Slow-roast shoulder of Elwy Valley lamb with onions and thyme, balsamic vinegar

At Tom's Kitchen the lamb shoulder is served in a Pullivuyt casserole dish for two to share and comes with mashed potato or chunky chips.

Ingredients
(Serves eight)

1 shoulder of lamb, about 2.5kg
150ml olive oil
1 bunch fresh thyme
2 garlic bulbs, peeled, plus extra sliced cloves
20g sea salt
Black pepper
8 medium onions, peeled
250ml balsamic vinegar

Method
Marinate the lamb for a day in the olive oil with 6-8 sprigs thyme and some extra thinly sliced garlic. Turn it occasionally. Before you cook the lamb, leave it out of the fridge for a good hour or two so that the meat is at room temperature.

Preheat the oven to 180°C. Remove the thyme and garlic, then season with 20g salt and 4-6 turns of freshly milled black pepper. Place the meat in a large casserole with the whole peeled onions. The onions can be drizzled with olive oil and seasoned as well. Put a little olive oil in the bottom of the pan, then put the casserole into the preheated oven for 15-20 minutes or until the lamb and onions have coloured.

Remove the casserole from the oven, then add about eight sprigs of thyme along with the garlic cloves. Reduce the oven temperature to 110°C, and return the meat to the oven. Cook for five hours with the lid on. Add the balsamic vinegar, and continue to cook for a further hour with the lid off.

Place the casserole on to a low heat to reduce any excess liquid. Baste the lamb with this during the reducing, along with the onions. Serve the soft meat cut in pieces with the onions, some of the jus, a few cloves of garlic and some mashed potato.