Grilled Rack of Lamb using a Big Green Egg (Kamado style) BBQ Grill

Grilled Rack of Lamb

Happy Spring!  Now that the season has started (and Easter is coming up) – I’m seeing rack of lamb for sale everywhere!  This past weekend, our good friends invited us over for an impromptu dinner of pan-seared rack of lamb and lobster mashed potatoes.  Yum!  (It was so good – he seared the lamb in  cast iron pan on all sides, afterwards finishing in the oven until done.  The exterior had a wonderful crust, and the interior was juicy and full of flavor!)  The next day, we were shopping at Costco for gardening supplies… and there was a huge case of frenched racks of lamb from Australia. I said to my husband, you know… I think these would be great to cook on our Big Green Egg!

The Big Green Egg is a “Kamado” style grill - a traditional Japanese wood or charcoal fired earthen vessel used as  a stone or oven.  It uses natural lump charcoal to sear, roast, or smoke any meat of your choice.  This cooker is so versatile – you can control the heat anywhere from 200 degrees to 750 degrees (by adjusting the vents) – and because the ceramic walls insulate the interior so well, it will retain heat and moisture so that your food doesn’t dry out!

One 8-rib rack will serve about 2 people… so buy two racks for 4 people (three racks for 6 people, and so forth).  If you can find fresh herbs – use those for best results.  (My friend was lamenting that the first time he made his special rack of lamb dish, he had to drive all over the place looking for fresh herbs.  I’ve had the same experience – when you really need thyme or rosemary, the supermarket will be SOLD OUT!  Because of this, I have a little herb garden in my yard – surprisingly, thyme and rosemary are quite hard to kill – and they are perennials so they will grow year after year!  If worse comes to worst and you cannot find fresh herbs at the market… go to Home Depot instead and buy a little potted plant – use a few springs for your recipe, then plant it in your yard (or in a patio pot) afterwards!)

Happy Easter!  (FYI if you are looking for a unique Easter egg recipe – my onion skin dyed Easter Eggs are a hit every year and require no food coloring!)

Grilled Rack of Lamb (4 servings):

For 4 servings, you will need two 8-rib racks of lamb

• two (8 rib) frenched racks of lamb (each rack 1 1/2 – 2 pounds)
• 6-8 sprigs fresh rosemary
• 5 sprigs fresh thyme
• 2 T. extra virgin olive oil
• 1 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1 tsp. fresh ground pepper
• 2-3 T. coarse sea salt

1.  Marinate your racks of lamb at least 3 hours before grilling.  To make the marinade, use fresh thyme and rosemary.  Wash and dry the herbs.

2.  Strip the herb leaves from the stems (discard stems), then chop the rosemary and thyme leaves finely.

3.  Mix the chopped herbs with the olive oil, 1 1/2 tsp. salt, and fresh ground pepper.

4.  Rub the marinade all over the lamb, coating both sides.  Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 3 hours before grilling.

5.  30 minutes before grilling, remove the lamb from the refrigerator and allow to come to room temperature.   Then, start your charcoal.  Put the natural lump charcoal into the bottom of the Big Green Egg (Kamado Style Ceramic Grill).  Add 2-3 fire starters into the center of the charcoal and ignite.  Close the lid, and wait 10 minutes for the charcoal to burn evenly (Make sure that the vents on the bottom and top are fully open).  Heat the grill to about 500 degrees F.

        

Bottom vent & top vent fully open.

6.  Once the lamb is at room temperature, sprinkle both sides with the coarse sea salt.

7.  Place the ribs (fatty side down) on the grill, then close the lid.  (Note:  For safety purposes, if your temperature is above 300 degrees Fahrenheit, you need to “burp” the green egg before opening it fully.   Raise the dome 2-3 inches, then pause for about 5 seconds before fully opening the dome.)  You can cover the bones with foil if you want a prettier presentation… I don’t bother with the foil because I don’t care if the bones char a little bit.

8.  Grill the racks of lamb on the first side for 7 minutes, keeping the temperature at about 500 degrees F.  You may want to experiment with closing the bottom vent part of the way to keep the temperature consistently around 500 degrees.

9.  Burp the Green Egg, then open and flip the racks of lamb.  (Be careful because the oxygen can make the flames rise up).  Close the lid and continue to grill the lamb at 500 degrees for 5 minutes.   (You will get a nice char on the crust of the lamb!)

10.  Remove the lamb to a baking sheet, immediately cover with foil.

11.  Insert a meat thermometer into the center of the meat, and allow the lamb to rest for about 10-15 minutes (or until the temperature reaches about 123 – 127 degrees (for medium rare).  I know, a lot of guides will tell you to go much higher (temperature wise) – but if you do, your meat will not be medium rare, it will be much more well done than you want.  (Don’t be alarmed if the internal temperature at the beginning of the rest is lower – it will climb as the racks of lamb experience “carryover cooking” from the residual heat.)

12. When rested, cut between the ribs and serve immediately!