Smoked lamb shoulder is slow-cooked to perfection in a smoker before being pulled. This creates a moist and flavorful meat finished with a subtle BBQ mint sauce.
The lamb shoulder has a lot of muscles and connective tissue making it typically a difficult cut of meat to work with. Smoking it low and slow over a long period of time helps to break this down and make it soft, moist, and easy to handle with the meat literally falling off the bone.Â
Served in a BBQ sauce, the pulled lamb can be served on top of dinner rolls as a sandwich, or on a plate with vegetables or salad on the side.
Smoked Lamb Shoulder Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 lamb shoulder
Rub
- American mustard
- herb rub as needed
- pork rub as needed
Wrapping
- 3 tablespoons brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 1/4 cup apple juice
Sauce
- 1/2 cup BBQ sauce
- 1/4 cup mint sauce
Equipment
- smoker
- 3 chunks hickory
- 2 large sheets of foil
Directions
- Heat the smoker to 250 degrees F (125 degrees C). Add a chunk or two of hickory to create a steady stream of smoke.
Rub
- Lay the lamb shoulder out and trim any excess fat or uneven parts.
- Give a gentle coat of mustard over the whole lamb shoulder. Sprinkle with the herb rub, then sprinkle with a lighter coat of the pork rub.
- Place the lamb shoulder on the smoker and smoke for 3 hours.
Wrapping
- Lay our two large sheets of foil. In the foil place the brown sugar and honey, then start to fold the first sheet of foil around the lamb. Just before closing, add the apple juice. Wrap the lamb a second time with the second sheet of foil.
- Return the lamb to the smoker for 3 hours.
- Check the lamb, it should be soft and fall off the bone. If not return to the smoker to cook for longer. When cooked, let the lamb rest in the foil for 30 to 60 minutes while you prepare the sauce.
Sauce
- Combine the BBQ sauce and mint sauce. If too thick you can add some additional apple juice to thin it out. Taste and adjust to your preferred flavoring.
- Heat the sauce over a stove so it isn’t added to the meat cold.
To Serve
- Pull the lamb apart gently with two forks to create small strips of meat. Stir the BBQ mint sauce through, then serve immediately while still hot. If the lamb looks a little dry, add some of the liquid from the foil to moisten.
Nutritional Information
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