Smoked Leg of Lamb on a Pit Boss Pellet Grill

A delicious Boneless Leg of Lamb smoked and seared on a Pit Boss pellet grill, then served with a simple Red Wine and Shallot Reduction.

While ribs, pork butt, and beef brisket usually take center stage on the backyard smoker, sometimes it's fun to switch things up and go an unconventional route, especially for holidays and special occasions.

We've already covered at length how to smoke a turkey, as well as some of delisous holiday hams, but today we are upping our game and smoking a whole leg of lamb!

Lamb is a versatile protein, and can be looked to a high internal tempearure and pulled like a pork butt for gyros or lamb tacos.

However for our recipe we are going to smoke and reverse sear it more like a beef roast to a medium temperature, then slice and serve it with an awesome Red Wine and Shallot Reduction Sauce.

This makes for a great smoked holiday meal!

Jump to:

• Preparing and Seasoning
• Video
• Setting up the Pit Boss
• Cooking Temperature
• Cooking Time and Target Internal Temperature
• Red Wine Shallot Reduction
• Carving and Serving
• Serving Suggestions
• 📖 Recipe

Preparing and Seasoning

You may have the option of choosing a bone-in or boneless leg of lamb.

For holiday roasts, we ,uch rpefer a boneless leg of lamb since it is much easier to slice.

Bone-in legs take longer to cook and are better suited for pulled and shredded lamb.

If your boneless leg of lamb has a netteing, remove it so that you can better season the entire roast.

First sprinkle with a healthy amount of kosher salt and pepper.

Next, whisk a marinade together consisting of the following ingredients:

• ½ Cup Olive Oil
• 1 tablespoon Minced Rosemary
• 2 teaspoon Minced Thyme
• 1 tablespoon Minced Garlic
• 1 teaspoon Chili Powder
• 1 teaspoon Smoked Paprika

Rub the lamb with the marinade on all sides.

Then tie the roast back together with some butchers twine and place it on a wire rack over a foil lined baking sheet.

This will help protect it from any excessive direct heat coming off the Pit Boss pellet grill, and make cleanup easier later.

Video

Rather Watch than Read? Check out this video from our YouTube Channel!

Setting up the Pit Boss

We have previously covered how to season a Pit Boss, how to start a Pit Boss, as well as how to troubleshoot the smoke level of your pellet grill.

So if you need a good overview on how to use your Pit Boss for the first time, check those articles out first!

We like to use fruitwood pellets on lamb such as apple or cherry, especially those from Bear Mountain, along with a pellet tube smoker for extra smoke flavor.

You can learn all about how to light a pellet tube smoker HERE.

Cooking Temperature

Set the temperature initially to 270°F.

This will give the leg of lamb plenty of time to smoke on the Pit Boss without drying out before we sear it.

Cooking Time and Target Internal Temperature

On lamb, we prefer a medium doneness compared to beef where we usually aim for medium rare.

So this means a FINAL internal temperature of 140°F.

Working backwards, this means we smoke the lamb until it reaches 135°F so that it rises to 140°F while its resting.

You can smoke at 270°F all the way until the lamb reaches 135°F like this, OR, smoke until it reaches about 120°F, then turn up th heat on your pellet grill HIGH and finish it with a higer heat to sear the outside.

Thsi will give the outside of the leg of lamb a darker color, better rendered fat, and nicer crust.

Just turn up the heat at about 120°F and let it ride until it hits 135°F!

Our boneless leg of lamb was 5 lbs and took 2 and ½ hours to reach 120°F, then another 20 minutes to reach 135°F after we turned up the heat.

Red Wine Shallot Reduction

Lamb pairs well with acidic flavors like red wine and citrus to help cut through the rich flavor of the meat.

We made a simple Red Wine and Shallot Reduction while the lamb was smoking.

Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoon Butter
• ¼ Cup Minced Shallot
• 1 Bottle of Red Wine (about 4 Cups)
• ¼ Cup Apricot Preserves
• 1 tablespoon Freshly Grated Lemon Zest
• Salt and pepper to taste

Melt the butter in a saucepan and then sautee the shallots in the butter iver mdeium heat for about 5-10 minutes until they are soft and yellow.

The pour in the wine, and add the apricot preserves and lemon zest.

Simmer over medium heat, uncovered, for about 20-30 minuytes, or until the sauce has reduced by about half.

Then add salt and pepper to taste.

Keep warm over low heat until you are reday to serve the lamb.Just

Carving and Serving

After letting the lamb rest for 15-20 minutes, hold the lamb gently with one had while slicing in even, ¼ to ½ inch thick, slices using a good meat slicing knife.

Slice using full, long, even strokes all the way to the cutting board letting each piece fall on the previous one.

To maintain maximum juiciness in your lamb, only carve what you plan to serve immediately and leave the rest of the roast intact.

Serving Suggestions

Drizzle the warm red wine reduction over the lamb and serve immediately.

If you are eating your lamb in the spring, some grilled or smoked asparagus is a natural side.

Add some smoked mashed potatoes for a classic holiday meal!

📖 Recipe