Rack of lamb in the oven

Today's recipe is a rack of lamb in the oven (or lamb chops in the oven), an exquisite dish that you will obtain after a simple marinade and preparation that is really easy to follow. It is brought to us by Patricia, author of Sabores&Momentos , and I am convinced that you will love both its presentation and its flavor.

Merry Christmas to everyone, I hadn't told you anything around here!! Well yes, in the middle of Christmas and about to say goodbye to the year, it seems incredible, but this 2016 has blown me away!! That means that we have lived it intensely, right? Well, I wish you a very happy 2017 full of health and fulfilled dreams... So it's time to fight for them!

Fully immersed in this wonderful season that is winter, in which the warmth of the home and the burning oven comfort us, today I wanted to bring you a recipe that still suits us well to pay homage on special days, as for any purpose. week in which we want a baked meat to be the protagonist. A colorful and exquisite rack of lamb, prepared in a simple way but with a spectacular presence!

Wooden board with T&G painted knob, Pallarès knife , Emile Henry ceramic mortar and Rösle copper saucepan

The carré is a set of chops of stick to which we leave the stick uncovered to provide showiness and that we serve baked in groups of three or four.

It should always be prepared using “normal” or recent lamb chops, because if we use suckling lamb, being so tiny, we would have nothing to put in our mouths.

Here for the photo I have baked it completely, but when you go to prepare it you must ask your butcher to prepare it well for you. On the one hand, it removes the skirt, which you can use for a stew or even to make a background sauce for your carré ; On the other hand, it is also important that you remove the bone from the spine, because otherwise you will not be able to cut it with the knife and you will destroy it. The ribs have to be floating, to make your work easier at the table!

To prepare a carré you have several options. You can always make it “en crôute” with a crust of breadcrumbs, Provencal herbs or even grated cheese; or cover it with Wellington-style puff pastry…. But I have opted for this simple option, prepared in the oven with a herb topping, shallots and 1 head of garlic, having left them marinating all night with a few aromatic ingredients and a good splash of wine (you can choose the one you like best , Rioja, Somontano….). Above all, do not forget the garlic, as it is fantastic for the lamb: it makes it lose that characteristic "animal" smell/taste, a real hoot! And if you don't like the sticks to be toasted, you can cover them with a bit of aluminum foil... I like them that way, but that's up to taste.

It's simple, you will bake one carré per diner and if you don't all fit at the same time, since they are made so quickly, you just have to take out the first batch, let them rest covered with aluminum foil while you bake the second batch and so on.

I have prepared them in my new Rösle copper casserole that I am in love with, because you serve it directly on the table and it looks amazing!! I have accompanied it with some country potatoes, which I steamed for a few minutes, and then put them in the oven with the meat and they acquired all the flavor!

Ingredients (for 4-6 people)

To marinate

• 4-6 racks of 4 or 5 ribs each
• 1 glass of red wine (designation of origin to taste)
• 2-3 tablespoons of virgin olive oil
• 1 tablespoon sherry vinegar
• flake salt
• several branches of fresh rosemary
• several sprigs of fresh thyme
• fresh tarragon
• 3 garlic cloves, minced

For the baked carrés

• ground black pepper
• Pinch of garlic powder
• pinch of dried rosemary
• 600g of small potatoes
• 5-6 shallots
• 1 head of garlic whole and cut horizontally
• flake salt

Luigi Bormioli airtight jar and Emile Henry oval baking tray

Preparation

First we marinate the meat:

We proceed with the recipe:

1. When we go to prepare the carrés, we preheat the oven to 200ºC.
2. We prepare the steamed potatoes so that they are tender, since the lamb is made quickly in the oven and they would not give time for the potatoes to be ready. To cook them, you can either use a steamer or a pot with a steam accessory .
3. In a bowl or in a mortar , mix the salt, dried rosemary, garlic powder and ground black pepper. Sprinkle our carrés with the mixture.
4. In the copper casserole or in any oven tray, we put the lamb, the shallots, the head of garlic cut and the potatoes that we have previously made so that they are tender.
5. We drizzle everything with a generous jet of extra virgin olive oil.
6. We put in the oven for about 15 minutes to get the meat to the point, less time if you like it more raw or a little more if you like it more done. Serve right away, because as it is rich it is fresh out of the oven!

Rösle Copper Casserole and Ceramic Plate Textured

Grades:

• You can prepare the mixture to marinate a few days before and store it like I did in an airtight jar (Luigi Bormioli's are great for this). You can even prepare more than necessary and have it ready in case you want another day to make grilled meat with a different touch or if you think you will make chicken or any other meat in the oven. It comes in handy to have scented oil blends in your pantry!
• In this recipe I show you two trays in which you can prepare this meat, the Emile Henry oval baking tray and the Rösle copper casserole. I have seasoned the chops in the ceramic, to later transfer everything to the copper one, but without a doubt it is best to do everything in the tray in which you are going to bake. Both sources serve you great for this!