This lamb loin chips recipe is seasoned with gremolata. Make it today for a tasty, hearty meal!
Maybe it’s because of its connotations with Easter, or maybe it’s because people are more wary of cooking it than they are a sirloin steak or pork chop, but lamb has an unfair reputation as a special-occasion meat.
And while it’s true I can’t hunker down to eat a four-pound boneless lamb leg roast every night of the week, I can throw a few lamb chops in a pan and roast them up into a juicy, flavorful dinner for two – or even for one if I’m craving a steak but don’t want a huge portion of red meat.
Though rib chops, the tender lollipop-shaped pieces of lamb, are the most common cut for a quick pan-sear preparation, I’m a fan of loin chops. They give you about the same ratio of meat per pound as rib chops, but they’re like miniature T-bone steaks (and in fact come from the same anatomical region of the lamb as T-bones and porterhouses do on a cow, with similar marbled flavor).
Served with a bunch of roasted broccoli and cauliflower or a bowl of baked rosemary French fries, roasted lamb loin chops feel like a special occasion dinner without the work.
And they essentially prepare themselves when you rub them combine them with a Gremolata recipe, the Italian catch-all term for a chopped herb, lemon, and garlic mixture that’s used with abandon in many savory dishes.
It’s often used as a sprinkled garnish for the Milanese braised veal dish osso buco, but there’s no law saying you can’t use it on other cuts of meat. Or with fish or vegetable or shrimp recipes off the grill.
(It also makes a dead simple pasta dinner on those nights when the fridge and pantry are echoingly empty.)
Though parsley, garlic, and lemon are standby ingredients in gremolata, like its use across Italian cuisine, there’s no hard and fast rule dictating which herbs and citrus zest need to be included, so feel free to have fun with combinations in your own kitchen.
Throw in some rosemary as I’ve done below, or a little mint (another natural pairing with roasted lamb). Got an extra orange withering away in your fruit bowl? Zest that bad boy up and see where it takes you.
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Lamb Loin Chops Recipe
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup Flat-leaf Parsley
- 1 tablespoon Rosemary
- 2 cloves Garlic
- 1 Lemon organic, zested
- 1/2 teaspoon Kosher Salt
- 2 tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- 4 large Lamb Loin Chop
Instructions
- Mince the parsley, rosemary, and garlic on a large cutting board, then scrape them all together into one big pile and sprinkle the lemon zest and salt on top.
- Mince the entire pile of herbs and aromatics together with your knife to create a coarse paste. Transfer to a bowl and mix with the olive oil.
- Rub the paste on the lamb, coating thickly and evenly on all sides. Cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours.
- Preheat the oven to 400˚F.
- Heat a wide, heavy-bottomed sauté pan or cast iron skillet over medium-high heat for about 4 minutes until searing hot. Add the lamb chops, making sure not to crowd the pan, and cook for about 3 minutes per side until browned.
- Transfer the pan to the oven and cook until a meat thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the chop registers 145˚F for medium-rare and 150˚F for medium doneness. (Make sure not to rest the tip of the thermometer against the bone, or you’ll get an inaccurate reading.)
- Remove the pan from the oven with potholders or mitts and transfer the lamb to a plate or cutting board. Let rest, loosely covered with foil, for 5 minutes before serving.