Moroccan · Main course
Marrakech Mechoui Lamb Shoulder
Mechoui is Marrakech's celebration roast — a whole lamb slow-cooked in a pit oven until the meat pulls apart in your fingers, sold by weight from the mechoui stalls in the medina. This home version takes a shoulder, rubbed with cumin, garlic and butter and roasted low and slow until the fat renders and the meat is spoon-tender, served simply with cumin and salt to dip.
- Prep
- 20 min
- Cook
- 240 min
- Total
- 260 min
- Serves
- 6
- Level
- Medium
Ingredients
- 1 lamb shoulder on the bone (about 2 kg)
- 80 g soft butter (or smen)
- 5 garlic cloves, crushed
- 1 tbsp cumin, plus extra to serve
- 1 tbsp paprika, 1 tsp ginger, black pepper
- 2 tsp salt
- Cumin-salt and bread, to serve
Method
- 1
Make the rub
Mash the butter with the garlic, cumin, paprika, ginger, salt and pepper into a paste.
- 2
Coat the lamb
Slash the shoulder in a few places and rub the spiced butter all over and into the cuts.
- 3
Roast low
Roast, covered, at 150°C for about 3 1/2 hours, basting occasionally, until the meat is meltingly tender and pulling from the bone.
- 4
Crisp the outside
Uncover and roast at 220°C for 20 minutes to brown and crisp the surface.
- 5
Serve
Rest 15 minutes, then pull the meat apart and serve with small bowls of cumin and salt for dipping, and bread.
Chef's tips
- Low and slow is everything — mechoui should be so tender you eat it with your fingers, no knife needed.
- Keep it covered for most of the roast to steam-tenderise, then uncover to crisp the outside.
- The bowls of cumin and salt to dip are traditional and essential; do not over-season the meat itself.
Frequently asked questions
How is mechoui traditionally cooked?
A whole lamb is slow-roasted in a sealed underground pit oven (or on a spit) for hours until falling-apart tender, then sold by weight.
Can I use leg instead of shoulder?
Shoulder is better — its higher fat content keeps it moist and tender through the long roast; leg can dry out.