Jamie Oliver Gnarly Lamb Madras Traybake

Jamie Oliver’s gnarly lamb madras traybake is a whole lamb shoulder rubbed in Madras curry paste and slow-roasted over yellow split peas, red onions and tomatoes. It needs 9 minutes of prep, then 5 hours in the oven, and serves 8.

In Simply Jamie (2024) this is share food built for a lazy weekend. The split peas cook in the tray under the lamb, soaking up the fat and spiced juices until they turn into a thick daal. Your side dish makes itself while the shoulder roasts.

The part people rush is the last half hour. For four and a half hours the tray stays tightly foiled so the lamb braises in its own juices. Then the foil comes off, you baste, and blast it until the paste-rubbed skin goes dark and, in Jamie’s word, gnarly.

Jamie Oliver Gnarly Lamb Madras Traybake

Recipe by Pinch Perfect

5.0 from 1 vote

Course: Dinner, LunchCuisine: BritishDifficulty: Easy

Servings

8

servings

Prep time

9

minutes

Cooking time

5

hours 

Calories

633

kcal

Total time

5

hours 

9

minutes

Jamie’s hands-off Simply Jamie traybake: a whole lamb shoulder slow-roasted for hours over yellow split peas that thicken into a spiced daal in the same tray.

Ingredients

• 1 x 2kg (4 lb 6 oz) higher-welfare lamb shoulder, bone in

• 1 x 180g (6 oz) jar of Jamie’s Majestic Madras curry paste

• 250g (9 oz) yellow split peas

• 4 red onions

• 1 potato

• 4 tomatoes

• 6cm piece of ginger

• 1 bulb of garlic

• ½ a bunch of coriander (15g)

• 12 cloves

• olive oil

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Directions

• Heat up:Preheat the oven to 170°C/325°F/gas 3, and boil the kettle.
• Rub the lamb:Lightly score the skin side of the lamb all over in a criss-cross fashion. Season with sea salt and black pepper, then rub with half the curry paste.
• Fill the tray:Put the split peas in your largest high-sided roasting tray. Peel, halve and add the onions and potato. Halve the tomatoes, peel and chop the ginger, break up the garlic bulb and roughly chop the coriander, stalks and all, then add it all with the remaining curry paste.
• Assemble:Stir in 1.2 litres of boiling water. Sit the lamb on top, scatter over the cloves, and cover the tray tightly with oiled tin foil.
• Slow-roast:Roast for 4½ hours, until the lamb is super-tender, with no need to check it. Remove the foil, baste the lamb with the tray juices, and cook for a final 30 minutes until golden and gnarly.
• Serve:Pull off chunks of meat, discarding the bones. Break up the potato, squeeze out the soft garlic, and stir both through the split peas and veg. Plate up with some of the juices.

FAQs

How do I get the “gnarly” crust?

It’s all in that final 30 minutes with the foil off. For the long covered stage the lamb stays soft and pale as it braises. Once you uncover it, baste it in the tray juices and turn up the exposure to the oven’s heat, the paste-rubbed skin caramelises dark and crisp.

If yours isn’t colouring enough, move the tray higher in the oven or flick the grill on for the last few minutes, watching closely. Gnarly means deeply browned and sticky at the edges, not burnt, so pull it as soon as the top looks lacquered.

Do I really not need to check it for four and a half hours?

No, and that’s the whole appeal. At a low 170°C under tight foil, the shoulder braises gently in its own juices and the 1.2 litres of water, so nothing catches or dries. Basting or opening the oven early just lets the steam escape.

The one thing that matters is the seal. Press the foil down firmly around the edges of the tray so the moisture stays trapped. A loose cover is the main reason a slow roast like this comes out drier than it should.

What do the yellow split peas do down there?

They’re the clever part. Sitting under the lamb, the split peas drink up the rendered fat, the spiced paste and the meat juices as everything cooks. Over five hours they soften into a thick, daal-like base that carries all the flavour dripping down from the shoulder.

At the end you break the soft potato and squeeze the roasted garlic out of its skins, then stir both through. That thickens and enriches the peas further, so the “side” is really made by the roast itself. No second pan needed.

Which curry paste, and can I swap it?

Jamie uses a 180g jar of his own Majestic Madras curry paste from his food range, which is where the bold Madras flavour comes from. Half rubs into the lamb, half goes into the tray. It’s a genuine shortcut, no spice-toasting required.

Any good-quality Madras paste works as a swap, though heat and salt vary a lot between brands. Taste yours first and go easy on extra salt. A rogan josh or tikka paste would change the character but still be delicious.

Can I use a different cut, or make it ahead?

Bone-in shoulder is the right choice, because its fat and collagen are what melt over the long cook and keep the meat moist. Leg is leaner and can dry out at this length, so stick with shoulder if you can. For a fast lamb dinner instead, Jamie’s lamb kofta is done in under an hour.

This reheats beautifully, and the flavour actually deepens overnight. Pull the meat, keep it in its juices, and refrigerate for a few days or freeze for up to three months. Warm it through gently so the lamb stays tender.

What do I serve it with, and how many does it feed?

It serves 8, and the spiced split peas are already your carb, so you don’t need much else. Warm naan, poppadoms, a bowl of yoghurt and some mango chutney round it into a full Indian-style spread. Fluffy rice works if you want to stretch it further.

It’s a proper sharing centrepiece for a relaxed weekend. If you like this hands-off, one-tray style of roasting, Jamie’s Sichuan pepper beef brisket works the same low-and-slow way, and there are more on the Jamie Oliver recipes page.