Succulent, tender, seasoned lamb with potatoes, peppers, plenty of garlic and creamy feta cheese – all cooked in the oven, in one dish. The lamb and vegetables are cooked while wrapped in baking parchment to keep the steam in – ensuring juicier lamb.
I use lamb shanks for this recipe, so it’s nice and easy to dish up, without having to carve up the meat.
Cooking the lamb in parchment paper with all the veggies really seals in the flavour and makes sure any herby juices from the lamb infuse into the potatoes, tomatoes, and peppers. That herb crust that the lamb develops in the oven is such a flavour punch!
It takes a little bit of prep, but after that the oven does all the work, making this the perfect special weekend roast! After it’s spent those 3 hours in the oven the lamb is SO juicy and tender.
Table of Contents
📋 Ingredients
Lamb Shanks
Lamb – I like to use Lamb Shanks rather than a whole leg or shoulder of lamb because it’s much easier to serve (no carving – everyone gets a lamb shank each). I use four lamb shanks each weighing around 400-500g (14-18oz each).
Marinade – The marinade is quite simple, it only uses olive oil, lemon zest, garlic, and some seasonings (dried oregano, dried thyme, salt, and black pepper).
Potatoes – use waxy potatoes because they hold their shape better in the oven. Desiree, Anya, Jersey Royals, Vivaldi or Charlotte potatoes are all goo options.
Veggies – The other veggies in this recipe are bell peppers, onions, and tomatoes.
Stock – You can use lamb or chicken stock cubes mixed with hot water, or use Homemade Stock.
Seasonings – Lemon juice, dried oregano, salt, pepper, garlic, and bay leaves for flavour. Also, crumbled feta and fresh parsley to finish the dish.
How to make it:
***Full recipe with detailed steps in the recipe card at the end of this post***
- First, mix all the marinade ingredients together in a bowl, then place the lamb shanks into the bowl and rub the marinade into the lamb until it’s completely coated. Cover and leave to marinade.
- Line the roasting tin with plenty of baking parchment, then place in the potatoes, peppers, red onions, and tomatoes and drizzle over the red wine vinegar, stock and lemon juice.
- Sprinkle over the seasonings and place the lamb shanks on top of the vegetables.
- Drizzle over more a little more oil and add salt and pepper to each lamb shank.
- Seal the parchment by folding it over the lamb shanks until there are no gaps and place in the oven for 2 hours 20 minutes.
- After the 2 hours 20 minutes, uncover the lamb shanks, add the feta, and place back in the oven for 40 more minutes at a higher heat.
- Remove from the oven and serve.
Pro Tip
Ensure the lamb and vegetables are wrapped tightly to trap all the steam and flavours. Just make sure to be careful when unwrapping the parchment paper as all the steam will escape and it’s quite hot!
That little final touch of crumbled feta adds a creamy tanginess that goes perfectly with that herby lamb!
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? Frequently Asked Questions
This recipes tastes best when served right away. That’s when the lamb will be at it’s juiciest.
However, you can save any leftovers for lunch the next day. I like to cut any remaining meat off the bone, then place in a container with any leftover vegetables and sauce. Cover and refrigerate overnight. The next day, leftovers can be eaten cold (I like to serve with some salad and seasoned couscous) or you can reheat in the microwave until piping hot.
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Lamb Kleftiko Recipe
Ingredients
Lamb and marinade:
- 4 lamb shanks about 400g-500g (roughly 14-18oz) each
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 tablespoon dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 3 cloves garlic (peeled and minced)
- 1 tablespoon lemon zest (zest of 1 lemon)
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
Vegetables:
- 600 g (1.3lb) waxy potatoes such as Desiree or Charlotte, peeled and chopped into large chunks (I chop them so there are 3 pieces per person)
- 2 red bell peppers deseeded and chopped into rounds
- 1 large or two small red onion peeled and chopped into chunky wedges
- 4 large tomatoes quartered
- 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
- 120 ml (1/2 cup) lamb or chicken stock
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice (approx. the juice from 1 lemon)
- 2 teaspoon dried oregano
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¾ teaspoon black pepper
- 4 cloves garlic peeled and lightly bashed
- 3 bay leaves
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 200 g (7 oz) feta cheese , crumbled into chunky pieces
- 1 tbsp finely chopped fresh parsley
Instructions
Marinade the lamb
- In a large bowl add the olive oil, oregano, thyme, garlic, lemon zest, salt and pepper and mix the marinade ingredients together.2 tablespoons olive oil, 1 tablespoon dried oregano, 1 teaspoon dried thyme, 3 cloves garlic, 1 tablespoon lemon zest, ¼ teaspoon salt, ½ teaspoon black pepper
- Place the lamb shanks in the bowl with the marinade and rub the marinade all over the lamb ensuring to thoroughly coat each lamb shank, then cover with clingfilm or foil.4 lamb shanks
- Marinate for at least 30 minutes (leave at room temperature if marinating for 30 minutes). If you can marinate for longer (2 hours is ideal, but you can go up to 24 hours), place in the refrigerator, covered. Remove from the refrigerator 30 minutes prior to cooking to take off the chill.
Make the lamb kleftiko
- Preheat the oven to 160C/320F (fan).
- Line a large roasting tin with two layers of baking parchment in a crisscross patern, leaving enough overhang so you can completely wrap the lamb.
- Place the potatoes, peppers, red onion and tomatoes in the roasting tin.600 g (1.3lb) waxy potatoes, 2 red bell peppers, 1 large or two small red onion, 4 large tomatoes
- Drizzle over the red wine vinegar, stock and lemon juice.1 tablespoon red wine vinegar, 120 ml (1/2 cup) lamb or chicken stock, 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- Sprinkle on the oregano, salt and pepper and nestle in the bashed garlic and bay leaves.2 teaspoon dried oregano, 1/2 teaspoon salt, ¾ teaspoon black pepper, 4 cloves garlic, 3 bay leaves
- Arrange the lamb shanks on top of the vegetables and spoon any remaining marinade over the top of the lamb and vegetables.
- Drizzle another 2 tablespoons of olive oil over the lamb and vegetables and add a good pinch of salt and pepper to each lamb shank.2 tablespoons olive oil
- Seal up the parchment by folding it over, so no air can escape.
- Place in the oven for 2 hours and 20 minutes.
- After 2 hours and 20 minutes carefully open the parchment (hot steam will escape, so be careful – I use a set of tongs for this).
- Scrunch the parchment down, around the sides of the tin and sprinkle over the crumbled feta.200 g (7 oz) feta cheese
- Turn the oven up to 200C/400F (fan) and place back in the oven for a further 30-40 minutes to brown the lamb and vegetables.
- Remove from the oven and sprinkle with freshly chopped parsley before serving.1 tbsp finely chopped fresh parsley
Notes
**Note** Lamb shank nutritional info is extremely difficult to work out on the calorie calculators I’ve used, so I’ve based this off a yield of approx. 200g-250g of meat per shank (this came to approx 418 cals of meat per lamb shank).
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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