Easter Slow-Cooked Braised Lamb Shoulder

Serves 6, Total time 7 hours

This hearty slow-cooked lamb shoulder recipe is the perfect Easter dish, particularly when paired with creamy mash or crispy roasties & some greens. The meat is divine whether you decide to slice or shred it. (Try not to be discouraged by the long cooking time - the first 5 hours, the meat can be left fairly unattended while you do other things!)

Image Source: https://www.lifestylefood.com.au/recipes/18555/braised-lamb-shoulder
(This image is an example of how the finished product could look, the linked recipe is different.)

Ingredients:
1 kg lamb shoulder
8 sprigs of fresh thyme
4 sprigs of fresh rosemary
6 brown onions (medium size)
200 ml balsamic vinegar
3 bulbs of garlic (whole garlics)
Olive oil
Sea salt flakes
Black pepper

Serve with: potatoes, green beans, tenderstem broccoli, carrots, petits pois (or any other veg of your choice)

Method:
1. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees celsius.
2. Massage some olive oil into the lamb shoulder and season with a generous pinch of salt and pepper.
3. Place a generous amount of olive oil in the base of your roasting dish with the onions (peeled but left whole), garlic (peeled), rosemary and thyme. Put your lamb on top. Pop into the oven for 15-20 minutes initially.
4. Remove the dish from the oven and turn the oven down to 110 degrees celsius. Allow 15 minutes for the temperature to drop before returning the dish to the oven (covered with a lid) for 5 hours.
5. After 5 hours, remove the garlic and onions and leave for later. Pour the balsamic over the lamb at this point and remove the lid. Cook for a further 1.5 hours. Baste the meat in the vinegar every 20-30 minutes.
6. Add the onions and garlic back in for the last 10 minutes to reheat and soften again.
7. To serve, either shred or slice the lamb shoulder. Serve with the onions, garlic and other veg of your choice. Scoop a generous helping of the balsamic over everything.