Grilled Lamb Chop Advice

I am grilling 2 1/2 racks of lamb chops on Saturday - I plan to make them fairly simply - salt, pepper, let them baste in their own fat, and then serve 3 sauces (chimichurri, basil pesto and tzatziki) what I need to decide is - grill whole racks then slice, or cut into lollipops and grill individually? I am TORN! Discuss! Help! Opine!

aargersi
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13 Comments

mrslarkin
mrslarkin June 11, 2013
I vote for grilled double cut chops. Love 'em!

and, yes, if you do lollipops, watch 'em like a crazy woman!
 
Claudiods
Claudiods June 11, 2013
Double cut chops works best on the grill as you can control the temperature (medium rare, etc) More evenly. You can always cut the chops prior to serving to address the portion issue. If done in the oven, keep the rack whole and sear it on a pan prior to cooking it. Either marinate them with olive oil, lemon, onion and oregano, or the traditional olive oil, thyme and rosemary. The latter goes well with a red wine sauce with figs. Good luck.
 
savorthis
savorthis June 11, 2013
I am a fan of the double chops and I cut them in half for serving so they have half char, half pink. And I am getting a new grill delivered TODAY so now I want lamb!
 
aargersi
aargersi June 11, 2013
oh that is a great idea!
 
ChefJune
ChefJune June 11, 2013
I'm also for the individual chops, but they will hardly take a minute on each side. You'll ahve to watch them like a hawk...
 
aargersi
aargersi June 11, 2013
Oh I like the birria AND the salsa verde suggestions! OK so I will put a lamb bone bucket on the table for guests to deposit the used ones in - good thing we are all good friends and decidedly un-fancy!!!
 
amysarah
amysarah June 11, 2013
I'd also do them as individual chops, so each portion has a bit of char. My favorite sauce to serve with grilled lamb (butterflied leg too) is Salsa Verde - I use the River Cafe's recipe, which includes fresh mint - goes really well with lamb (I do it in a food processor): http://projects.washingtonpost.com/recipes/2006/07/05/salsa-verde/
 
aargersi
aargersi June 11, 2013
Good point! OK I am leaning towards chops. HLA I like the double cut idea but I think that would limit my chop count too much, and I can't afford any more racks :-) OK so - lollipos pretty simply, sauces on the side. Got it! Thanks all! Oh - and if I French them what should I do with the trimmings? I hate to throw them out!
 
pierino
pierino June 11, 2013
Very good question with regard to the bits left from frenching. Those pieces tend to be fatty and gristley but you might be able to extract enough meat for lamb tacos or possibly even a birria style thing---in which case you might want to save the left over chop bones. I agree, I hate wasting that stuff too.
 

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hardlikearmour
hardlikearmour June 11, 2013
I'd go double-cut chops so you can get a nice sear on them, but leave the meat medium-rare. Plus if you have people who don't like their meat as pink, you can let some chops cook a bit further.
 
hardlikearmour
hardlikearmour June 11, 2013
and by "meat" I mean, insides of the chop with the surface seared.
 
inpatskitchen
inpatskitchen June 11, 2013
Totally agree with pierino on this one and I love the little char all over!
 
pierino
pierino June 11, 2013
Personally, I would go with your latter idea. I would slice the rack and then "french" the bones. The sauces sound good but I'm also fond of Roman style scottadito, which means "burn your finger". These are served rather simply without condiment. Slicing the rack up also allows you to move them around on the grill in case there are any hot spots.
 
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