Grilled Lamb With Rosemary Roasted Red Potatoes

Tennessee is not like other places. I have written about how it's impossible to find pita bread, yet rabbit and frog legs are readily available. When my Aunt Toots was visiting, she and my father decided they were going to make a yogurt marinated leg of lamb. Lamb and pita bread are apparently from the same mediterranean cuisines that East Tennessee is neither fond of or familiar with. The grocery stores and local awesome butcher do not carry lamb. They were guided to another local farm where "you can get anything". They set off on an adventure to find the place which itself proved to be a challenge.

When they arrived, I'm told they were greeted by a man who would butcher basically any animal on the farm. They asked about lamb and instead were offered goat and were told it's easier for him to offer them leg of pony than a leg of lamb. I'd like to think the guy was kidding. My dad then said, "What about the llama over there?" The farmer replied, "Oh No! That's the Dolly Llama, no one touches the Dolly Llama."

I suggested they shop online for what they want. Instead, they discovered Sam's Club sells lamb. After several days of hunting, they finally found the prized meat. My Aunt butterflied it, marinated it and grilled it. They were quite happy.





I decided to make my own version with a simple marinade and some oven roasted red potatoes.

Rosemary Roasted Red Potatoes

5-6 medium red potatoes
2 sprigs fresh rosemary, chopped
2 sprigs fresh thyme, chopped
Garlic powder TT
Onion Powder TT
Good Salt & Pepper TT
Olive Oil

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Wash and cut the potatoes into uniform bite size pieces. Soak in a bowl of cold water for 10 minutes or longer. Rinse and pat dry.
Place the potatoes on a parchment lined sheet pan for easy clean up. Sprinkle with herbs and spices then drizzle with olive oil. Mix them up to ensure they are well coated. Bake for 25 minutes and then stir the potatoes around. Increase the oven temperature to 425 degrees F. Continue roasting until potatoes are nicely browned, stirring them around occasionally, about 25 minutes. You could use fresh garlic or onions but they have a tendency to burn in the hot oven and become bitter since the potatoes take so long to roast.

Grilled Leg of Lamb

1 leg of lamb, butterflied
3 garlic cloves, chopped
2 sprigs fresh rosemary, chopped
2 sprigs fresh thyme, chopped
1/4 cup olive oil
Splash of white wine
Good Salt & Pepper TT

Rinse and pat dry the lamb. Mix all of the ingredients in a bag or dish and cover the lamb. Allow to marinate in the fridge for at least 2 hours. Remove from the fridge about 20 minutes before you are ready to grill it. Grill over high heat to desired doneness then allow to rest for 8-10 minutes before slicing. Serve with Roasted Potatoes and Mint Jelly if desired.