Rolled Lamb Saddle with Herby Pickled Onion Stuffing and Spring Cabbage Remoulade

Serves 6, takes 3 hours

Pickled onions and bright herbs bring a fresh, punchy contrast to this delicate rolled saddle of lamb. A leaner cut than other roasting joints, first seal the saddle in a frying pan to render some of its fat and form a crisp, golden crust. The saddle is then transferred to the oven to roast. If you’d like to go a step further, reserve the juices after roasting to make a simple yet flavourful homemade gravy.

Perfect for spring and Easter celebrations, we’ve paired the lamb with a light and creamy spring cabbage and radish remoulade.

1. Preheat the oven to 200°C/180°C fan/gas 6.
2. Remove your lamb from the fridge an hour before cooking to allow it to come up to room temperature.
3. In a food processor, blitz the bread into a coarse crumb. Add pickled onions, two of the garlic cloves, parsley, thyme and picked leaves from three rosemary sprigs, plus a good pinch of salt and pepper. Blitz again until finely chopped, then add 1 tbsp olive oil and whizz to a paste.
4. Untie the rolled saddle and open it out on a board, skin-side down with the two strips of meat (cannons) pointing away from you. Sit the two detached mini fillets on either side of the cannons. Season with salt and pepper, then spoon the stuffing in between the cannons. Roll the saddle back up tightly and secure it with string.
5. Heat 1 tbsp oil in a large, oven-proof frying pan over a medium-high heat. Add the lamb and sear for about 10 minutes, using tongs to turn it every minute or so, browning it evenly.
6. Add the remaining two garlic cloves, rosemary sprig and 100ml chicken stock to the pan. Transfer to the oven and roast for 35-40 minutes for medium-rare (a digital probe thermometer pushed into the centre of the lamb will read 50-52°C). Add an extra 5-10 minutes of cooking time if you prefer your meat cooked medium (55-60°C) or well done (64-70°C). 
7. While the lamb roasts, make the spring cabbage remoulade. In a large bowl, mix together mayo, sour cream or crème fraîche, lemon juice and mustard, and season with salt and pepper. Finely shred the cabbage and radishes with a sharp knife, mandoline or the slicing attachment on a food processor. Add to the bowl and mix well. Set aside.
8. Once the lamb is cooked to your liking, lift it onto a board to rest for 15 minutes.
9. Return the pan to the hob over a medium heat. Mash the garlic cloves, add the remaining stock and simmer for 10-12 minutes until thickened a little, then stir in the butter. Strain the gravy to remove any bits from the stuffing and the rosemary sprig.
10. Slice the lamb and serve with a heaped spoonful of remoulade, crispy roast potatoes and gravy.

1.5kg boneless saddle of lamb

40g bread (we like a sturdy sourdough, but any bread will work)

3 Ginger Pig Properly Pickled Onions, plus 1 tbsp of the pickling liquor

4 garlic cloves

Small bunch parsley (leaves and stems)

Small bunch thyme, leaves picked

4 sprigs rosemary

2 tbsp olive oil

500ml chicken stock

30g salted butter

For The Remoulade: 

5 tbsp mayonnaise  

2 tbsp sour cream or crème fraîche

2 tbsp 1 lemon juice

1½ tsp Ginger Pig English Mustard

1 pointed cabbage

150g radish