Herb-Scented, Double Rib Lamb Chops

(June 8, 2006)

Janet asked Lauren:
...submit your question to Lauren!

The world definitely needs your family message . . . Can you maybe suggest we busy ones cook on weekends and freeze 5 packets for Mon. - Friday? It's not easy doing all this with work and kids.....But I know that it certainly IS important. My daughter Mimi just soaks up the attention during a meal.....and I would really love to feel able to provide her with more of that, as she grows.

Lauren says...

You said something “telling” in your question, Janet. You said you’d like to “feel” able to make more shared, home cooked meals fit into your life with your family. Well, “being” able and “feeling” able are two very different things. Barring a physical disability that would literally prevent you from cooking, you certainly are able to do this. To feel able, though, you need to first come to the conclusion that creating and sustaining a certain level of quality for your meals (together) at home is a “lifestyle priority.” You’ve already said, in your note to me, that this dimension is an important one for your daughter’s quality of life and also, for your relationship with her. So, you’ve already accomplished this first very important step! Now, let’s talk about how to make this dimension happen in a way that makes you all “feel” happy.

Personally, I don’t think that frozen packets of Monday-to-Friday concoctions will give you what you’re looking for.

Interestingly, when we’re the most tired and stressed is when we all benefit the most from living amidst the dimension given to a family, gotten by using newly “put together” ingredients. And, the healing experience gained is magnified enormously, when you add to the mix, the sensory stimulation that’s generated simply by breathing in the savory scents that are as easy to create as searing a nicely seasoned piece of raw meat, chicken or fish in a hot skillet, or by pushing some chopped onions and olive oil around in a hot sauté pan or by simmering some canned crushed, pureed and/or cut up whole tomatoes with lots of chopped garlic and torn basil leaves. In addition, doesn’t it just make sense that the better the food smells while cooking, the quicker the family will run to the table, excited to be together, eating and talking? Yes, choosing to cook “big” and freeze are all fabulous aids in helping to provide a nurturing meal at the end of a work day, but truthfully, unless you have a huge freezer, containing lots of different things to choose from, you’re not likely to, in the same week, keep going back for the same soup or stew. Having a well-stocked pantry is another great way to be able to easily embellish a salad or to quickly assemble a piquant marinara sauce to help bring more diversity of taste, texture and aroma to your meals without requiring any last minute muscle.

There are lots of “things” you can do on weekends, to make your Monday-to-Friday mealtime scenario more delicious and nurturing.

To peel garlic for storage: When peeling garlic to be stored, for best longevity, you’ll need to be gentle. Most important is to not bruise the garlic or you’ll release its volatile oils, which will cause the clove to develop an “off” taste and smell, after being stored for several days. Place the garlic clove on its flat side and place either the palm of your hand or the flat side of a chef’s knife on top. Press down gently until you hear a soft but audible “crack” which will indicate that the papery skin has separated from the clove of garlic. Then, just peel off the skin.

To chop garlic: First place the garlic clove, flat side down, on your cutting board. Place the flat side of your chef’s knife on top of the garlic and, while securing the knife in place with your working hand on the handle), give the top, flat side, of the blade a good whack with your other hand. Flatten as many cloves as desired, then pile them together and simply mince the cloves into small pieces, using the same knife used to flatten them.

Onions can be chopped a day ahead and kept chilled, well covered. And, to extend their shelf life, just freeze them in doubled, heavy-duty freezer bags. Although I wouldn’t serve frozen onions to be eaten raw, and it’s true that frozen onions won’t brown well, this is not an issue when making dishes containing cooked onions, where browning is not required (like when making a rice pilaf.) As a matter of fact, I keep bags of mixed coarsely cut up aromatic vegetables (onions, carrots, celery and leeks) in the freezer so that I can easily embellish a broth meant to poach ribs or potatoes, before being roasted. This also enables me to, at whim; put together a pot of stock, whether one featuring just beef, chicken, veal or fish. If making a vegetable stock, I would also add freshly cut up and roasted vegetables to the pot containing the raw (fresh or frozen) ones.

Just some of the vegetables appropriate for blanching are: Carrots, green beans, asparagus, cauliflower and broccoli. If using the same water to blanch them all, you would cook them in that order. This is to avoid over-flavoring the water with the pungency inherent in those vegetables tagged “cruciferous” which are the smelly, albeit extra-flavorful ones. The amount of minutes you’ll boil a particular vegetable will depend on its size, age and type (i.e. asparagus take 2 to 5 minutes, depending on their girth, carrots will take 5 to 8 minutes, depending on how thick they’re sliced and on the size of their central core and green beans will take between 4 and 6 minutes, depending on age and type). Blanching time will also depend on “how” you plan to serve each vegetable. For instance, one night, you can serve green beans after sautéing them in a bit of hot fat with minced garlic, and then next night, you can serve them cold, dressed with a vinaigrette, instead of the same old leafy salad.

I hope that I’ve given you some “food for thought” and that you now feel ready and able to make more home cooked meals fit happily into your life. Here’s a family favorite recipe for my Herb-Scented, Double Rib Lamb Chops, that’s easy to prepare and is sure to bring your family to the table wearing a smile. Enjoy.

Herb-Scented, Double Rib Lamb Chops

Yield: serves 6

Special Equipment:

• Exhaust Fan
• Stove-top grill pan or well-seasoned cast iron skillet (alternatively, use a regular perforated broiler pan)

You won’t find lamb chops better than these. Thick, with a very dark exterior, a rosy-red interior and a savory flavor that leaves nothing to be desired. This recipe illustrates perfectly the concept of how uncomplicated food can provide a big dining experience. Make sure your exhaust fan works, and serve your chops on plain sturdy plates, so their beauty can shine.

For the chops:
• 12 double rib lamb chops (1 1/2-to 2-inches thick), trimmed of excess fat (or use chops from the loin)
• Garlic Confit Oil or extra-virgin olive oil, as needed
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 1/2 tablespoons minced fresh thyme leaves
• 2 rounded teaspoons minced fresh rosemary
• Freshly ground black pepper and Kosher or sea salt to taste

1)To set up: Line a large shallow baking sheet with aluminum foil, shiny-side up, and place the baking sheet on the rack in the upper third of the oven. Preheat the oven to 425°F, preferably for 30 minutes or longer. Turn on your exhaust fan. (Alternatively, if you don't have an exhaust fan, skip the above and just preheat the broiler with the rack as close as possible, allowing the broiler pan easy entry and exit from the oven.)

2)To season and cook the chops (using the pan-searing, oven-roasting method): Pour about 1/2 cup of the oil into a bowl and stir in the garlic, half the minced herbs and lots of black pepper. Use a pastry brush apply an even layer of the seasoned oil to all sides of the lamb chops, then season again, very generously, with more pepper.

Sprinkle the chops generously, on one side only, with salt. Place one or two large well-seasoned cast-iron skillets, or a large stove-top grill pan on the stove, over high heat. (Or, straddle an extra-large grill pan over two burners.) As a last resort, use one or two heavy-bottomed nonstick skillets. When very hot, lay the chops in the pan, salted-side down, in a single layer without crowding. Brown the chops on the first side for 3 full minutes. Sprinkle the unsalted side with more salt, then use tongs to turn the chops and brown them for another 3 minutes. Since double-rib chops will have a wide, thin layer of top fat, after browning them on both sides, stand the chops on this fatty side, to brown and crisp it. If doing this in batches, remove each batch of chops to a tray so you can sear the rest.

When all the chops are seared, transfer them to the preheated baking sheet and sprinkle them with the remaining minced herbs and a bit more salt. Roast the double chops until done to your liking: 7 to 9 minutes for medium-rare (6 minutes for thinner loin chops). Serve hot with or without mint jelly.

3) To broil the chops: Place seasoned chops on a cold broiler pan and broil under a preheated broiler until seared, sizzling and done to your liking, turning once. Double-rib chops will take 5 to 7 minutes per side, depending on how chilled they are and how done you like them.

Timing is Everything:


• The chops can be seasoned (but not salted) up to two days ahead and kept refrigerated, well covered.
• The chops can be pan-seared up to an hour before finishing them in the oven. Leave them on a tray at a comfortable room temperature. Lengthen the roasting time, however, by a few minutes, to compensate for the cooler temperature of the chops when entering the oven. If broiling, cook just before serving.

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Lauren Groveman recipes have been featured in many national magazines and local newspapers. Her books "The I love to Cook Book: Rediscovering the Joy of Cooking for Family and Friends" and "Lauren Groveman's Kitchen, Nurturing Food for Family and Friends" are available through Amazon.com. Lauren hosts an hour-long, "live" weekly radio show, Food Family & Home "Matters," on 1460 WVOX.

For in depth information on Lauren Groveman as a writer, teacher, TV & radio host, as well as her recipes and cooking tips visit her website at www.laurengroveman.com

Lauren is a Larchmont resident. She is happily married and blessed with three wonderful children.