This Trader Joe’s Dinner Find Is My New Favorite Fall Comfort Dish

There’s something about a roast lamb that feels both festive and comforting — equally suited to a dinner party with friends or a quiet night at home with family. So when I noticed a boneless leg of lamb for $9.99 per pound at Trader Joe’s, I knew there would be a slow-cooked lamb dinner in my near future. 

I love using my Instant Pot’s slow-cook setting for lamb, which makes the meat meltingly tender and infused with flavor. Meanwhile, I’m doing everything else on my to-do list during the day, none of which are laboring over the stove. When it’s finally done, it feels like a slow-motion magic trick — a gift from my past self.

For this Instant Pot lamb, I picked up a bottle of red wine, some carrots, leeks, and a pack of rosemary — all from TJ’s. After breakfast was done and the kids were off to school, I fired up the Instant Pot on the sear setting. I liberally seasoned the lamb (trussed in a heat-safe net to keep the roast together) with paprika, salt, and pepper; dredged it in flour; and seared it right in the pot with a glug of olive oil.

Once the lamb was seared on all sides, I deglazed the pot with red wine and added chopped leeks, carrots, and rosemary, plus enough stock (I used chicken stock, but beef would lend a deeper savory flavor) to cover the vegetables until just a bit of the meat peeked out over the liquid. I set the Instant Pot’s slow-cooker function on a six-hour timer, and I patted myself on the back for having made such efficient use of my time.

The lamb simmered away all day in the Instant Pot, emitting rosemary-tinged smells that made me ravenous. I thought polenta would be the perfect blank canvas for the tender meat, so about 20 minutes before dinnertime I zhuzhed up a tube of instant polenta (also from TJ’s) with heavy cream, good butter, and plenty of salt and pepper.

After about six hours, my two-pound lamb leg was all done. I removed it from the cooking liquid, which I used about a cup of to make a little roux-thickened gravy. (I later poured it over the sliced lamb before garnishing with chopped parsley.) It was everything I wanted for dinner: fancy enough to feel like a special event, but still as comforting as a hug from an old friend, and more than enough for my family of four.

Left with plenty of meat remaining the next day, I piled the thinner slices on a baguette with arugula and horseradish mayo for lunch — another gift from my past self and one I’ll be revisiting throughout the fall and winter.

Find it in stores: Trader Joe’s Boneless Lamb Leg, $9.99 per pound

What Trader Joe’s finds are weeknight dinner favorites? Tell us in the comments below.