Sunday roast lamb

What makes a roast leg of lamb so special?

If you’re an Australian of a certain vintage then you likely remember the lamb ads (starring Naomi Watts) from the 1990s proclaiming that Mum’s Sunday roast lamb was worthy of giving up a date with Tom Cruise. The popularity of a Sunday roast has not faded in the slightest and is still a much-loved weekend lunch or dinner for all ages. 

Roast leg of lamb has been a popular dish in Australia since the 18th century when European settlers first arrived on these shores, bringing with them numbers of sheep and cattle. Along with the beef and lamb produced by the livestock, the British also imported their tradition of having an indulgent baked or roast dinner as their Sunday evening meal. While there is a strong tradition of enjoying the roast on a Sunday lunch or evening due to the longer cooking times required, if you have the time for roasting it can be a great weeknight meal due to the ability to prepare and leave it while homework is being completed, laundry is being done or even while relaxing on the sofa.  

The roast lamb Sunday dinner is one of the most popular ways to enjoy this baked meal, however, it is most common around springtime due to the availability of succulent spring lamb or traditions around Easter lunch. 

Get more lovely lamb dinners on the table with easy lamb recipes for quick meals and entertaining, including ideas for different lamb cuts, plus lamb steak and lamb shoulder recipes.

The advantage of using an easy carve lamb leg vs whole lamb leg

While there is something special about roasting a whole leg of lamb and being able to reuse the bone to create a hearty lamb stock or lamb shank scotch broth, the convenience of an easy carve lamb leg can’t be beaten. Less waste, it cooks through beautifully and, as the name suggests, is easy to carve, making it simple to serve and its leftovers ideal for use in a lamb salad or lamb wraps. The easy carve cut comes from the same part of the lamb, but with the bone removed and rolled for ease of carving. It also reduces the leg of lamb cooking time.

How to make your next Sunday roast or roast lamb dinner the best you’ve ever had

No decent Sunday roast lamb recipe is complete without a hearty selection of delicious sides and accompaniments. The most obvious, of course, is perfectly roasted potatoes, as well as pumpkin, carrots, steamed greens and a healthy serving of gravy. But if you want to elevate your roast, then the addition of mint sauce is what you need. While some will add mint sauce in place of gravy, why not go wild and include both? 

If you want to add a little Mediterranean flair to your easy carve leg of lamb meal, serve it alongside a roasted eggplant dish. And on hot summer days, adding a salad on the side can help to lighten up the meal.