Name: Slow Cooker Sticky Asian Lamb
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 120 min
Total time: 135 min
Ingredients: 2-3 lb lamb shoulder; 1/2 cup soy sauce; 1/4 cup hoisin sauce; 1/4 cup brown sugar; 1 tbsp Asian stir fry oil; 4 cloves minced garlic; 1/4 cup rice wine vinegar; tsp cayenne pepper (optional); 1 tbs toasted sesame seeds (optional)

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4.64 from 11 votes

This Slow Cooker Lamb recipe is so delicious, your whole family will love it! The Asian flavor takes the meat to a different level. Get ready for dinner tonight - this one's perfect in every way possible.

Slow Cooker Sticky Asian Lamb Recipe. A delicious tender Asian BBQ flavored dish that can be served over rice or noodles. — Savory Slow Cooker Asian Lamb Recipe

When it comes to recipes inspired by global cuisine, I am a novice at best. Heck, I have just begun to feel comfortable preparing the types of meals I grew up eating, so tackling something global was a bit daunting. And doing it with a type of meat I have only ever even eaten one time, let alone cook, was downright scary.

But I have never backed down from a challenge. Ever. It's kind of a blessing and a curse really.

And so here I am about to share with you a recipe that incorporates two things I have never done before.

Lamb is often overlooked as a meat of choice in this country, but after making this recipe, I have to tell you that it is my new favorite, and with over 82,000 family-owned sheep farms in the US it's a good chance you can actually get it locally and year-round.

Lamb is tender, high-quality and full of flavor, and the perfect compliment for all sorts of global flavors; including Latin, Middle Eastern, Asian and Mediterranean.

I bought a lamb shoulder. It was roughly 3 pounds before cooking and came wrapped in a twine mesh. I hope you aren't squeamish about these things but I wanted to show it to you before cooking it.

Slow Cooker Sticky Asian Lamb Shoulder Recipe — Lamb Shoulder Cut

What cut is lamb shoulder?

Lamb shoulder is a prime cut for slow-roasting, as it has the thickest and most flavorful meat. The thick cut from the top front leg of the lamb has a lot of lean juicy meat with a bone and rich marbling to keep it juicy and delicious.

I chose an Asian inspired recipe because my husband and I both love Asian cuisine and he is familiar with it in case I needed help.

How to make Slow Cooker Sticky Asian Lamb

One of the best ways to prepare lamb shoulder is to sear and cook it in a slow cooker for a few hours. Usually in some kind of seasoning liquid, like Asian BBQ sauce.

Searing the Lamb Shoulder

The first step before putting the lamb shoulder in the slow cooker was to sear it. I used Asian stir fry oil but you can use peanut oil as well.

Preparing the Asian BBQ Sauce

I then made the sauce which really had only a few ingredients: soy sauce, Hoisin sauce, brown sugar, minced garlic, rice wine vinegar and Asian stir fry oil. Cayenne pepper and sesame seeds are optional.

Slow Cooking

I placed the roast in the slow cooker, poured the sauce over it and cooked it on high for 2 hours. I then flipped the lamb shoulder over and basted it with the sauce and continued to cook on high for another 2 hours.

If you need it longer, you can turn it down to low after the initial 2 hours or if your slow cooker has a warm setting, simply set it to warm for as long as you need before you plan to serve it.

Finish and Serving

I then removed the roast from the slow cooker and poured the sauce into a saucepan and heated it on the stovetop to reduce and thicken. I served it over white rice.

It was really good! I used the cayenne, and even though my daughter said it was too hot, she kept asking for more. It was the sweet kind of hot that keeps you wanting more - and drinking a lot of milk. So if you don't want the heat, reduce or eliminate the cayenne altogether.

I encourage you to consider lamb next time you are shopping for meal ingredients for your family!

Slow Cooker Sticky Asian Lamb

Course: dinner, Main Course

Cuisine: Asian

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 2 hours

Total Time: 2 hours 15 minutes

Servings:

Calories: 303kcal

Author: Kim Grabinski

4.64 from 11 votes

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This Slow Cooker Lamb recipe is super delicious. The asian flavor takes the lamb to a different level. Perfect dinner for the whole family.

Ingredients

Instructions

Sear lamb shoulder in Asian stir fry oil over high heat until brown on all sides.
Add to slow cooker.
Mix all other ingredients together in a small bowl until combined.
Pour over lamb.
Cook on high for 2 hrs.
After 2 hrs, turn lamb over and baste with sauce.
Continue cooking on high for another 2 hours or on low for 4 hours.

Information shown is an estimate and is for information only. 730 Sage Street is not responsible for the factual accuracy of any nutrition information, calculations or claims.

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Author
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Kimberly Grabinski

Kim brings experience and knowledge of recipe creation to 730 Sage Street. She is noted for developing iconic recipes by Huffpost, Buzzfeed, and Dr. Axe to name a few.