Pistachio and Goat Cheese Crusted Spicy Lamb Chops

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If I know my husband, then I’m definitely going to be making him happy with my Valentine’s Day surf and turf meal.  Yesterday, I featured the Lobster Risotto as part of my love week series for the surf part.  Today, I’m going to share with you lamb chops, one of my husband’s favorites!

I think this is one of the easiest recipes but one that also looks pretty fancy.  Before I give you the recipe, I’m going to share with you a few tips to ensure your lamb chops turn out just as amazing!

BUYING THE LAMB CHOPS
Lamb chops are typically bone-in meat chops, typically taken from the rib of the animal. They are loaded with flavor, tender, and cook very quickly, typically within 10-12 minutes depending on thickness and your preference of cook on the meat.  Some recipes call for chops to be frenched, which is simply removing the fat from the bone for a cleaner look.  If that’s the case, you can either clean away the fat at home or being lazy like me, you can as your meat butcher to french the chops for you.

WHY MARINATE?
Marinating any meat, especially dark meat, helps to tenderize it.  This in turn will lead you to have a softer, richer tasting lamb.  You can marinate the lamb chops as little as 30 minutes up to overnight.  For this recipe, I marinated the lamb for 2 hours as it was mostly dry spices and oil.  When I make my Lamb Tagine, I usually marinate the lamb overnight as it will be part of a stew so I want it ultra tender.

COOKING
Lamb chops typically don’t need very much time to cook which is one of the best part about cooking them.  I like to do 8-10 minutes for medium rare and 10-12 minutes for medium.  Don’t forget to let them rest for an additional 10 minutes because they tend to continue cooking even when pulled out of the oven or off the stove. The outside food is always hotter than the inside, and heat slowly transfers inward, continuing to cook the food even after it has been removed from the heat source, hence carryover cooking.  Always check the temp with a food/meat thermometer to make sure it is cooked: 125°F (51°C) for medium-rare, or 135°F (57°C) for medium.

So now that you armed with all of my information to make the best lamb chops, I’m going to share this amazing recipe.  I paired my chops with Jeff Mauro’s 4 Cheese Polenta and roasted rainbow carrots.  Other grains that would be delicious with these lamb chops would be Couscous or Farro.

From my kitchen to yours, I hope you enjoy this delicious Lamb Chop and have a very special Valentine’s Day!

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Sapna

I'm Sapna, a foodie, blogger, wife, mom of two beautiful girls, and lover of spices.  I have a background in Nutrition and Dietetics, which I use to incorporate healthy options into all of my recipes.  I love traveling to new places, trying new food, and in turn, creating them in my kitchen to relive the magic. When I'm not in the kitchen, I love curling up with a good book, playing with my munchkins, running, hanging out with friends, and gardening.

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