Shoulder of Lamb with Olive Oil and Rosemary Rub

Devoutly to be wish'd. To die, to sleep;
To sleep: perchance to dream: ay, there's the rub:
For in that sleep of death what dreams may come,
When we have shuffled off this mortal coil,
Must give us pause: there's the respect
That makes calamity of so long life;

-- Shakespeare's Hamlet

For those of you in Prague in need of something different to cook, on 1 April the Albert grocery store chain started selling shoulders of New Zealand lamb. I normally don't waste a lot of time in the local Albert -- it isn't the sort of shop that leads one to slowly wander the aisles looking at displays of exotic cuts of meat, or endless rows of fruits and vegetables. Albert tends to be more utilitarian: clean and simple, but souless. I miss the days of shopping for food in the U.S. and spending more time than necessary to trek throught the aisles thinking about all of the possibilities for dinner. But one evening last week I intentionally took a bit longer browsing through the local Albert -- and that is when I discovered the lamb. Had I overlooked this for so long? As it turns out, I had not -- the lamb (and nice-sized turkeys) are new products in the store.

With something new and interesting to cook, I bought a shoulder of lamb for Easter. The preparation is pretty easy. The olive oil glaze/rub (see below) is simple and can be prepared to your taste. By cooking the lamb three hours, a good deal of the fat was cooked out of the lamb, leaving it tasty but not too dry. The olive oil gave the exterior a bit of softer texture, but the oil did not penetrate too deeply into the meat. The seasonings gave the outside of the lamb a slightly different taste, but I did not use enough to create a baked-on crust (which might be a good idea for the next time). I can't say the taste of the oregano came out very much, so it may not be necessary. The quality of the lamb was very good -- not very fatty and a good taste, very much like the dark meat of turkey. A few boiled sweet potatoes were a nice complement to the lamb.

Shoulder of Lamb with Olive Oil and Rosemary Rub

- 1 shoulder of lamb (approximately 1 kg / 2.2 lbs)

There's the rub:
- 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 3 T coarse rosemary
- 2 T garlic salt
- 1 T ground pepper
- 1 T oregano (optional)

This mortal coil:
- 2 cups water
- 3 T flour

Place lamb on a large sheet of heavy duty foil. Combine oil and seasonings in a bowl, rub all over roast. Wrap and secure edges of foil. Place wrapped roast in a shallow roasting pan. Roast at 425 F for 3 hours, or until a meat thermometer registers about 170 F. Open foil the last 30 minutes for roasting. Remove meat to a platter. Pour pan juices into a bowl and add 1 1/2 cups of water. Transfer mixture to a saucepan and place over medium heat. Put 3 tablespoons flour in a small cup or bowl; stir in 1/2 cup water. Pour into the meat juice mixture; cook, stirring constantly, until thickened.