Select full racks of baby lamb weighing about 1 1/2 pounds. French them if you like. I make a paste of evoo and spices, varying the spices virtually every time. A typical mixture would be fresh rosemary chopped, garlic finely minced, course ground black pepper, sea salt, dried rubbed sage (I prefer it to the fresh.), chopped fresh dill, and maybe one or more of the following- onion powder, coriander, ancho chili powder, or a small amount of chipotle chili powder. Rub the paste liberally on the fat side of the rack and refrigerate for a few hopurs to a day. Remove the rack(s) and place in a Corningware pan with sides about an inch and a half high. This prevents the meat from drying out and from too much spattering. let the meat sit at room temperature for about two hours.
I use two methods for cooking. My preferred method is to preheat the oven to 450 degrees and place the rack(s) in the Corningware pan, fat side up, rubbed with a small amount of evoo to prevent any sticking. Roast on the top oven rack for about 34 minutes for medium rare.
The other method I use is to take a sautee pan and place a very small amount (maybe a half teaspoon) and heat the pan over high heat til the oil just begins to smoke. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Sear the rack(s) for three minutes on each side and put the pan on the top oven rack with the fat side up. Roast for about 20 minutes for medium rare.
Just one more sip.
Posts: 24847 | Location: NY | Registered: Oct 18, 2001
What grun said. If the rack has too much fat, I slice some off, but you must leave some on while roasting to baste the meat. Very little is left when the rack is removed from the oven and after cutting the rack into chops, any excess is easily removed.
Just one more sip.
Posts: 24847 | Location: NY | Registered: Oct 18, 2001
The other method I use is to take a sautee pan and place a very small amount (maybe a half teaspoon) and heat the pan over high heat til the oil just begins to smoke. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Sear the rack(s) for three minutes on each side and put the pan on the top oven rack with the fat side up. Roast for about 20 minutes for medium rare.
This is my preferred method. Remove that excess papery fat before cooking.
You have to adjust the time depending on the size and the temperature used. I've tried different temperatures and like 450 the best. I've had racks as small as 1.2 pounds and up to about 2 pounds.
Just one more sip.
Posts: 24847 | Location: NY | Registered: Oct 18, 2001
Rack of lamb is my very favourite dish. And the best I've had is at The Lark restaurant in a Detroit suburb, it's their signature dish. They marinade the rack for two days in a mixture that include hoisin and garlic and mustard, amongst other things, and is to die for. The recipe is provided to those who order the dish, but I"ve misplaced my copy.
------------------- Go Bruins!! Go Tigers!! Go Pistons!! Go Lions!!
I've been doing a rub of Herbs de Provance (we have everything growing fresh so I use fresh when I can) and crushed nuts. I had tried Pinon nuts and the results where good, but I did Pecan's last time and it was better.
I roast in a 400 degree oven for 25 minutes. Remove the rack, let it cool about 10 minutes, then cut the chops. They will be rare at this stage. I then sear them in a cast iron skillet with a high heat oil for 30-45 seconds per side.
Paul Romero (tlily)- Owner, Winemaker, Tour Guide Stefania Wine http://www.stefaniawine.com
Posts: 5700 | Location: San Jose | Registered: May 24, 2002
I also agree that Rack of Lamb Genghis Khan at the Lark in West Bloomfield is the best I have ever had. Each meal comes with the recipe and is numbered to show how many have been served. I have the recipe if you liek it reprinted i will do it. If my wife and I are going to open a "special" bottle this is one of our fav dishes to have it with. Has anyone tried Rack of Lamb purchased by Lobel's?
Posts: 7 | Location: Michigan | Registered: Jan 04, 2006
Originally posted by bman: Rack of lamb is my very favourite dish. And the best I've had is at The Lark restaurant in a Detroit suburb, it's their signature dish. They marinade the rack for two days in a mixture that include hoisin and garlic and mustard, amongst other things, and is to die for. The recipe is provided to those who order the dish, but I"ve misplaced my copy.
Sounds like a good excuse to make a trip to Detroit!
Posts: 335 | Location: Las Vegas | Registered: Aug 30, 2005
Originally posted by tlily: I roast in a 400 degree oven for 25 minutes. Remove the rack, let it cool about 10 minutes, then cut the chops. They will be rare at this stage. I then sear them in a cast iron skillet with a high heat oil for 30-45 seconds per side.
tlily, I love lamb chops. When you sear them on both sides, as far as I'm concerned, you've made lamb chops rather than rack of lamb. I'm sure they're great, but distinctly different from chops that are cut and then served without applying heat to the individual chops.
Just one more sip.
Posts: 24847 | Location: NY | Registered: Oct 18, 2001
Originally posted by Board-O: You have to adjust the time depending on the size and the temperature used. I've tried different temperatures and like 450 the best. I've had racks as small as 1.2 pounds and up to about 2 pounds.
At 2lbs it's rack of mutton. With rack of lamb my experience is the smaller and younger the better.
It was my Uncle George who discovered that alcohol was a food well in advance of modern medical thought. - P. G. Wodehouse
Posts: 3461 | Location: Brisbane, Qld, Australia | Registered: Jan 06, 2003
Originally posted by Board-O: Select full racks of baby lamb weighing about 1 1/2 pounds. French them if you like. I make a paste of evoo and spices, varying the spices virtually every time. A typical mixture would be fresh rosemary chopped, garlic finely minced, course ground black pepper, sea salt, dried rubbed sage (I prefer it to the fresh.), chopped fresh dill, and maybe one or more of the following- onion powder, coriander, ancho chili powder, or a small amount of chipotle chili powder. Rub the paste liberally on the fat side of the rack and refrigerate for a few hopurs to a day. Remove the rack(s) and place in a Corningware pan with sides about an inch and a half high. This prevents the meat from drying out and from too much spattering. let the meat sit at room temperature for about two hours.
I use two methods for cooking. My preferred method is to preheat the oven to 450 degrees and place the rack(s) in the Corningware pan, fat side up, rubbed with a small amount of evoo to prevent any sticking. Roast on the top oven rack for about 34 minutes for medium rare.
The other method I use is to take a sautee pan and place a very small amount (maybe a half teaspoon) and heat the pan over high heat til the oil just begins to smoke. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Sear the rack(s) for three minutes on each side and put the pan on the top oven rack with the fat side up. Roast for about 20 minutes for medium rare.
And about the wines, what is your choice?
Posts: 39 | Location: Beaune France | Registered: Jan 01, 2006
Originally posted by ArieS: Please allow me to answer that
Pretty much any reds from the Rhone Valley would be my 1st choice
You are right! Because I can be simple sometimes... So why not a "Coudoulet de Beaucastel" not very expensive... In Burgundy wines, I would try a "Pommard 1° cru les Rugiens 2003" because this millesime is very "special" ( and because I love it!)
Posts: 39 | Location: Beaune France | Registered: Jan 01, 2006
I don't drink Burgundy that young and I don't think it's a great match with lamb or beef. Not that it's a horrible match, it's just that there are so many better alternatives. With rack of lamb, I think almost any Syrah, Cabernet, Merlot, or Zinfandel is a good match. I prefer my Pinot Noirs with roast poultry, especially duck. My favorite cheese to pair with Pinot Noir is a goat cheese. I also like it with many seafood dishes, especially ones with a sauce.
Just one more sip.
Posts: 24847 | Location: NY | Registered: Oct 18, 2001
Originally posted by Board-O: I don't drink Burgundy that young and I don't think it's a great match with lamb or beef. Not that it's a horrible match, it's just that there are so many better alternatives. With rack of lamb, I think almost any Syrah, Cabernet, Merlot, or Zinfandel is a good match. I prefer my Pinot Noirs with roast poultry, especially duck. My favorite cheese to pair with Pinot Noir is a goat cheese. I also like it with many seafood dishes, especially ones with a sauce.
Well, mister Bordeaux , "every taste are in the nature" as we say in our country... If I said 2003 it's because this millesime in Burgundy is completely " atypical"! In other hand, I read in another topic that you serve Chablis Grand cru " Les Preuses" with a soup! Is it not a crime... for the Chablis? to be married with a potage? In fact in Burgundy we love drinking young wines. But maybe are we wrong
Posts: 39 | Location: Beaune France | Registered: Jan 01, 2006
But, Jean Eric, I have a question unrelated to the lamb issue.
Tell us your thoughts, as a Frenchman, about wines from other places. Do you have the opportunity to taste wines from Napa? From Australia? The pinot noirs from Oregon and Washington? Italy?
tlily, I love lamb chops. When you sear them on both sides, as far as I'm concerned, you've made lamb chops rather than rack of lamb. I'm sure they're great, but distinctly different from chops that are cut and then served without applying heat to the individual chops.
I don't disagree at all. For most of my entertaining the chop approach is much more practicle. Larger groups of 15+ with walk around services and I've found the flavor from this approach far better than simply searing individual chops.
My preference with lamb is always CdP or Gigondas. Some of the lesser 99's are very good right now with lamb or 88's or 89's.
Paul Romero (tlily)- Owner, Winemaker, Tour Guide Stefania Wine http://www.stefaniawine.com
Posts: 5700 | Location: San Jose | Registered: May 24, 2002
Originally posted by ArieS: Please allow me to answer that
Pretty much any reds from the Rhone Valley would be my 1st choice
You are right! Because I can be simple sometimes... So why not a "Coudoulet de Beaucastel" not very expensive... In Burgundy wines, I would try a "Pommard 1° cru les Rugiens 2003" because this millesime is very "special" ( and because I love it!)
But, Jean Eric, I have a question unrelated to the lamb issue.
Tell us your thoughts, as a Frenchman, about wines from other places. Do you have the opportunity to taste wines from Napa? From Australia? The pinot noirs from Oregon and Washington? Italy?
I can tell something: I can recognize a good thing when I drink/eat it. There are good wines everywhere! What is interesting in Burgundy (I mean my friends and I) is that is a permanent lab. Everything is tasted and appreciated. There is no chauvinism here! Because knowledge is necessary: you have to know before talking. Paulée de Meursault is a good example: lunch from noon until 6 pm and you drink, not taste, around 70 different wines (from everywhere). In another topic I wrote my opinion about wood, I think it's the big problem (for me)... Thus I answer your question... If a wine (even from France) is too woody, I have a problem. There are excellent/bad wines in France, USA, Italy, Spain... Sorry, for Australia, I am waiting for a "real" wine with no wood added. Do you think that exists?
Posts: 39 | Location: Beaune France | Registered: Jan 01, 2006
I've been doing a rub of Herbs de Provance (we have everything growing fresh so I use fresh when I can) and crushed nuts. I had tried Pinon nuts and the results where good, but I did Pecan's last time and it was better.
Try pistachios next time. You will thank me.
As for wine with lamb, grenache. Syrah in a pinch but please make it a Northern Rhone, and not California.
-------------------- "One may dislike carrots, spinach, beetroot, or the skin on hot milk. But not wine. It is like hating the air that one breathes, since each is equally indispensable."
Marcel Ayme`
Posts: 6922 | Location: The Left Coast | Registered: Dec 01, 2001
Originally posted by Jean Eric: In other hand, I read in another topic that you serve Chablis Grand cru " Les Preuses" with a soup! Is it not a crime... for the Chablis? to be married with a potage?
The Les Preuses was served with Vichyssoise. Someday I must teach the French the proper way to make this. I hope I get to make this for you one day. You can bet your tuchas I will serve it with a Chardonnay, be it from France or the US.
Just one more sip.
Posts: 24847 | Location: NY | Registered: Oct 18, 2001
