If you want to know why the Greeks eat so much lamb, just try this recipe. The traditional way to make souvalki is on a rotisserie, but don’t despair if you don’t have a pit roaster — an oven will do just fine.

This dish is perfect for dinner parties and large groups, and provided you have the time to let the meat marinate this a delicious and easy meal to make.

Ready

• 1 boneless leg of lamb
• 4-5 lemons, juiced (approximately 1 cup)
• ⅓ cup olive oil
• 3-5 cloves of garlic, crushed
• 3-4 Tbsp Greek oregano
• Salt
• Pepper
• 3-4 Tbsp additional olive oil (for searing)

Tzatziki Sauce

• 1 cup goats milk yogurt
• ½ cup grated cucumber
• 1-2 cloves garlic, crushed (to taste)
• Juice of ½ lemon
• Salt
• Pepper

Serve with

• Pita Bread
• Fresh tomato, cubed
• Raw onion, diced

Set

• Roasting pan with rack
• Large bowl or plastic bag (big enough to hold a leg of lamb)
• Meat thermometer
• grater
• Bowl

Go

1. Squeeze 4-5 lemons into a bowl.
2. Add olive oil, crushed garlic, Greek oregano, salt and pepper. Mix well.
3. Place lamb into a large ziplock bag (if it does not fit you can always use a bowl), pour in the lemon garlic mixture and let marinate for one to two hours.

Prepare Tzatziki sauce while Lamb is marinating

1. Grate cucumber into a clean bowl.
2. Add yougurt, crushed garlic, lemon juice, salt and pepper. Mix, taste and adjust.
3. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.

After lamb has marinated

1. Preheat oven to 450°F
2. Place roasting pan on stove over medium high heat, add enough olive oil to coat the bottom and sear the lamb in all sides so that each side turns golden brown.
3. Remove the lamb from the roasting pan and add a rack to raise it off the bottom. Place lamb on rack, put rack in roasting pan and slip into the oven.
4. Roast until internal temperature reads 155 F on meat thermometer (approximately 20 minutes per pound.)
5. Tent the lamb with aluminum foil if the top begins to burn.
6. Remove from oven and let stand at least fifteen minutes.
7. Slice into one inch cubes and serve with Tzatziki sauce and pita bread.

What you should know

You can skip the searing step and put the lamb straight into the oven if you want to save some time. You won’t have a nice golden crust on the outside but it will still taste pretty darn good.

If you don’t have a rack that fits in your roasting pan do not despair. I often use whole carrot sticks or stalks of celery to raise meat off the pan. Worst case you can skip the rack, but the bottom will cook more than the rest.