Lamb Kleftiko - Greek Slow Cooked Lamb! Lamb Kleftiko Recipe | TheoCooks (2024)

Lamb Kleftiko is slow cooked Greek lamb that remains totally succulent and literally falls off the bone (you can cut it with a spoon, seriously, you can) and it’s almost impossible to get wrong!

Follow me on Instagram @theocooks – click here to see!

Lamb Kleftiko, slow cooked lamb, is derived from the Greek word Klephti which means to steal (which is where the English word Kleptomaniac, etc. comes from). Kleftiko roughly translates to Stolen Meat; legend has it that the outlaws or bandits in Cyprus would steal a goat and take it up to the Troodos Mountains where their hideaway was to slow cook lamb.

The birth of Lamb kleftiko; to avoid being caught they would dig a large pit and make a fire during the day when the flames wouldn’t be seen, eventually the fire would burn out leaving just the glowing embers. The beast would be placed on top of the ashes, covered and in essence, slow cooked until the next day, by which time they would unearth the their feast and tuck in! In essence this was the original slow cooked Greek lamb recipe (or slow cooked Cypriot lamb to be specific).

Want more Greek Recipes? Or just love lamb?

Nowadays Lamb Kleftiko is a meal in a bowl; usually cooked with potatoes to soak up the juices (I prefer to cook mine separately but if you can’t be bothered – just follow my recipe below and throw some spuds in before you wrap up the lamb!)

My first experience of Lamb Kleftiko was in the Troodos mountains, but minus the bandits. Sitting on long communal tables with a steaming foil wrap being delivered to you in a bowl it’s genius is in its simplicity and there is nothing like slow cooked lamb to melt in your mouth..

Traditionally Lamb Kleftiko would have actually been Goat Kleftiko; which is starting to make a come back; so if you fancy going traditional then get a goat – otherwise Lamb Shoulder is the best for this slow cooked lamb recipe. And please, please, don’t use the leg.

My book “Orexi! Feasting at the modern Greek table” gives an updated recipe using Goat shoulder which is delicious; the meat is leaner, stronger and makes use of goat meat which is something in the Western hemisphere we need to be doing more of.

To clarify, anything slow cooked needs fat, needs marbling which keeps it moist and tender, thus Lamb Kleftiko; Greek slow cooked lamb shoulder is perfect. I’ve seen lots of recipes saying to use leg of lamb to slow cook. To be blunt, don’t bother. More than likely it will come out dry, I love the leg of lamb for BBQ’s (butterflied leg of lamb to be exact) and roasting rare – if you are slow cooking use the shoulder. And that goes for pork as well – slow cooked pork shoulder is delicious.

Anyway, I digress…

Sign up belowto receive more great free recipes and updates – it only takes a second!

My Lamb Kleftiko recipe as featured on Womans Own and NetMums!Full recipe below my video of making Kleftiko!

Lamb Kleftiko – Greek Slow Cooked Lamb Recipe:

Ingredients:

1 shoulder of lamb (not leg!)

2 large ripe tomatoes cut into thick slices

1 onion sliced

3 bay leaves

5cloves of garlic cracked open

6 sprigs of freshrosemary

Few heavy glugs of extra virgin olive oil

1 lemon

Tablespoon of dried oregano (preferably Greek of course!)

Few pinches of sea salt

Teaspoonof smoked paprika (OK, not a traditional ingredient but I think it adds a little smokiness that is missed by cooking it in the oven)

Lamb Kleftiko – Method:

1. First; season your meat all over.
2. Then lay out a large piece of foil; and prepare the base to sit the meat on.
3. Drizzle some olive oil, sprinkle half the sliced onion, a bay leaf, some rosemary, some of the oregano, some of the tomato slices and a couple of slices of lemonand half the garlic. Season well and place the meat on top.
4. Drizzle olive oil over the top of the meat and place the rest of the ingredients all over the top. Squeeze lemon juice all over the meat before slicing the rest into thick chunks and layering on top. Season well and sprinkle the smoked paprika over the meat.
5. Point to remember – cut the tomatoesquite thick and use the majority on top of the meat; they will almost turn into sun dried tomatoes; very concentrated and rich… lovely!
6. Wrap in foil several times to ensure it is sealed.
7. Pop on a rack on a roasting tray and pour some water in the bottom (if you don’t have a rack to raise the meat from the bottom of the tray put just an inch of water in the bottom – this is just to stop any juices that leak from the package from burning when you cook it.
8. Pop into the oven at 160C/330Ffor about 4 hours for a whole shoulder(about 3 hours for half a shoulder) – if in doubt – leave it in longer rather than less.
9. Once the 4 hours is up; remove the meat from the oven, turn theoven up to 200C degrees and let the wrapped meat sit for20 minutes outside the oven. Then cut the foil wrap open at the top, peel away as much as possible and pour the juices into a saucepan to make some gravy.
10. The oven should be to temperature by now (about 200 degrees), so return the unwrapped meat to the oven for another 10-15 minutes (check it after 10 minutes – you want the meat to start to crisp but not burn).
11. Remove the meat and pop it on a serving dish and stick it in the middle of a table for people to help themselves – this is all about sharing the pleasure.

Goes well with some Tzatziki, rosemary roasted new potatoes and a rowdy bunch of friends or family to share it with – this is a feast for noisy companions not boring fine dining!

If you liked this recipe – sign up below to receive exclusive new recipes just for you.