Slow Roast Lamb With Giant Couscous & Zhoug

Use a small knife to make little 2cm incisions all over the shoulder of lamb. Preheat the oven to 150°C.

In a small bowl, mix the harissa with the sumac and 1 tbsp of fine salt and rub all over the leg of lamb. Leave to marinade for a couple of hours at room temperature, or overnight in the fridge (allow 2 hours to come to room temperature before cooking).

Slice the onions into thick rounds about 2cm wide and place in a layer over the bottom of a large cast iron dish which is big enough to hold your lamb shoulder. Snuggle the whole garlic bulb in the side of the tray.

Place the lamb on top of the onions, cover with a sheet of baking parchment and then the lid.

Place into your oven for around 5 hours, check the lamb with a fork to make sure it’s very tender, if not re-cover and give it another 30 mins.

While the lamb cooks, make the zhoug. Chop up your chilli and add to a mini chopper along with the coriander, cardamom and cumin.

Squeeze in the juice of a lemon and add about 100ml of olive oil. Whizz until not quite smooth. Set aside in a bowl.

This is also a good time to char the tomatoes so they’re ready for later. Get a large frying pan very hot, add the tomatoes and cook for about 5 minutes until charred on both sides. Set aside in a bowl.

Once the lamb is tender, remove from the oven and allow to rest for 20 mins.

Remove the bulb of garlic and squeeze into the bowl with the tomatoes, add the onions that cooked under the lamb too.

Cook the giant couscous in a large pan of boiling water according to packet instructions. Drain, then while still hot add the tomatoes, garlic and onions.

Skim off most of the fat from the juices in the pan which the lamb cooked in and then add that to the couscous. Add a generous pinch of salt and half the juice of the second lemon, stir well, taste and add more salt and lemon as you like.

Pile the couscous into a serving dish, gently pull apart the lamb and lay over the top, then drizzle over the zhoug and serve.