Butterfly collector; Food.

Byline: Michael Kilrie

We are on to the third instalment in my summer eating and barbecue series, and today's recipe is possibly one of my favourite barbecue recipes ever.

Marinated butterflied leg of lamb is actually one of my favourite things to eat, full stop.

But it tastes even better when cooked on a barbecue and eaten in the sunshine.

This is a great dish to cook if you have friends over and you're looking to cook something a little bit special.

With the two accompaniments in the panels on this page, the lamb forms a complete meal and saves you having to attend to lots of different items.

The other beauty of this dish is that the whole meal can be prepared in advance - your lamb can be marinated the day before and placed in the fridge for the flavours to develop.

Likewise, the couscous and salsa verde can be made in advance so all you have to do is bring the lamb to room temperature for half an hour, then cook it.

A butterflied leg of lamb is basically a normal leg of lamb with the bone taken out and the meat opened out so you are left with one large flat piece of meat which is the perfect shape for cooking on a barbecue. If butterflied properly, this will cook nice and evenly.

Butterflying is not a difficult job to do if you're fairly confident in the kitchen - the most important thing you will need is a sharp knife.

But if you don't fancy doing it, simply ask your butcher. Whether you buy on the high street or the supermarket, they should be more than happy to do it if they're worth their salt and it will only take a couple of minutes.

As with last week's chicken fajita skewers, it's important to give the meat as long as possible in the marinade to let all the delicious flavours work their way in to the meat. Marinades also help tenderise meat so, for a piece this size, you can really marinade it for anything up to 48 hours - in fact, I would recommend marinading it for no less than eight hours.

When it comes to cooking the lamb, wipe off most of the marinade before you place it on the barbecue - this will minimise the chances of the barbecue flaring up. As long as you've left the lamb to marinade for a decent amount of time, don't worry about losing any of the flavour - it will have worked its way into the meat.

And don't discard the marinade - use it to baste the meat for the last 10 minutes of cooking.

As with all types of meat cooking, remember to rest your lamb in a warm place for 10-15 minutes for the best results..

a the Couscous is great with lamb.

Place 800g in a bowl with two finely chopped red onions, 60g of raisins, 60g chopped dried apricots, 100g chopped sun blush tomatoes, juice and zest of two limes and 5tbs of olive oil. Pour boiling stock, veg or chicken, to cover couscous by double. Cover tightly with clingfilm and set aside for 10 mins. Add 2tbs chopped fresh coriander, 2tbs chopped fresh parsley and 60g toasted pine nuts..

A herby salsa verde is a fresh and vibrant sauce. With a food processor or hand-held blitzer, blend a large handful each of basil, parsley and mint, 3 cloves garlic, 4 anchovy fillets, 4 tbsp capers, 4 gherkins, 1tbs Dijon mustard, 60ml red wine vinegar and 220ml of olive oil. Season with a little pepper and a pinch of sugar. For a thicker sauce, add a little less oil..

BUTTERFLIED LEG OF LAMB METHOD Mix marinade ingredients together well and place in a tray. Rub well into the lamb, cover and place in the fridge to marinade for between eight and 48 hours. Cook the lamb on the barbecue for about 25- 30 minutes on each side for medium meat - longer if you want the meat more well done.

Allow lamb to rest, covered in foil for 10 minutes. Carve and serve with couscous and salsa verde (see panels).

Serves 8 1 leg of lamb butterflied 6 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed 2 tsp oregano 2 tsp smoked paprika 125ml sherry vinegar 200ml honey 2 tsp thyme leaves Juice and zest of three oranges 100ml sherry 50ml olive oil Salt and pepper