Whoa! Cooking a whole leg of lamb in your instant pot is not only quick and easy but it’s also insanely delicious. This low carb keto meal comes together in under an hour! In partnership with The American Lamb Board.
This past Thanksgiving, I came to the inevitable conclusion that I am just not that much of a turkey person. I am ducking as I say this, because I am sure some die-hard turkey lovers have just picked up the nearest object and thrown it at my head. But I think this has been coming slowly over time. I do like the taste of turkey, but I don’t enjoy the work required for making a whole bird. Or the carcass that sits in my fridge, taking up room until I can find the energy to get all the leftover meat off. And then the pressure to use up all those leftovers in creative and different ways, after we’ve all become sick of it.
I’d much, much rather do something like lamb. I know turkey is tradition and that the pilgrims didn’t have sheep anywhere nearby when they first came to the Americas. I get that and I will probably keep doing turkey year in and year out because it’s virtually required. But just understand that I will be dreaming of recipes like this Instant Pot Leg of Lamb instead. Because it would be so much easier, so much faster, and I would be happy to have all those lamb leftovers in my fridge.
I never ever get sick of lamb and I am very glad that with Thanksgiving out of the way and Christmas approaching, I have an excuse to make big lamb roasts. And this winter, I foresee many a comfort meal, like lamb stew or lamb curry. Discovering that I could do it all, even the roasts, in my Instant Pot was quite a revelation. When the American Lamb board challenged me to an Instant Pot recipe, my first inclination was a stew. But with the holidays coming, I wanted a nice, juicy lamb leg roast. So I set about to see if it can be made in a pressure cooker.
Turns out that it can and that’s it’s so delicious and easy, you’ll wonder why you’ve never done it before. Like many pressure cooker meals, it doesn’t brown up as much as it would in the oven so I popped mine under the broiler for a few minutes after it was finished. But you can skip that step if you prefer. Regardless you will have perfectly cooked leg of lamb that is meltingly tender. Sorry folks, but turkey just can’t compete with this!
Win an Instant Pot!
Don’t have an Instant Pot? Well The American Lamb Board just so happens to be giving one away. All you have to do is follow them on Instagram and tag a friend in the comments on THIS PHOTO. And for more great lamb recipes and tips on how to cook lamb, check out The American Lamb Board.
Whoa! Cooking a whole leg of lamb in your instant pot is not only quick and easy but it's also insanely delicious. This low carb keto meal comes together in under an hour!
- 1 3 to 4 lb boneless leg of lamb
- Salt and pepper
- 2 tbsp avocado oil divided
- 2 cups water
- 4 cloves garlic crushed
- 2 tbsp chopped fresh rosemary
- 1. Pat the lamb dry with paper towels and season with salt and pepper.
- 2. Set the Instant Pot to sauté and add the oil. Once the oil is hot, brown the lamb all over. Remove the lamb and spread the top and sides with the garlic and rosemary.
- 3. Insert the rack into the bottom of the Instant Pot. Pour in the water into the bottom of the pot. Place the lamb on the rack and set the Instant Pot to meat/stew. Cook 30 to 35 minutes, depending on how rare you want it (30 minutes is good for medium rare on a 4lb leg of lamb). Let the pressure release naturally before removing the lid.
- 4. Preheat the broiler. Set the lamb on a broiling pan and broil 6 inches from the heat for about 2 minutes, to brown the top. Remove and let rest 10 minutes before slicing.
Many thanks to the American Lamb Board for partnering with me to bring you this post.
Sandy Munn says
That looks so delicious! Unfortunately, lamb isn’t readily available in our area.
We don’t try to eat up our turkey leftovers right away….instead I put 3 cups of turkey along with broth into freezer bags and freeze it. It’s really handy to pull out a bag and make turkey soup later!
Lauren Romeo says
I had been wanting to get an Instant Pot and now I think I will!
Newell Jones says
This looks delicious. My spouse has been wanting to try Leg of Lamb for the first time, and has been interested in the Instant Pot, so this is a timely post. Thank you for all the great low carb inspiration you provide.
Kelly @ Nosh and Nourish says
I”m hoping Santa brings me an instant pot this year… I’ve been REALLY good!
Liz says
This is perfect for our upcoming remodel project. I’ll be without a kitchen for a couple months and this will be a wonderful treat for Bill—he loves lamb!!!
Ashley @ Wishes & Dishes says
Ok you have completely sold me on the instant pot! I had no idea how much you could do with them!
Kelly H says
I’ve read other blogs that mention the saute function isn’t that great on the instant pot. I’ve only used it to make yogurt so I thought I’d ask what you think! Surely you could just saute this in a pan first?
Carolyn says
No matter how you saute it, it needs browning at the end to take away that grey colour that happens with all pressure cooker meats. The saute function in my IP works find, in my opinion.
Angie | Big Bear's Wife says
We don’t have lamb a lot but when we do, I LOVE IT! I asked Santa for an Instant Pot for Christmas so let us hope that I get one!
Paula - bell'alimento says
I haven’t tried lamb in my instant pot, I’m going to have to change that now!
Kim Hayes says
I’m with you on the NO Turkey vote! Domestic turkeys must be created by humans, though the process is very inhumane. The male turkeys must be hung upside-down, stripped of their semen then the female turkeys are hung upside down and artificially inseminated. These big bloated engineered birds are unnatural!
Eat 2 x 7 lb. Chickens at least they are real. There are some rare Heritage Turkeys out there that can still function & breed, though they are sensibly sized by Mother Nature vs Human Engineering. Eating a Wild Turkey is fine if you have a hunter in the family, though only the Breast (my least favorite part) is eatable as the legs are like rubber bands as these turkeys work for a living. I know I watch a rafter of 22 turkey out my window multiple times a week. Eat things that don’t have to be engineered! Lamb is Yummy!
Maggie says
I LOVE lamb – especially leg of lamb — so much that we raise our own. We eat it for most special occasions or just when we want to! My question is, can I roast a leg in a pressure cooker vs. an instant pot? My cooker has high / low pressure, browning, and Dante settings. What correlates to meat / stew setting?
Maggie says
Saute setting! Silly spell check!
Carolyn says
Yes, an instant pot is essentially a pressure cooker. Should be on high for 30 minutes.
Maggie says
Thank you! Having it tonoght!
Kim Beaulieu says
This lamb looks incredible. Cooked to perfection.
alyssa | everydaymaven says
I love this idea!!! I need to give it a try in my Instant Pot!
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Awesome, the Instant Pot makes everything so easy!
DebbieC says
I am so glad that I have this receipt, very easy to make the lamv with instant pot. Awesome…
mergie says
I have a 3-lb butterflied leg of lamb. How do I adjust for the boneless leg of lamb
Carolyn says
You need to un-butterfly it. In other words, roll it up back together and tie it up.
Suparna says
Hi Carolyn, I was just wondering what you do with the juices in the bottom of the pot? Haven’t ever made lamb before so not quite sure. Thank you for all your yummy recipes!
KPayne says
The smallest boneless I’ve found is just over 5lbs. Should I increase cooking time? By how much?
Carolyn says
Maybe. I wouldn’t increase by more than 5 minutes.
Alyssa says
Hi! My family is pretty small, so mine is only 1.9 lb. how would you recommend adjusting the time? Thank you and happy Easter!
Carolyn says
I really can’t say for sure. Maybe take it down by 10 minutes. If it’s not done, do 5 more minutes.
Carolyn says
So it’s not stewed by sitting in the liquid. That would braise the lamb, rather than “roast” it.
Margaret Joedan says
what should the timing be for a semi-boneless leg?
Carolyn says
I don’t know, I didn’t write the recipe that way. Sorry!