to 180C and cook for a further 30 minutes, uninterrupted. Remove the lamb from the fryer, transfer it to a warmed plate and cover with tin foil and a tea towel before leaving to rest for 20 minutes.
Slice up while still hot and enjoy with a selection of delicious side dishes. Aldi chefs recommended serving this Mediterranean-inspired recipe with cous cous and feta cheese “nuggets”.
To make the cous cous, chop the cauliflower into small chunks then whiz in a food processor to form what looks like breadcrumbs.
Peel and finely chop the red onion then put the cauliflower, red onion and oil into a large frying pan or wok. Fry for five minutes over medium heat then add the lemon juice and cook a further couple of minutes.
Meanwhile cook the Moroccan couscous as per packet instructions, then add this to the cauliflower and mix well before topping with pomegranate seeds.
For the nuggets, put the flour, paprika and some salt and pepper in a bowl to taste. Crack the egg into a separate dish and whisk well, then add the breadcrumbs, oregano and garlic granules to a third bowl, mixing well.
Drain the liquid from the feta and chop into 12 chunks then dip in the flour, followed by the egg mixture and finally, the breadcrumbs.
Do this one at a time to finish each nugget then cook in a single layer in the fryer for 10 minutes at 180C, after cooking the lamb.
Chop the cucumber into small diced cubes and add to the yoghurt then stir in the mint sauce. Serve the lamb on the couscous alongside the riata sauce and feta nuggets.
