Just a friendly warning, if you are squeamish then you might not want to scroll down. There are photos of a lamb being prepared for cooking.
So today was the day of the trial run. Despite the grey weather and one of the two burners playing up i think i can safely mark it down as a successfully day.
We were guided through the process by our resident spit expert Anthony. So without further ado.. lets get amongst it
Step 1 (see above). Insert the rod at the business end. Insert skewer with the wing nut facing up, if you hit bone use a hammer to punch the skewer through it. Ensure you have room at the other end of the rod (move the lamb down the rod if necessary). Tighten the wing nut.
Step 2 (see above). Insert the skewer at the neck end with the wing nut facing down this time. Again hammer the skewer if it gets stuck on bone.
Step3 (see above). Adjust the position of the lamb by hammering the prongs at the neck end (making sure you remember to loosen the wing nuts) until feet are just short of the grove for the spit. Pull the hind feet up and hold against the rod. Thread the wire through the tendon and around the rod and then loop around again this time going all the way under and the feet. Then get pliers lift up to get tension on the wire and twist until the wire is tight. It is important to note that you do not want to over tighten the wire as this will weaken it and cause it to snap.
Step 4 (see above). Take the neck and hold against the rod. Thread the wire through the hole in the rod and wrap around the lamb several time and then tighten by lifting up the wire and twisting (as in step 3)
Step 5 (see above). Take about 1 foot of wire and shoe horn it so it looks like a very skinny version of the letter “U”, then about two thirds of the way down the lamb punch it through the body either side of the spine trying to aim between the ribs. This might take several attempts. Then pull the wire through with pliers and lift, tighten and twist (as in step 3). Then about one third of the way down the lamb repeat the process.
Step 6 (see above). Take a carving knife and punch 20-40 holes (depending on the size of the lamb) all over the lamp. Then insert a clove (or half clove) of garlic into each hole and add a small one inch length of rosemary. Then rub a generous amount of salt through the inside and outside of the lamb.
Step 7 (see above). Take two bits of wire both about a foot (or less) long. Close up the chest cavity at the head end and take the two bits of wire and tie up the cavity. One at just below the highest point (picture on the right) and the other about half way or a bit further down.
Step 8 (see above). Remove the front legs with a boning knife. This is quite tricky and you need to make sure you cut through all the tendons while leaving the knuckle on the lamb. Then on each leg hold the meat side up and half way down cut all the way to the bone (as if you were trying to cut it in half) then put the two front legs aside.
Step 9 (see above). About 1/3 of the way between the top of the chest and the bottom of the chest make two 1 inch cuts running parallel to each other on either side of the lamb. Then pull the skin though like a button hook and feed a front leg through with the cut facing up so that the ‘button hook’ fits in the cut. Then repeat again for the other foot about 2/3 of the way down.
Step 10 (see above). Take a whole onion and any remaining garlic and put into the cavity of the lamb. Then close up any remaining gaps with more wire. Finally rub some more salt on the outside.
Step 11. (see above). Throw onto the spit and cook for 3-4 hours (depending on weight). We cooked this 15.3 kilogram lamb for 3 hours.You probably need to allow 4+ hours for 17-18 kilograms.
Step 12 (see above). Remove when cooked and cut all the wire. Then cut up the lamb and enjoy!
