Pan Roasted Double-Cut Lamb Chops with Harissa Chimichurri

I don't know how you shop, but I very rarely go to the store with a list.  I like to spend my time in food stores, browsing, reading, comparing, discovering...  Of course, it helps to have a food store close by that carries quality goods in a large variety.  So, most of the time I get a call from my wife halfway through my outing asking if I am anywhere near being close to checking out and coming home.  (Usually I am not!)  The intention of my preamble, here, is to explain how I decide what to cook.  Most of the time I'll see something at the store that pops out at me and I just have to purchase it, regardless of whether or not I have any idea how to cook it or use it.  That was the case with the beef short ribs last weekend.  They were calling my name from behind the chilled glass of the butcher station at Whole Foods.  This time around, it was the double-cut grass-fed New Zealand lamb chops.  They were too special to pass up!

I've cooked lamb chops before, mostly grilled them, but I wanted to do something different this time.  A couple weeks ago, Jenny and I attended a very terrible, very amateur wine and food pairing dinner at a local restaurant that is actually more of a bar, really.  The wines were pretty good and the company we were with was a lot of fun, but the only redeeming part of the meal was the little glob of chimichurri they plopped on top of the flat-iron steak they served.  I kept thinking to myself, this would be so good on lamb!  I'd had chimichurri before, probably better, but had never made any myself.  Argentinian pesto anyone?

After making the chimichurri, there were two things I realized.  One, you've got to use flat-leaf parsley.  I happened to have the curly kind in the fridge and decided it wasn't worth running out to the store just for the flat stuff.  Italian parsley just has a much more pungent flavor.  Second, the roasted garlic is good, but not traditional, and it wasn't quite garlicky enough for me.

Then, being adventurous, I wondered what chimichurri would taste like if I threw in a bit of harissa (a traditional pimento spread from northern Africa).  Result?  Wow!  I liked it!

By the way...my favorite olive oil is
pictured here.  Yes, that is its actual color!

So, on to the ingredients:

• lamb (any cut with a bone in it)
• 1 cup (packed tightly) flat-leaf parsley
• 5-6 cloves garlic (roasted or not)
• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 3 tbsp. wine vinegar (any kind will do)
• 1 tbsp. red pepper flakes
• 1 tbsp. harissa
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1 tsp. fresh ground black pepper
• starch as a side (rice, potatoes, yams, pasta... you choose)

How you cook it:

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Prep the chimichurri - put everything besides the lamb and starch (duh...) in a blender, food processor, Magic Bullet (my best friend) (I know it sounds dirty!) and blend until smooth.  Do not refrigerate, it will thicken too much.

Season the chops with salt and pepper.  Coat the bottom of a thick, oven-proof skillet with olive oil and put it on med-high heat.  When the oil begins to shimmer and veins appear, sear the chops on all sides until nice and brown.  Get into the habit of letting the meat sit still.  That is, don't be a cowardly cook and fiddle with them, flipping them around a bunch because you constantly have to look to see if they are burning.  That was the hardest thing for me to learn!

When the chops are browned, place them in the center rack of the oven in the same pan you just used to sear them.  You may need to drain most of the oil and rendered fat from the pan before you do so, otherwise it will burn and smoke in the oven.  I keep a leftover can (from beans or tomatoes or whatever) in the freezer.  I pour grease and hot oil into it (in the sink) and then it hardens in the freezer.  When it gets full you can just toss it in the trash.  If you don't have an oven-proof pan, transfer the chops to some sort of pan or dish that can go in the oven.  Make sure that they are laying in the pan with the bone side down.

Roast the chops for 8-10 minutes (maybe less, maybe more depending on the thickness of your cuts of meat).  Now is when you can check often.  Don't be afraid to take them out and poke or squeeze them with your fingers.  Just make sure you use an oven mitt to remove the pan from the hot oven!  I have a few good burns on my right hand to prove how stupid I am when it comes to pan roasting.  

The closer to rare it is, the softer and more tender it is.  Well done meat is no longer springy, it feels stiff.  Please don't serve your meat cooked more than medium.  A good cut of meat cooked well-done is a tragedy and some chefs will even refuse to do it.  I've worked in a few kitchens like that.  Surest way to get spit in your food, ask for a filet well done...

Anyway, when you plate your chops, drizzle them with the chimichurri (or put it in a small blob on the side for your wife) (No, Megan, that was not a comment on the habits of women in general, it's just that Jenny likes to be able to control the amount of flavor).  I served mine with a side of buttered parmesan pasta.  Simple and always delicious.  You can't go wrong.