Roast Lamb or Kid Rocca Priora Style: Few dishes are quite as Roman as this. The recipe is translated from Livio Jannattoni's La Cucina romana e del Lazio; he in turn got it from a friend living in Rocca Priora, a town near Rome. As you'll note, the recipe is quite free when it comes to proportions. Don't overdo it with either the wine or the garlic, and if you want, add a few baby potatoes, cubed, to the pan (when you turn the meat). My amounts are in square brackets.
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 90 minutes
Ingredients:
- Lamb or kid (See below for amounts)
- Garlic
- Olive oil
- Dry white wine
- Fresh Rosemary
- Salt and pepper to taste
Preparation:
To serve 8-10 people you'll need half of a lamb or kid, weighing 9-11 pounds (4-5 k), chopped into portion-size pieces. Take an oven-proof pan big enough to hold the meat and add to it several cloves of garlic [2-3] (punctured here and there with a fork), olive oil [1/3 cup] , dry white wine [1/2 cup], rosemary [the leaves from a 6-inch sprig], salt, and pepper. Mash everything down with the bottom of a glass, lay the pieces of lamb over it, cover the pan with aluminum foil, and set it to roast in a moderate (350 F, 175 C) oven. The roasting will require between 1 1/2 and 2 hours; about halfway through the process remove the foil, turn the meat, and replace the foil (you can also add cubed potatoes at this point if you want). When the meat is about 20 minutes shy of being done remove the foil and let it brown.
Luciana Vinci, who gave Mr. Jannattoni the recipe, notes that you can also check the meat for doneness with a fork -- it will come away from the bone when it is ready.
The wine? This is rich, and will require something tannic enough to clear the palate between bites, for example a Chianti Classico riserva, a Nobile di Montepulciano, or a Taurasi.
Luciana Vinci, who gave Mr. Jannattoni the recipe, notes that you can also check the meat for doneness with a fork -- it will come away from the bone when it is ready.
The wine? This is rich, and will require something tannic enough to clear the palate between bites, for example a Chianti Classico riserva, a Nobile di Montepulciano, or a Taurasi.
