Name: Chinese Five-Spice Roasted Lamb
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 145 min
Total time: 155 min
Ingredients: 5 lb boneless lamb leg roast; 3 Tbsp Chinese five-spice powder; 3 Tbsp ground cumin; 1 1/2 tsp sea salt; 1 tsp garlic powder; 1 tsp onion powder; 1 1/2 tsp ground Sichuan peppercorn; 1 Tbsp all-purpose flour

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This recipe for Chinese Five-Spice Roasted Lambs features tender, juicy lamb in a flavorful mixture of spices, perfect for your holiday table.

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Why you'll love this recipe

This recipe for Chinese roasted lamb is:

Easy to prepare: with minimal ingredients, and not much active cooking, this Asian-inspired roasted lamb can be made with ease.

Unique: it's not your typical turkey roast, prime rib in terms of flavoring, and is inspired from Xi'an-style cumin lamb.

Ingredients you'll need

boneless lamb leg roast: typically encased with meat netting
Chinese five-spice: a ground/powder mixture of five spices used in Chinese dishes: fennel, star anise, clove, Sichuan peppercorn and fennel
ground cumin: adds an earthy flavor; used in East Asian and Mexican dishes
sea salt
garlic powder
onion powder
ground Sichuan peppercorn: a mixture of red and green Sichuan peppercorns, ground; used in mala spice
all-purpose flour: builds a little bit of a crust on the exterior of the lamb

Where to find?

You can find these ingredients at your local Asian supermarket.

How to prepare roast lamb

Remove lamb leg roast from the refrigerator and let rest at room temperature for 1 hour.

Set oven rack to the middle and preheat oven to 500F/260C.

Combine Chinese five-spice powder, ground cumin, salt, garlic powder, onion powder, ground Sichuan peppercorn, and all-purpose flour in a bowl and mix well.

Tip the seasoning over the roast and generously rub into the meat.

Elevate lamb roast onto a roasting rack and place into oven.

Roast at 500F/260C for 25 minutes and then turn the oven off. DO NOT OPEN oven door. Let the meat roast for 2 hours undisturbed.

Remove roast from oven, check the internal temperature for doneness, cover loosely with aluminum foil and let rest for 10 minutes.

Slice and serve.

Unroasted lamb in a metal roasting tray. — *Add the spice mixture over the lamb.*

Roasted lamb in a metal roasting tray. — *Roasted lamb in pan.*

How to serve

Serve the Asian five-spice roasted lamb with other Asian-inspired side dishes such as kabocha mash, purple sweet potato buns, along with five-spiced gravy, and cranberry yuzu sauce.

For more traditional side dishes, try pairing the lamb with creamy mashed potatoes, apple cranberry sausage stuffing, parker house rolls, and gravy.

How to store & reheat

Store the roasted lamb in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 1 week.

To reheat, place lamb slices on a plate, add a splash of water and cover with a lid. Microwave at 60-80% power in 30-second intervals until warmed through.

Internal meat temperatures

For medium rare: 125°F
For medium: 135°F

Expert tip

If you have leftover lamb, mince the meat and add it to lamb dumplings, or slice thinly and sub out the beef shank in these green onion beef rolls.

Other Asian-inspired Thanksgiving recipes you may like

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5 from 4 votes