Greek Roast Lamb and Potatoes With Orange and Mustard

Greek roast lamb and potatoes is the one-pan dish that fills Greek homes with garlic and oregano.

What makes Greek roast lamb so special?

In Greek, the dish is called arni sto fourno me patates, which simply means lamb in the oven with potatoes. Families cook it through the cooler months, and it also turns up on many Easter tables.

The Easter tradition is a whole lamb on a spit, as our story on the Easter Sunday spit explains. Still, most home cooks have no spit, so arni sto fourno does the job.

This version comes from Diana Moutsopoulos, who shared it on Allrecipes. In Athens, her aunt told her to swap the usual lemon juice for the juice of one orange.

Read more: Octopus Kokkinisto: A Simple Greek Octopus Stew in Tomato Sauce

As a result, this Greek roast lamb has a gentle sweetness. Because the orange and mustard stay in the background, the meat, garlic and oregano still lead.

The recipe holds 4.4 out of 5 from 13 ratings, and 25 home cooks say they have made it.

Ingredients for four serves

Greek roast lamb and potatoes needs only eight ingredients, shown in US measures with metric equivalents:

• 1 large orange, juiced
• 3 US tablespoons (about 45 ml) brown mustard, or more to taste
• 4 teaspoons dried oregano
• 3 US tablespoons (about 45 ml) olive oil
• Salt and pepper, to taste
• 10 Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and cut into 5 cm chunks
• 1 half leg of lamb on the bone, about 1.4 kg (3 pounds)
• 5 cloves garlic

Yukon Gold potatoes are hard to find in Australia, but any creamy, yellow-fleshed potato suits arni sto fourno. Dutch cream or Nicola potatoes work well, while floury, dry ones do not.

Moutsopoulos prefers a leg on the bone, since the bone adds flavour. She also likes a dark brown or Dijon mustard, although almost any mustard works.

Go easy on the oregano, because too much makes Greek roast lamb bitter. In addition, the cook suggests Greek oregano and fresh orange juice rather than bottled.

How to make arni sto fourno

Allrecipes lists 30 minutes of preparation and about an hour in the oven. So, Greek roast lamb with potatoes takes roughly 90 minutes from start to finish.

1. First, heat the oven to 190°C (375°F).
2. Whisk the orange juice, mustard, olive oil, oregano, salt and pepper in a large bowl.
3. Toss the potatoes in this marinade, then lift them into a large roasting pan with a slotted spoon.
4. Next, cut small slits in the lamb and push a garlic clove into each one.
5. Rub the rest of the marinade over the meat and sit it on top of the potatoes, then pour over any that is left.
6. Roast the arni sto fourno for about an hour, until the potatoes are soft and the lamb reaches medium, or 60°C (140°F) inside.
7. Check the pan every 30 minutes, and add 60 to 125 ml of hot water if the potatoes look dry.
8. Finally, if the lamb is ready first, move it to a board and cover it with foil while the potatoes finish.

For a boneless Greek roast lamb, Moutsopoulos says to take the meat out at 57°C (135°F). Then let it rest until it reaches 63°C (145°F).

Tips from home cooks

Allrecipes shows seven written reviews for this recipe, and eight of the 13 ratings are five stars.

Ana had never cooked lamb before she tried this arni sto fourno. She wrote that “this recipe was easy and I had rave reviews!” Her only change was Greek seasoning in place of plain oregano.

Some cooks worry about the orange, but watscooking found it “very subtle”. That reviewer also used a lamb rub of rosemary, cumin and other spices.

Marinating time came up often with this Greek roast lamb. Inge Lewis wished she had marinated her roast for longer, while Karue4U left a boneless roast in the marinade for several hours.

Karue4U also added carrots and onions to the pan. By comparison, sharshep used a sweet hot mustard, a little white wine and smoked paprika. That cook found the arni sto fourno needed about 1½ hours.

Not every reviewer was won over. Sabray gave three stars and found the seasoning too bland, although the texture came out great.

LisaMR12 served it at Christmas dinner and may reduce the pan juices into a sauce next time.

Serving ideas and leftovers

Greek roast lamb and potatoes needs little else on the table. Serve it with a village salad, crusty bread and a bowl of tzatziki.

If you love lamb in other forms, try our souvlaki skewers with lemon and oregano on the barbecue. For a slow one-pot meal, our stew with green beans suits a cold night.

Arni sto fourno also has a close cousin. Unlike this open pan, kleftiko seals the meat in paper or foil to cook it slowly in its own juices.

According to nels5637, the leftovers make excellent sandwiches. Moutsopoulos notes that the same Greek roast lamb method works with beef or chicken. You can find the full recipe on the original Allrecipes page.

Source: Allrecipes