Lamb is a South African classic and, when it comes to the Festive Season it makes an appearance almost every day – from the braai grill to the Christmas table!

This year Chef Abe Conradie suggests a delicious and ever-so-festive alternative to traditional leg of lamb. Try his recipe with fig, balsamic vinegar and coriander flavoured onion jam and open a bottle of Leopard’s Leap Merlot! But be warned – no one else in the family will ever again volunteer to cook the Christmas dinner!

You can get a special Christmas gift pack with the marmalade as well as a 1,5-litre bottle of Leopard’s Leap Merlot as part of the Checker’s festive offers.

Leg of lamb with fig, balsamic vinegar and coriander flavoured onion jam

Serves 8 – 10

Ingredients

1 leg of lamb, boned

170 g AB Products fig, balsamic vinegar and coriander flavoured onion jam

2 wheels of feta cheese

1 clove garlic

15 ml sea salt

15 ml crushed black pepper

5 ml crushed coriander seed

10 ml dried thyme

25 ml olive oil

500 g baby potatoes, halved

200 g baby carrots, washed (leave the tops on)

100 g baby beetroot, halved

150 g baby turnips, halved

Cotton string to bind

Method

1. Flatten the leg of lamb by making incisions on the inside.
2. Crush the garlic and rub onto the inside of the leg of lamb.
3. Season the inside with half the sea salt.
4. In a bowl, mix the onion jam and the feta cheese into a chunky paste.
5. Place this on the inside of the leg of lamb, filling the cavities and incisions.
6. Bind the leg with the cotton string, securing all the loose ends.
7. Rub with the remainder of the salt mixed with the pepper, coriander and dried thyme.
8. Place the leg of lamb onto a cast-iron roasting tray, drizzle with olive oil and roast at 250 °C for 30 minutes until the outside is a nice brown.
9. Lower the temperature to 180 °C, add the cut vegetables, seasoned with salt and pepper, and bake for another hour.
10. Remove the string and allow the leg of lamb to rest for at least 15 minutes before serving.