Lamb Kleftiko (oven-baked in a parcel)

Preparation

1. The day before, crush the garlic with the salt in a mortar, add the oregano, rosemary, lemon zest, cinnamon and pepper, pound briefly together and stir in 2 tablespoons of olive oil.
2. Stab the leg of lamb deeply many times all over with a pointed knife and press the paste into the holes. Put into a freezer bag with the juice of the two lemons and marinate in the fridge overnight.
3. The next day take the meat out of the fridge 1 hour before cooking. Preheat the oven to 180 °C conventional (top and bottom heat). Lay two long strips of baking paper crosswise over two strips of aluminium foil.
4. Toss the potatoes with 1 tablespoon of olive oil, salt and pepper and put them in the middle of the paper, add the bay leaves and pour the marinade from the bag over them. Set the lamb on top, press the edges firmly together into a tight parcel so no juice escapes, and lift the parcel into a roasting tin.
5. Cook the parcel in the oven for 2 to 2.5 hours, depending on the size of the leg. Then open it, tuck the edges under the rim of the tin, turn the oven up to 220 °C, baste the lamb with the juices and brown for 20 minutes. Take the lamb out and rest it wrapped in foil.
6. Turn the potatoes and cook for another 30 minutes, then salt them. Meanwhile stir together the yoghurt, lemon juice, olive oil, mint and salt.
7. Pull the lamb into pieces and serve with the potatoes, the cooking juices and the yoghurt sauce; a salad of tomatoes, cucumber and olives goes well with it.

Drink with it

• Red wine · excellent match

  Agiorgitiko from Nemea or Xinomavro from Naoussa

  Soft tannins and cherry fruit take on the falling-apart, rich lamb, and the herbal spice of the wine meets oregano and rosemary.

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• Rosé · good match

  Full-bodied dry rosé, e.g. Agiorgitiko rosé or Tavel

  Fresh acidity picks up the lemon, with enough body for garlic and lamb fat.

• White wine · good match

  Assyrtiko from Santorini

  Crisp acidity and a salty note suit the lemon and the yoghurt and mint sauce, though it stays a little light against the meat.

• Pale lager · good match

  Pale lager, well chilled

  Carbonation and a slim malt body clear lamb fat and yoghurt sauce from the palate.

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