Greek Lamb Recipe – Arnaki Kleftiko (Bandit’s Lamb)

If you are looking for a real Greek lamb recipe, you will be surprised to know that there are actually several dishes, which can claim this very name. This is because the Greek make use of lamb and kid as their main meat. One of these dishes, the Arnaki Kleftiko is most popular as the Bandit’s Lamb. The name is derived from the fact that the dish used to be prepared by bandits that needed to cook without being seen. Thus, they placed the lamb meat on coals in a hole. Then, they covered it up and allowed it to cook for up to 24 hours. Today though, we use to cook the dish much faster and comfortable.

Ingredients

1 lb. Leg of Lamb

4 lbs. Potatoes, peeled and cut in half or quarters

6 ounces Cheese (Pecorino or Kefalotyri), cut in cubes

10-12 Cloves Garlic, peeled

3 medium Carrots, cut in chunks

1 tablespoon Olive Oil

4-5 sheets Parchment Cooking Paper

Water

Sea Salt

Black Pepper, freshly ground

Directions

Preheat oven to 480F.

Rub the lamb with a bit of olive oil and sprinkle with pepper and salt. Using a sharp knife, pierce the lamb and place a clove of garlic and cheese into every opening.

Drizzle the carrots and potatoes with remaining oil. Season with salt and pepper.

Spread out parchment sheets and place the lamb, potatoes and carrots in the middle. If there are any remaining garlic cloves and cheese, add them as well. Close the paper and secure well by tucking the sides below.

Fill roasting pan with 1/3 water. Add the parchment paper and allow to cook for 2 hours and 30 minutes. If necessary, add more water to avoid getting dry.

Once this Greek lamb recipe is done, lift the whole parchment paper onto a serving platter. Cut open to serve at the table.

Tips

If you don’t like garlic, this dish is not recommended for you as we don’t recommend leaving it out. You might refer to our lamb stew chops recipe, instead.