RACK OF LAMB
¡Bendición Familia!
When I lived in Australia, I fell in love with lamb. Although, I always wanted to try it, I never had the opportunity. At that time, lamb was cheaper than chicken. In coming back to live in the US, lamb has always been more expensive, and not always guaranteed to be lamb. What does that mean? Well, there is a thing called mutton. Mutton is the meat from a sheep in its 2nd to third year of life. And while it is a preferred taste to some, it was an acquired and actually, a not so acquired taste to me.To this day I make sure with the butcher I am actually purchasing lamb.
Recently at Meijer I saw a rack of lamb on special. It was as low as $11 for the whole rack. Given I was hosting New Year’s Eve, I bought a few and decided to venture out and try to teach myself how to cook it. It’s a form of red meat; I asked myself, how hard could it be? Good news, it was difficult at all. Here you have it:
INGREDIENTS:
Rack of lamb
Dried Thyme - 1 Tbsp
Fire Islander Seasoning Adobo - ½ cup
Peppercorn - to taste
Kosher salt or Himalayan salt - 1
An orange
Extra Virgin Olive Oil (EVOO) - at least 1 cup
Aluminum Foil
Preheat oven to 440 F degrees
Leave the rack of lamb sit outside of the fridge for 20 minutes
Score the lamb in a crisscross pattern on the the fat and fleshier side of the meat
In a bowl, whisk the Fire Islander Seasoning Adobo and Thyme.
Taste the seasoning mix and determine if additional salt and pepper is needed. If so, grind fresh salt and pepper into the seasoning mix to taste.
Add the EVOO afterward whisking. The consistency of the mix should be slightly runny, yes pasty.
Rub the paste all over the rack of lamb in between the crevices of the scoring.
Lamb absorbs this flavor in no time, leaving it marinating for 30 minutes to an hour is sufficient with this blend.
Tear pieces of aluminum foil to completely cover each of the bones. This prevents the bones from burning.
In a medium-depth pan lined with foil, prop up the rack of lamb with the bones curving down and the scored part facing up. I like to use a short to medium-depth pan to increase roasting all around the lamb.
After 20-30 minutes, check on the rack and turn it over where the bones curve upward and the crust is laying down towards the pan
Continually check on the lamb more frequently during the last 15 - 20 minutes. Every oven is different and the objective is to create a crunchy crust from the fat.
After 10 minutes, flip the lamb back over with the bones facing downward again.
Take the pan out of the oven and cut in between the chops to determine level of wellness. I am a medium rare girl - 40 to 45 minutes will have the juices flowing while having the meat cooked throughout for a medium finish.
For medium-well to well, lower the oven to 400 F degrees and leave for another 10 minutes.
For medium rare, the internal temperature of the lamb should be about 125 F degrees.
Once done to preference and removed from the oven, cover the entire rack of lamb with aluminum foil and let rest for 20-30 minutes.
To finish, remove the foil around each bone chop and with a serrated knife cut each chop down through the grizzle.
To brighten the flavor of the lamb, cut an orange and sprinkle a little bit of the juice over the chops for a citrus flavor.
One rack was not enough between my friends and their kiddos. We licked our fingers and asked for more. Accompany this with some smashed roasted potatoes drizzled in parsley, butter and garlic, everyone will be reminiscing and asking for more.
¡Buen provecho y disfrutalo familia!
