Braised Leg of Lamb With Celery Root Purée Recipe (2024)

Can you use a full leg of lamb (instead of just the shank?)

Benjamin, personally I don't think this is best way to cook a LEG of lamb, because the more tender meat does not need such slow cooking. But the shank, which has more collagen, is great cooked this way. Makes it really tender and the collagen melts away.

For those curious about the missing tomato directive, I simply used a 28 oz can of good DOP Italian Marzanos. I drained the juice from the can into the stock mixture to reduce and then added tomatoes with the parsnips/carrots. It was great. Like others, agree that long braising is best with shanks. I used 3 good sized lamb shanks, not a "leg" of lamb which most butchers butterfly. I reduced the cooking times a bit b/c 3 separate smaller shanks didn't need as much time as a huge leg.

Just to clarify the tomato confusion, I followed the link to the article with the original recipe and it states that she substituted the usual tomatoes with green olives, so the typo is in the description, not the recipe. I chose to use a can of diced tomatoes drained instead of the olives because my family doesn’t like green olives. (Added when the recipe calls for the olives so they still hold their shape) It was outstanding. I think you could go either way depending on personal preference.

Has anyone tried to do this a day ahead?

I made this recipe for Easter 2019. I braised the leg the day before in the oven in a cast iron pot. On Sunday I sliced the meat off the bone, returned it to the pot, and warmed the pot on the stove top. As it warmed the meat fell apart and the whole thing turned into this delicious dish that resembled pulled pork. Served the meat, vegetables, and olives on a bed of puréed celery root. Everyone loved it! I should add here that the butcher was skeptical about braising the leg, but it was worth it

Used 3 lamb shanks as my butcher was not keen to cut a leg of lamb in half for me. Turned out superb. Adding the garlic paste in at the end is genius. So so delicious.

I have made this several times and it has always been delicious. This last time I couldn't get lamb shanks and used beef short ribs instead which did not disappoint. I don't use the olives since most of my family aren't fans of them. And for a quicker meal, I use half of the liquids and cook it in the instant pot.

This was incredible and less complicated than the list of ingredients/instructions would indicate. I misremembered what I was supposed to get and bought a lamb shank instead. It was about two pounds so I cut the braising time to an hour in each step, and in about three hours, the meat was falling off the bone tender. I’m glad I remembered tomatoes in the description and added a 15 oz can the last hour. The dish needs the acidity and the green olives add additional complexity.

lovely, succulent meat and deeply flavored juices. I used a boned, rolled leg of lamb (what I had) and it worked fine. Also made a puree of butternut winter squash (what I had), which was very good with the meat and juices.

This recipe is superb as is! I made the celery puree with addition of a few white potatoes week before and froze. Defrost day of making lamb and whip well.

I swapped the olives for a 15oz can of diced tomatoes. Drained them and added them when it called for the olives and otherwise followed the recipe as stated. This was one of the most delicious meals I’ve even made or eaten. My family concurred, including my 6 year old.

I made this twice already and will do this again. It is so easy, not a lot pf prepping, you kind of forget that it is cooking in the oven, just have to put the timer to remind you to turn the lamb over! I had already made a pie earlier to free the oven. I put the lamb in the oven about 5 hours prior to serving. I made a nice soup as a starter while the lamb was Cooking and cooked the celeriac, mashed it and reheated it in the microwave before serving. It was a lovely meal.

Good to see a leg of lamb recipe in the NYT. Australians eat lots of lamb, but I thought the US was not fond of it. This was emphasised in the anti lamb/mutton "The Wink" Seinfeld episode.

Has anyone tried this recipe in an instant pot?

This was amazing. I made it with 3 lamb shanks.. 1 per person.. used the olives from the olive bar at Whole Foods with fruit and garlic.. I ended up doing 25 min 450 uncovered, 1.5 hrs 325 covered, flipped it, 1 hr at 325 covered, add olives and do 1 hour uncovered; I did just 2 celeriacs and that was plenty.. used immersion blender, only 4 tbsp butter

Excellent dish, not complicated and superb flavours. I could not find a leg with the bone so used a deboned leg. It was excellent. The purée was also delicious, could not find enough celery root at the store for the recipe so I added a large potato, the taste was mostly created by the celery root and was a nice accompaniment to the lamb.

This recipe worked well for me and our dinner guests. I made it the night before and felt the ease of having everything ready for our dinner together. The lamb was indeed extremely tender, melt in your mouth quality as a result of the braising. I am amazed more people haven't reviewed this recipe - it is stellar and I will make it many more times over in my life. Highly recommend!

Just barely enough meat for 6 people and it was 4 1/2 lbs. I did cook the shank end leg and it didn’t need the last half hour of cooking. I also added a 15 oz can of diced tomatoes along with the olives because why not. The smell is amazing! Will eat tomorrow.

I'm an amateur but this turned out great! I added a little bit of garlic when I put it in the oven and I substituted halved grape tomatoes for the olives (added at the same time). Could not have been more pleased! Did a lot of the prep the day before, which helped.

I made this for Easter with a whole leg of lamb and Pinot Gris. It was delicious. Very low effort and high return. The celery root purée really took it over the top.

This was fantastic. “Restaurant quality” as my fiancé called it. I used a semi boneless leg, an off dry Riesling for the wine, tomatoes instead of olives (as mentioned in the description, other reviewers suggested you can do either or) and subbed fennel for parsnip as it’s what I had on hand. Sounds like a lot of subs, I know, but the essence of the dish was the same. There was much rich flavor, I will definitely make this again.

This was incredible and less complicated than the list of ingredients/instructions would indicate. I misremembered what I was supposed to get and bought a lamb shank instead. It was about two pounds so I cut the braising time to an hour in each step, and in about three hours, the meat was falling off the bone tender. I’m glad I remembered tomatoes in the description and added a 15 oz can the last hour. The dish needs the acidity and the green olives add additional complexity.

Wonderful recipe. Used a boneless leg of lambe as it’s what I had (tied) and kept oven at 350 and shortened overall time by about 45 minutes. Turned out wonderfully and was delicious. Rave reviews!

Great recipe. Celeriac purée is a great new discovery for me. Next time I’ll experiment by doctoring the finish sauce by adding a teaspoon of sherry vinegar or pinch of heat.