Easter Sunday falls on April 5 this year, and this is when many French households – as in the UK – enjoy a traditional roast lamb lunch, a gigot d’agneau, otherwise called Agneau Pascal.
The gigot (a bone-in leg) gets its name from la gigue, a stringed musical instrument from the Middle Ages belonging to the fiddle family whose shape it resembles. You can also buy a gigot de chevreuil (leg of venison) from specialist butchers or suppliers, and even a gigot de lotte (monkfish) to roast in the meat style.
Gigot d’agneau de 7 heures
A popular Provencal cooking method is the gigot d’agneau de 7 heures, which sees the leg of lamb slow-cooked in the oven for around seven hours at a low temperature (around 130°C).
It is surrounded on the baking dish by potatoes and seasonings such as garlic, wine, and herbs, resulting in extremely tender, fall-off-the-bone meat.
Serve lamb with potatoes and roasted vegetablesmargouillat photo / Shutterstock
One of the great French bones of contention when it comes to roasting lamb is whether or not it is acceptable to insert garlic cloves, chunks or slivers directly into the meat itself.
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There is a scene in the 1970 film thriller Le Boucher (The Butcher) by Claude Chabrol in which the male protagonist, Popaul, played by Jean Yanne, says: “Oh, never garlic in the lamb, ouh là.”
However, this is the same character who offers a leg of lamb to the object of his affection – the village headmistress, Hélène (Stéphane Audran) – presenting it like a bouquet of flowers. He also (spoiler alert) turns out to be a murderer, so his culinary take on things can hardly be trusted.
Placing garlic cloves in the roasting tray around the meat, however, is widely encouraged.
For a gourmet twist, drizzle duck fat onto the garlic and let the meat juices combines with the fragrant allium.
Food-inspired fashion trends
British singer and dancer Mabel Love, circa 1895 with ‘leg-of-mutton sleeves’Wikimedia/Public domain
Food and fashion fused curiously with the leg-of-mutton sleeve (or gigot sleeve), which was popular in the 1820s and again in the 1890s (the Belle Époque).
This voluminous dress sleeve, very full at the shoulder and bicep, which dramatically tapers down to a narrow, fitted cuff at the wrist, resembles a sheep’s leg and still inspires designers today.
