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Toolkit

B

oning and butterflying a lamb leg turns a wintry cut into

one primed for barbecuing (see our recipe on p94). Not only

does a butterflied leg cook relatively quickly, it marinates well

and has the benefit of picking up char from the grill. “It’s one

of the easier and more satisfying home butchery skills to have a go at if

you use the shank end,” says Richard Gunner of Richard Gunner’s Fine

Meats and Feast! Fine Foods in South Australia, referring to the lower

half of the leg that doesn’t include the difficult-to-remove “aitch” bone.

While you may come across butterflied legs, “bone-in is cheaper,

so you can buy better quality”, says Gunner. Freeze the bone so come

roasting season you can pop it in the tray to enrich the pan juices.

Step by step

this and wait until you have a

few stored for a braise. Just cut

through the joint to remove the

top bone before freezing.)

5

Slide the knife under the

bone and, again removing

as little flesh as possible, free it

from the meat completely.

6

Lay the leg flat and trim off

any pieces of bone, gristle

and large pieces of fat. “Your aim

now is to make the leg the same

thickness all over,” says Gunner.

“This makes all the difference

when you cook it.” With a

smooth motion, slice horizontally

halfway through the thicker

pieces of meat, opening them

up like a book and folding out

until the thickness is consistent.

7

Make a few cuts in the

surface of the meat to help

it cook more quickly and evenly.

The butterfly effect Butterflying not only opens a lamb leg out so the

meat cooks evenly to the same degree throughout, it also maximises

the surface area, which helps when you’re adding flavourings. “Don’t

be afraid to put a few slashes in the leg,” says Gunner. “This makes

sure the muscle bundles won’t pull tight and curl up on the grill,

and also helps any spices or marinades you use to penetrate the

meat – I love either Greek-style with fragrant herbs, lemon, garlic

and olive oil, or North African flavours like harissa or ras el hanout.” ●

While you can use a paring knife,

a boning knife – typically a short,

curved knife with a rigid blade – is

designed for cutting through meat

and joints, and up against bone.

“The right knife will make your job

much easier,” says Gunner. That

might be a highly curved Tojiro

knife, or a more classic Mundial or

Wüsthof ($155, $54 and $144 from

Peter’s of Kensington, from left).

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With the leg fat-side down

and the thick end facing you,

feel along the leg to locate the

knee joint. The first cut is from

the knee to the exposed bone

at the top of the leg. Make a

small cut where you judge the

bone to be, then feel with your

fingers to check you’re on the

right line, and continue the cut

along the bone towards you.

2

You can now pull the

meat apart a little to reveal

the bone. Cut along the sides

of the bone to expose it more

and more, aiming to leave as

little meat on the bone as

possible. “Take your time

and mostly use the tip of

your knife,” says Gunner.

And take care not to cut

towards your fingers.

3

With the bone exposed, slip

the tip of the knife under it

from the side and then cut up

along the bone to free it from

the flesh at one end. Now cut

down the bone the other way,

scraping down to the joint. The

whole bone should now be

exposed down to the knee.

4

Cut around the knuckle to
expose it (turning the leg up
on its side helps). Taking your
time, work around the joint, then
lay the leg flat again and cut
along the line of the bone to
expose it, before cutting along
the sides with the tip of your
knife as you did earlier. (Once
you reach the knuckle, it’s also
possible to follow the seam and
free the lamb shank with the
WORDS DAVID MATTHEWS. PHOTOGRAPHY BEN HANSEN. STYLING RHIANNE CONTRERASbone in. You could then freeze

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Masterclass

GOURMET TRAVELLER 35