British BBQ Society Forums

Got me a full shoulder in the smoker this afternoon to make some burritos for tea, just hope I put it on early enough!

Nice man! Looking forward to seeing some pics!

Sorry for the terrible pic.... camera phone or wait until I get in the darkroom next.... so camera phone.



Result:

-From the perfectionist bbqer point of view, I unfortunately had to cook it a lot faster than I would have liked. Consequentially, it didn't cook as evenly as I would have liked, leaving some parts not quite ready to pull and the bone still firmly attached.

-From my mouth's point of view....my god it was good! Despite the slightly uneven cooking, it was moist, tender, with a sweet flavour (no sugar needed in the rub for this!) and that unmistakable richness of lamb. Smoke was hickory, which did it a marvellous justice, though if I had more time to cook it I would have gone with cherry.

-The pieces which did not pull were by no means tough, in fact I was pleased in the end that I had some chunks, they had little bite to them, whilst being incredibly moist and tender.

-Rub was paprika and tomato with garlic, onion, a little cumin (not much), salt, pepper, cayenne.

-Foiling sauce was beef stock from the weekend's pot roast brisket with cyder vinegar and a little of the rub mixed in.

Conclusion:

A wonderful way to cook a piece of lamb shoulder, for sure, but, and this is not like me to say, I think there are better ways to cook it (merguez sausage anyone?). The consistent opinion from the wife and kids was "pulled pork would have been better". Would have been £2 a kilo cheaper too. With that said, it was an interesting experiment and I may well try a leg at some point. We also have a decent amount of leftovers. I'm thinking Lancashire hotpot at the weekend....

Looks and sounds good! Yeah, I had a similar problem with some bits still being firmer - I guess it's partly a result of the tougher sinews and silverskin in sheep.

I'd agree - Delicious and something different, but it's hard to beat a nice pork shoulder!

…and I love a good Merguez - I happily eat Harissa by the spoonful!

ah ok, I thought it was the quicker cooking, good to know to expect the same in future.

Speaking of merguez, my new neighbour is an algerian chef. I think we'll get along famously, bar the fact I will have to buy halal meat if I want him round for a barbecue!

Well done, shoulder really is a succulent cut of meat, be aware though that leg won't pull and will/could dry out a lot quicker due to the lack of connective tissue and collagen (but it makes fantastic sarnies ).

Succulent is definitely the word. Have never cooked lamb shoulder before other than in sausages. Tender doesn't quite cover the textural sensation!

I figure lamb leg would warrant the same sort of treatment as a beef forerib roast - just enough time in the smoker to infuse it with smoke, but not enough to cook it past rare. Would that sound about right?