Kenyan Spit-Roasted Lamb

To come to Nairobi without dining at Carnivore would be a little like visiting Paris and missing

the Eiffel Tower. This sprawling restaurant with its industrial-strength barbecue pit specializes

in meat carved right off the spit onto your plate. They won't stop until you do. We won't stop either

Next up, leg of lamb, Kenyan style. And it all begins with a five-pound leg of lamb. Now

the first thing you want to do is make a series of holes in the lamb. This is the high-tech version

a meat tenderizer. Alternatively, you can use a fork. And the idea here is to make a series

of tiny holes to foster the absorption of the marinade. And don't forget to pierce the ends

and freshly ground black pepper. Whisk the ingredients together

until well mixed. And then what you want to do is pour half the marinade under the lamb

and pour the remaining marinade on top. Marinate the lamb in the refrigerator for at least six hours preferably overnight Let me show you the grill To spit roast on a charcoal grill you need a metal rotisserie collar with a rotisserie motor

Dump out your coals into the side baskets exactly as though you were going to set up your grill for indirect grilling

Coals... on the outside. And if you have any stray coals in the center

with tongs, just move them to the side baskets. Then place an aluminum foil drip pan in the center

In fact, we're going to spit roast the lamb tonight, but you could also indirect grill it

Now, back to our lamb. This leg of lamb has been marinating for 24 hours

What you want to do is transfer it to paper towels and blot it dry

And we're done with the marinade. And we're done with the paper towels

Now, thread the leg of lamb onto the rotisserie spit. Come through here

Out the other side. remember to have your first set of prongs in place

and pin the meat, and then come in with your other set of prongs

to tightly secure the lamb to the rotisserie spit. Switch on the motor and place the lid on the grill

with the vents wide open. See I told you it a lot like indirect grilling Cooking time about an hour to an hour and 15 minutes for medium rare Meanwhile let me show you how to make a mint sauce with a difference

This sweet-sour mint sauce belies Kenya's English heritage, but it's a lot less sugary than straight mint jelly

Start with apple mint jelly, distilled white vinegar, dried mint

coarse salt, and freshly ground black pepper. Simmer the ingredients until thick and richly flavored

whisking over the hibachi. Cooking time, about five minutes. Lamb has a natural affinity for mint

The beauty of this sauce, the vinegar cuts the sweetness of the apple mint jelly

It's been an hour and 15 minutes, and the lamb looks fantastic

And it looks done, but of course, we always check with an instant read meat thermometer

Medium rare lamb would be about 145 degrees. We are in the comfort zone

Pull the spit out of the motor and transfer the lamb to your cutting board

Then to loosen the screw for the prong, use a fork. You just want to ease the fork out of the meat

Remember, it's hot. And then ease the spit out of the lamb

And you never want to cut into lamb right away. Tent it with foil

Let the meat rest for a few minutes. and now the moment of truth

when you get to the bone you can just loosen the meat

and then carve right on top of the bone i'm using a slender carving knife because it goes through the meat like butter

And that's what I'm looking for, that beautiful blush of pink in the center

Great. And when you serve it, I like to show a piece of the whole lamb and then shingle the slices out on top

So, let's see how we did. Leg of lamb. and you can just spoon a little of the mint sauce

over the lamb. Okay, and a little mint sauce for me. Mmm, the lamb is really crusty and tender

and that mint sauce goes great with the lamb