Bairrada-Style Lamb

To be done right, don't choose a very large lamb, as the skin will be tough and expensive to roast

The animal should be killed by someone who knows what they're doing, with two blows: one in the neck and another in the belly, to make it easy to strip

Then, immerse it in hot water almost boiling, and scrub it with a clean cloth, to remove all the fat

Hang it from head to toe until completely dry

In a bowl, prepare a mixture with butter, salt, crushed garlic, and a good amount of black pepper

Mix everything well until you get a non-too-thick mass (if desired, add bacon fat)

Make some openings on the surface of the lamb, scrub it with the above mixture, introducing plenty through the openings made

After closing these openings, place it in the oven

The professional roasters from Bairrada use only wood-fired ovens

Pierce the lamb from mouth to tail with a large laurel branch serving as a skewer

Put it in the hot oven and turn it frequently so that it roasts evenly

Beneath the animal, place a baking dish with new potatoes with their skins, which are roasted in the juice that drips over them

While the lamb is roasting, keep regaling with the juice that forms; when almost done, remove from the oven to cool

Put it back in the oven and regale with white wine from Bairrada

The best accompaniment is roasted potatoes in spicy juice, to which you should not spare the pepper.