Rolled shoulder of Lamb with Capers and Anchovies

1 boned shoulder of lamb, about 1.5-2kg
6 anchovy fillets in oil
1Tbsp capers
2 garlic cloves
a small bunch of fresh parsley, stalks removed
1 tsp mustard
a good squeeze of lemon juice
1Tbsp olive oil (from the anchovies if you like)
1 glass of white wine
1 wine glass of water
Freshly ground black pepper

With your biggest knife or mezzaluna, chop the anchovies, capers, garlic and parsley together on a large board till all are well mixed and fairly fine. Transfer to a small bowl and mix in the mustard, lemon juice and olive oil. Season with a few twists of black pepper.
Lay your joint skin side down and spread the mixture generously all over the inside of the meat. Roll up the joint and tie it securely with butchers string. Place in a roasting tin, and put in the center of a hot oven 220c. After about half an hour, when the joint should be nicely browned, pour over the wine and water (this will give you a delicious gravy). Turn the oven down to 160c, and cook for a further 30-60 min (15 min per 500g, if it’s over 2kg, then 12 per 500g). Rest for at least 20 min before carving.
You can make a gravy from the juices.

This was really easy. If you are going to make a roast anyway, this is just an extra five minutes. I got this recipe from The The River Cottage Meat Book. This book is amazing, I’ve not ever been disappointed by it.

I didn’t get out to the butcher shop, so I wound up using a pre-rolled joint from the supermarket. It was no problem, I just unrolled it, then rolled it back up again. If I had bought a boned shoulder from a butcher shop it would have been a nicer cut of meat, but this one did just fine.

Just as a side note, I do not have a mezzaluna, but I aspire to own one some day.

This was really easy, and really delicious too. Even the boys loved it, and they usually don’t like lamb.