Lamb Shawarma
Lamb shoulder marinated in a warm-spiced yogurt paste — turmeric, cumin, cinnamon, coriander, and cardamom — then slow-roasted until the outside caramelizes into dark, spiced bark while the inside stays tender enough to shred with a fork.
Ingredients
For 4 servings · tick what is ready
Use the scaled ingredient list. Steps and temperatures stay unchanged; use a larger pan or dish if needed. Seasonings to taste stay to taste.
How to make it
Whisk yogurt, all spices, garlic, lemon juice, olive oil, and salt together until smooth. Score the lamb shoulder deeply all over, cutting through any large fat caps and into the flesh 2–3 cm. Rub the marinade into every surface and into all the cuts. Cover and refrigerate for a minimum of 6 hours, ideally overnight. The yogurt tenderizes the surface proteins while the spices penetrate the scored channels.
Place the shoulder on a rack over a deep tray. Roast at 160 C (320 F) for 3–3.5 hours, basting with pan juices once halfway through. The low heat allows the fat to render slowly and the collagen in the shoulder to convert to gelatin. The surface should caramelize gradually into a dark, fragrant bark rather than burning.
Rest the shoulder for 15 minutes under loosely tented foil. Using two forks, shred the meat from the bone into irregular, chunky strands. Mix the shredded meat with any accumulated pan juices. Finish under a hot grill or broiler for 3–5 minutes to crisp the shredded pieces at the edges — this recreates the texture of spit-roasted outer bark.
About this recipe
By ForkRecipe Kitchen · Source: ForkRecipe / FoodML and contributors. Recipe content available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Serving count is an estimate; check quantities in the source recipe.