Chef Dimitra
Aegean Island Katsiki sti Souvla (Κατσίκι στη Σούβλα)
Aegean Easter goat on the spit, lean and full-flavored, turned slowly over charcoal and basted with lemon, oregano, garlic, and good olive oil.
Culinary Explorer
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Roumeli Arni Kleftiko (Αρνί Κλέφτικο της Ρούμελης)
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Roumeli's arni kleftiko is lamb and potatoes sealed in paper with lemon, garlic and oregano, slow-baked until the meat gives up the bone and the potatoes drink the juices.
Main Dishes
Greek
Special Occasion
Comfort Food
Dinner Party
35 min
Active Time
3 hr 30 min cook•4 hr 5 min total
Yield6 servings
Arni kleftiko tis Roumelis is lamb sealed in paper with potatoes, garlic, lemon, and oregano, then baked until the meat slides from the bone. The region is the dish's surname: mountain Roumeli gives it its old shape, plain and hidden, with the flavor trapped inside the parcel instead of sent up the chimney.
The whole dish depends on the seal. Close the parchment tightly and the lamb cooks in its own juices, while the potatoes soften underneath and take the lemon, garlic, and oil into themselves. Leave gaps and you've made roasted lamb in paper, which is not the same pot of memory.
I keep this version spare because that's how the dish makes sense. Lamb with bone, good potatoes, Greek oregano, lemon, and oil. Liga kai kala, a few things, and good ones. Your oven does the long work, and you only need the patience not to keep checking.
Kleftiko is tied to the mountains of Roumeli and the Peloponnese, where the klephts, armed Greek groups living outside Ottoman control, are said to have cooked lamb in sealed earth pits so smoke would not reveal them. The old buried cooking became the closed household parcel, first with dough or leaves in some places and now commonly with parchment in the oven. The name comes from klephtis, thief, but in Greek kitchens the dish remembers concealment, patience, and meat cooked in its own juices.
The technique, the tradition, and the story behind every dish.
Discover Culinary ExplorerIngredients
bone-in lamb shoulder
Quantity
1.8kg
cut into 6 large pieces by the butcher
yellow potatoes
Quantity
1.2kg
peeled and cut into thick wedges
yellow onions
Quantity
2 medium
thickly sliced
garlic cloves
Quantity
8
5 slivered and 3 finely grated
extra virgin Koroneiki olive oil
Quantity
80ml
fresh lemon juice
Quantity
80ml
dry white wine or water
Quantity
60ml
fine sea salt
Quantity
18g
dried Greek oregano
Quantity
2 tsp
plus a little more for finishing
freshly ground black pepper
Quantity
1 tsp
bay leaves
Quantity
2
lemon (optional)
Quantity
1
cut into wedges
| Ingredient | Quantity |
|---|---|
| bone-in lamb shouldercut into 6 large pieces by the butcher | 1.8kg |
| yellow potatoespeeled and cut into thick wedges | 1.2kg |
| yellow onionsthickly sliced | 2 medium |
| garlic cloves5 slivered and 3 finely grated | 8 |
| extra virgin Koroneiki olive oil | 80ml |
| fresh lemon juice | 80ml |
| dry white wine or water | 60ml |
| fine sea salt | 18g |
| dried Greek oreganoplus a little more for finishing | 2 tsp |
| freshly ground black pepper | 1 tsp |
| bay leaves | 2 |
| lemon (optional)cut into wedges | 1 |
Equipment Needed
- •large roasting tin, about 35 x 25cm
- •wide baking parchment, four large sheets
- •kitchen string
Instructions
- 1
Season the Lamb
Pat the lamb dry. Make small cuts in the meat with the tip of a knife and tuck in the garlic slivers. Rub the lamb with the grated garlic, 40ml olive oil, 40ml lemon juice, 10g salt, the oregano, and the pepper. Let it stand while you prepare the potatoes, or cover and chill it up to overnight.
- 2
Prepare the Potatoes
Heat the oven to 160C. Toss the potato wedges and sliced onions with the remaining 40ml olive oil, remaining 40ml lemon juice, the wine or water, the remaining 8g salt, and the bay leaves. The potatoes should be cut thick, because they have three slow hours ahead of them.
- 3
Build the Parcel
Lay two large sheets of baking parchment in a cross inside a roasting tin, then add a second cross if your paper is thin. Spread the potatoes and onions in the middle and set the lamb pieces on top. Pour over every drop from the bowl.
- 4
Seal It Tight
Fold the parchment up over the lamb and crimp the seams hard, like you're closing a letter that must not open. Tie with kitchen string if needed, then cover the outside with foil, keeping the parchment against the food. This seal is the dish. If it leaks, the lamb roasts dry instead of cooking slowly in its own juices, and the potatoes never drink the lemon and garlic properly.
Parchment touches the food. Foil is only the outer insurance for a home oven. - 5
Bake Slowly
Bake for 3 hours at 160C without opening the parcel. Leave it alone. Good olive oil, and patience. The lamb is ready for the next step when a skewer slips into the thickest piece with almost no resistance.
- 6
Brown the Top
Raise the oven to 220C. Open the foil and parchment carefully, folding the paper back to expose the lamb and potatoes. Bake uncovered for 20 to 30 minutes, until the edges are browned, the potatoes are glossy with the juices, and the lamb gives at the bone.
- 7
Rest and Serve
Rest the kleftiko for 15 minutes before serving. Spoon the lemony pan juices over the meat, crumble a little dried oregano between your fingers, and bring it to the table with lemon wedges. No ceremony. The paper opens, the room goes quiet, and then everyone reaches in.
Chef Tips
- •Use shoulder if you can. Leg is handsome, yes, but shoulder has the fat and connective tissue that make kleftiko generous after a long bake. Lean lamb behaves politely and gives you less.
- •Do not cut the potatoes small. Thick wedges are not laziness here, they are the right size for the time in the oven. Small pieces collapse before the lamb is ready.
- •If you open the packet and the lamb is not tender, close it again and keep baking. The clock helps, but the fork tells the truth.
- •Serve it with horta, a cabbage salad, or thick yogurt if you want something cool beside the richness. Bread is not optional in my house, because those juices are half the dish.
Advance Preparation
- •Season the lamb up to 24 hours ahead and keep it covered in the refrigerator. Bring it out 45 minutes before baking.
- •The kleftiko can be baked sealed earlier in the day, then opened and browned just before serving.
Frequently Asked Questions
Nutrition Information
1 serving (about 500g)
Calories
745 calories
Total Fat
47 g
Saturated Fat
15 g
Trans Fat
1 g
Unsaturated Fat
29 g
Cholesterol
125 mg
Sodium
1280 mg
Total Carbohydrates
43 g
Dietary Fiber
5 g
Sugars
5 g
Protein
35 g
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