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This Reverse-Seared Rack of Lamb is juicy, tender, cooked to perfection and bursting with flavour. Enjoy it alongside some Minty Salsa Verde and Crispy Smashed Potatoes for the ultimate Sunday roast.
What You Need For Reverse-Seared Rack of Lamb
- Rack of Lamb: This recipe works best with an entire rack of lamb. There’s no point trying to reverse sear individual lamb chops because the centres will likely be cooked through before you even have a chance to sear the outsides.You can use a “Frenched” rack or an untrimmed rack of lamb. “Frenched” is a culinary term that refers to trimming the fat, meat and cartilage between each of the bones. The recipe won’t change either way – it’s really just a matter of presentation and aesthetics.
- Marinade: I like to flavour the lamb with a simple marinade of extra-virgin olive oil, fresh lemon juice, chopped garlic and some woodsy herbs like rosemary and thyme. Sometimes I’ll just use rosemary, other times I’ll just use thyme, and then there are those special occasions when I’ll use a combination of the two.
In addition to the ingredients, you’ll also need a few basic kitchen tools to get the job done. This will ensure accurate and reliable results every time.
- Meat Thermometer: Reverse searing works best when you have a way of knowing what the internal temperature of the protein is and for that you’ll need a meat thermometer. You can use a digital one like this Lavatools model. It’s affordable and accurate.Or, for something more advanced, you can use a MEATER probe. It’s wireless and pairs with your smartphone to provide real-time temperature readings and estimated cook times.
- A Cooling Rack + Sheet Pan Combo: If you’re reverse-searing the rack of lamb in your oven, you will need to use a sheet pan with a wire cooling rack set in the middle. You want air circulating around the meat so that it cooks evenly on all sides without sitting in its own juices. Ideally, you want to make sure that the size of the wire rack corresponds to that of the sheet pan. This will help make cleaning up much easier because when you’re done cooking you can simply fill the sheet pan with hot, soapy water and submerge the wire rack upside down to ease off grease and any hardened pieces of meat/fat.
- Carbon-Steel or Cast-Iron skillet: If you don’t have a grill to sear the meat after it has slowly roasted in the oven, the next best thing is a carbon-steel or cast-iron skillet. This Lodge model is affordable and a great bang-for-your-buck. For carbon-steel, I recommend Made In. It’s made of thick-gauge blue carbon-steel, made in France with multigenerational factories.
What is Reverse Searing?
Reverse searing is a useful technique for cooking larger and thicker proteins like steaks, prime-ribs, pork chops or even entire racks of lamb. The process takes out nearly all of the guess work that is associated with the more common method for cooking coveted cuts of meat, which usually starts by searing and then finishing in the oven.
Reverse-searing on the other hand, is pretty much exactly what it sounds like. Instead of searing the meat first and finishing it in the oven, you slowly raise the internal temperature of the meat in a low-temperature oven or grill (set anywhere between 225F and 275F) before searing it over very high heat. You can finish searing the protein on a hot grill or in a skillet.
In theory, reverse-searing works similar to a sous-vide, which entails cooking foods in an oxygen-free environment (usually a vacuum-sealed plastic bag) under a temperature-controlled water bath. The heat of the water is regulated to a precise degree by a circulator. Until recently, sous-vide circulators were very expensive. More affordable options are now available but I have yet to bite the bullet and purchase one for myself.
You can also reverse sear proteins on a Traeger or conventional grill. It’s very easy and you’ll get a delicious wood-fired flavour. Traegers use indirect, convection heat so you can place the protein directly on any of the grill grates. I like to use one of the upper grates where the heat is more even and less intense. You can then raise the heat of the Traeger to sear the protein or finish the cooking process in a hot carbon-steel or cast-iron skillet.
If using a conventional grill, set up a two-zone heat and begin the cooking process on the indirect heat side. Then switch over to the direct heat to sear and finish the cooking process.
The practical applications of the reverse-seared technique is actually very far-reaching. You can do this with a variety of meats. Not least of which is a beautiful rack of lamb.
Pair it with a Minty Salsa Verde
Lamb and mint are a match made in heaven and you can’t go wrong with this quick-and-easy minty salsa verde. It’s packed with finely chopped fresh mint, parsley, garlic, shallot, red chili pepper, olive oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper. The secret weapon is the addition of a tiny amount of maple syrup. Just a teaspoon of the stuff is enough to completely change the balance of flavours. However, if you are on a round of Whole30, feel free to omit the natural sweetener altogether. It will still be delicious!
Reverse-Seared Rack of Lamb with Minty Salsa Verde - Whole30, Paleo
Ingredients
For the Reverse-Seared Rack of Lamb
- 1 rack of lamb, 8 to 10 bones
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- kosher salt and freshly-cracked pepper, to taste
- 1 tablespoon freshly-squeezed lemon juice
- 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped, plus 2 cloves lightly smashed with the skin left on
- 1 teaspoon fresh rosemary, finely chopped, plus 2 whole sprigs
- 1 teaspoon fresh thyme, finely chopped, plus 2 whole sprigs
- 2 tabelspoons butter, substitute ghee or beef tallow
For the Minty Salsa Verde
- 1 small shallot , finely chopped
- 2 tabelspoons finely chopped fresh parsley leaves
- 8-10 finely chopped fresh mint leaves
- 2 cloves garlic , finely chopped or grated
- 1 red finger chili pepper, thinly sliced, substitute serrano, jalapeño or Anaheim pepper
- 1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
- juice of half a lemon, plus more to taste
- 1 teaspoon maple syrup, optional; omit for Whole30
- kosher salt and freshly cracked black pepper , to taste
For the Crispy Smashed Potatoes
- 1.5 pounds creamer potatoes, substitute baby potatoes
- kosher salt
- 3 tablespoons beef tallow, substitute extra-virgin olive oil, avocado oil, ghee or butter
- freshly-cracked black pepper
- 1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves, substitute finely chopped fresh rosemary
Instructions
For the Reverse-Seared Rack of Lamb
- Pat the rack of lamb dry with paper towel. Drizzle with olive oil and liberally season all sides with salt and pepper. Add the lemon juice, chopped garlic, chopped rosemary and chopped thyme. Massage everything to coat, cover and refrigerate 4 hours to overnight.
- Preheat oven or Traeger Grill to 225F.
- Place the rack of lamb bone-side down on a wire rack set on a sheet pan. Transfer the lamb to the oven or Traeger and roast until the thickest part of the meat registers 125F, between 30 and 45 minutes. Note that cooking times will vary depending on thickness of rack of lamb and the efficiency of your oven.
- Preheat a cast-iron or carbon steel skillet over medium-high heat. Add the butter, rosemary sprigs, thyme sprigs and smashed garlic cloves. Cook, stirring, 1 to 2 minutes or until the herbs are fragrant. Carefully place the rack of lamb in the pan, fat-side down first, and cook until a deep crust has formed, around 3 minutes. Flip and sear the bottom side of the chops, 2 to 3 more minutes. Using a spoon, carefully baste the lamb with the melted butter as it sears. Transfer the lamb to a board and let rest 8 to 10 minutes before carving. Serve with the Minty Salsa Verde and crispy smashed potatoes.
For the Minty Salsa Verde
- In a bowl, combine all of the salsa verde ingredients and stir to incorporate. Taste for seasoning and adjust with salt, pepper and lemon juice as desired. Cover and set aside at room temperature until ready to serve. If making well in advance, you can refrigerate the salsa verde and remove it 20 minutes prior to serving.
For the Crispy Smashed Potatoes
- Preheat your oven or Traeger grill to 450F.
- Fill a sauce pan with water, add the potatoes and 1/2 teaspoon of salt. Set over high heat, bring to a boil and cook the potatoes until just fork-tender, around 12 minutes. Drain the potatoes and let them dry fully.
- Transfer the potatoes to a large sheet pan lined with parchment paper. Add the beef tallow, salt and pepper to taste, and thyme. Toss everything to coat. Using the bottom of a measuring cup or small bowl, gently smash each potato down to 1/4"-thick discs. Space each potatoe apart so none overlap and transfer to the preheated oven. Cook until the potatoes are golden brown and crispy, around 45 minutes total, flipping halfway. Serve with the reverse-seared rack of lamb and Minty Salsa Verde.
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About the Author
Hi, i'm Ronny! In 2013, after a lifetime of struggling with my weight and body issues, I rehabilitated my relationship with food, lost over 40 pounds and completely changed my life.
These look perfect! I’ve just started working with lamb chops and they are becoming one of my favorite meals. I’m looking forward to giving this recipe a try 🙂
Hey Maren, if you like lamb, you’ll love this! Let me know how it goes!
I’m becoming a believer in the reverse sear approach. Never tried it with lamb but have had considerable success with beef. What temperature would you recommend the lamb be pulled out of the oven at before searing?
It really is the way to go! For medium-rare to medium, you should aim for an internal temperature of 130F.
I’ve used this recipe many times. What a fantastic way to cook lamb. Comes out great every time.
The slow and low cooking in the oven before makes the lamb super tender. Our oven isn’t very efficient though, so we did have to adjust the temp up some. Overall delish as usual – simple, healthy ingredients with amazing flavors!
Very happy to hear you enjoyed!