Sautéed rosemary and thyme marinated lamb chops with butter braised root vegetables and cauliflower purée.
It’s wonderful what can transpire when you have a conversation about food with a good friend. My friend Mark recently received various cuts of lamb from his family (how lucky!), who bought a whole lamb from the local county fair and had it fabricated.
He asked for some suggestions on how to cook lamb, so I gave him a few tasty ideas. A week later Mark surprised me with a pound of lamb chops! I created a recipe that I thought would be a simple and flavorful way to showcase the beauty of this meat. I made a recipe for sautéed rosemary and thyme lamb chops with butter braised vegetables and cauliflower puree.
Begin by seasoning the lamb generously with salt and pepper, then marinating the meat with fresh rosemary, thyme, garlic, cayenne and olive oil for at least 30 minutes.
Prepare the butter braised vegetables by blanching the brussels sprouts until tender, about 4 minutes. Shock them in cold water and reserve.
Boil the red and white baby potatoes until fork tender about 6 to 8 minutes, then cool.
Finely chop the shallots to add some aromatics to the vegetables.
Melt 4 tablespoons of the butter over medium heat in a sauté pan, add the shallot and cook for 2 to 3 minutes until softened. Insert the turnips, sugar and vinegar, season generously with salt and pepper, and add ¼ cup of the stock.
Bring to a simmer, cover the pan, and simmer gently for about 7 to 8 minutes, until the turnips are tender. Cook uncovered swirling the pan, to glaze the turnips, about 4 minutes. Set aside.
In a new pan, simmer 1/4 cup of chicken stock, then whisk in 4 tablespoons of butter until emulsified and smooth.
Add the brussels sprouts and potatoes and cook for 1 minute on high heat. Insert the turnips to heat through, toss the vegetables together, season and garnish with chives.
For the lamb chops, heat some canola oil in a large frying pan over medium-high heat until hot but not smoking. Add the 4 chops and sear for about 2 minutes until browned.
Flip the lamb chops and cook for another 3 minutes for medium-rare and 3 ½ minutes for medium.
Add some sprigs of rosemary and thyme to the saute pan to infuse some of the flavors into the oil, and then coat the lamb chops with some of the oil for extra flavor and moisture.
With the oil remaining in the pan, add about 1-2 tablespoons of flour and whisk to create a golden brown roux. Deglaze the pan with about ¼ cup of white wine, whisk to combine. Add enough chicken stock to create nice sauce consistency, start with ¼ cup or stick at a time, and whisk. Season with salt and pepper. Strain the sauce and keep warm.
Searing the lamb chops in hot oil in a saute pan gives a nice caramelization on the chops, especially the edges of the bone when there is extra marbling.
The chops are relatively thin, and they tend to cook very quickly, so only sear the chops for a few minutes on each side if you like medium-rare to medium doneness of the meat.
The lamb was incredibly tender and very mild in flavor. The potent herbs complimented the delicious lamb very nicely. I would suggest pairing the rosemary and thyme lamb chops with a nice pinot or medium bodied red wine.
ROSEMARY AND THYME LAMB CHOPS
Sautéed rosemary and thyme marinated lamb chops with butter braised root vegetables and cauliflower purée
Course Entree
Cuisine French
Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Servings
2 Servings
INGREDIENTS
Lamb Chops-
1 pound lamb chops, cut ¾” thick, 4 pieces
salt and pepper, as needed
2 large garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon rosemary leaves, chopped fresh
1 teaspoon thyme leaves, chopped fresh
1 pinch cayenne pepper
coarse sea salt
2 tablespoons olive oil, extra-virgin
Pan Sauce-
1 tablespoons all-purpose flour, for roux
1/4 cup white wine
1 cup chicken stock
salt and pepper, as needed
Cauliflower Purée-
1/2 head of cauliflower, cut into medium sized pieces
1/2 yellow onions, quartered
1/4 cup turnip, large dice
canola oil, or grape seed oil as needed
salt, as needed
Butter Braised Vegetables-
6 brussel sprouts, halved
6 baby red potatoes, halved
6 baby white potatoes, halved
1/2 cup turnip, 2 ½ inches long, ½ inch wide
4 ounces unsalted butter
1 tablespoon minced shallot
1/2 teaspoon granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon champagne, or cider vinegar
salt and pepper, as needed
1/2 cup chicken stock
1 tablespoon chives, finely chopped
INSTRUCTIONS
Lamb Chops-
Season both sides of the lamb chops generously with salt and pepper. Combine garlic, rosemary, thyme, cayenne, salt and olive oil. Rub the paste on both sides of the lamb chops and let them marinate for at least 30 minutes in the refrigerator. Remove from refrigerator and allow the chops to come to room temperature; it will take about 20 minutes. Meanwhile, prepare the vegetables and cauliflower puree.
When ready cook the lamb chops, heat some canola oil in a large frying pan over medium-high heat until hot but not smoking. Add the 4 chops and sear for about 2 minutes until browned. Flip the chops and cook for another 3 minutes for medium rare and 3 ½ minutes for medium.
Pan Sauce-
With the oil remaining in the pan, add about 1-2 tablespoons of flour and whisk to create a golden brown roux. Deglaze the pan with about ¼ cup of white wine, whisk to combine. Add enough chicken stock to create nice sauce consistency, start with ¼ cup or stick at a time, and whisk. Season with salt and pepper. Strain the sauce and keep warm.
Cauliflower Purée-
In a large pot, boil salted water, then add the cauliflower, onions and turnip; cook until all vegetables are soft so it is easy to puree. Reserve cooking liquid.
Add the cooked vegetables into a blender. Add about ¼ cup of cooking liquid and puree.
Slowly add about 2 tablespoons of oil while blending; you want to achieve an emulsification of the oil with the vegetables. Add more oil as needed to achieve a smooth puree, similar to the thickness of applesauce. Season with salt to taste.
Butter Braised Vegetables-
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Prepare an ice bath. Trim the root ends of the brussel sprouts; remove and discard any bruised leaves. Cut the sprouts in half through the root end. Blanch the sprouts until tender, about 4 minutes. Chill in the ice bath and drain. Transfer to a tray and put in the refrigerator to chill.
Starting in a pot of cold water, add the potatoes, bring to a boil until the potatoes are just fork tender, about 6-8 minutes. Drain and cool potatoes, and set aside.
Peel and cut the turnips into 2 1/2 “ by ½” sticks. Melt 4 tablespoons of the butter over medium heat in a sauté pan big enough to hold the turnips in a single layer. Add the shallot and cook for 2 to 3 minutes, stirring often, until softened.
Add the turnips, sugar and vinegar, season generously with salt and pepper, and add ¼ cup of the stock. Bring to a simmer, cover the pan, and simmer gently for about 7 to 8 minutes, until the turnips are tender. Cook uncovered swirling the pan, to glaze the turnips, about 4 minutes. Set aside.
Bring the remaining ¼ cup stock to a simmer in a large sauté pan. Whisk in the remaining 4 tablespoons of butter until emulsified and smooth.
Add the brussel sprouts, potatoes and cook over high heat for 1 minute. Add the turnips and heat through. If the butter begins to break, you can swirl in another couple tablespoons of stock or water.
Toss in the chives and season with salt and pepper and a few drops of vinegar, or to taste.
Nutrition Facts
Rosemary and Thyme Lamb Chops
Amount Per Serving
Calories 465 Calories from Fat 342
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 38g 58%
Saturated Fat 15g 75%
Polyunsaturated Fat 3g
Monounsaturated Fat 15g
Cholesterol 79mg 26%
Sodium 274mg 11%
Potassium 343mg 10%
Total Carbohydrates 12g 4%
Dietary Fiber 2g 8%
Sugars 4g
Protein 14g 28%
Vitamin A 16%
Vitamin C 43%
Calcium 3%
Iron 9%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
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FILED UNDER: FRENCH, MEATS AND CHICKEN, RECIPES
TAGGED WITH: BRUSSELS SPROUTS, BUTTER, CAULIFLOWER, CHIVES, FEATURED, LAMB, POTATO, ROSEMARY, THYME, TURNIP
COMMENTS
Eftychia says
September 26, 2012 at 10:10 pm
Very tasty recipe! The combination of ingredients sounds good!
REPLY
Sarah says
December 26, 2015 at 4:08 pm
Made these chops and pan sauce for our Christmas dinner. SOOO good. Will definitely be saving this recipe!
REPLY
Jessica Gavin says
December 28, 2015 at 7:52 pm
Thank you for trying the recipe Sarah! I am honored that you made my recipe for Christmas
REPLY
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I'm Jessica! A certified culinary scientist and I like to make simple family friendly recipes while sharing knowledge of food science. (More →)
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