- Nov 4, 2011
- 5
- 11
My wife always laughs at me because I will literally eat anything and try anything, if I don't like it I'll put it off my list of preferences. In fact, about the only thing I don't care for is Peruvian Tripe. A few years ago my in-laws were here and we went to a Peruvian restaurant in South Miami. Trying to be brave, I asked the waitress to bring me something authentic Peruvian. She brought me a plate the size of Texas with pork, beef and chicken, and then indicated the "Tripas" <tree-puhs> were a delicacy and that I should like it. Oddly, I took one bite and decided it wasn't for me. Give me Menudo anyday.
Anyway, we're here to chat about lamb. I love lamb, most people can't take the strong flavor. I hope you enjoy this as much as my wife and I did.
Love my local Sam's, they had a closeout on lamb last week, so I picked up a double rack pack. Now I've smoked lamb before, and it's verrrrry tasty. This time I changed up the marinade a little bit and I'm glad I did, this is definitely the best batch I've made yet.
Meat, and I was surprised that Sam's had pre-frenched these (cut the fat off the actual loin) and all I had to do was trim away a little silver skin (take the silver skin off, otherwise you get a chewy tidbit and I think it sours the taste of the meat)
Marinade (good for two racks):
3/4 cup red wine vinegar
1/4 cup dijon mustard
4tbsp of Rosemary
2tbsp of kosher salt
2tbsp of coarse ground black pepper
8 garlic cloves
2tbsp Lawry's Garlic Spread
Toss this all in a blender and puree until the garlic stops banging around
<yes, banging around, that's the scientific term here>
Place each rack of lamb in a Ziploc bag. Pour 1/2 of the mixture over each, cradle and swish until everything is covered. Leave in bag, place in fridge for 24 hours. Yes, you'll have to plan ahead on this, sometimes I'll let them fester in marinade for two days, the longer the better, lamb needs to be over-seasoned IMHO.
Pictured above, after letting them fester all night and day, I placed them on a sheet and redusted both racks with kosher salt, coarse pepper, and a light dusting of butter buds so the smoke would stick a little more in the smoker. I've also shellacked them with butter buds and apple cider, this time I went for a meaty taste, and it turned out bueno.
Turned on the Traeger, let it smoke up and light the fire, then took it up to 400 degrees (takes about 20 minutes). Placed the racks directly on the grill, closed the lid, and took the temp back down to 225 to apply smoke. This gives the outside a little more crust in the end I find.
Let the racks go for about 2 and a half hours until the internal temp was 140, using my new iGrill meat thermometer with the bluetooth (ran it with my Android tablet) which is a nifty unit I must say. Here's a pic of them on the unit, sorry for the blur, I didn't plan enough ahead to grab the camera and used my phone:
I had to use up the Oak in my cooker, which gave it a nice reddish brown hue, and the taste was downright perfect. Next time I'll use a fruitwood, I like peach best.
Here's a few pics of it indoors and when I cut the chops from the rack:
140 was just rare enough, gave a nice but not too dense crust on the outside, and the seasoning held it's own. Verrrrry tasty if I do say so, definitely the best batch I've done so far.
Anyway, we're here to chat about lamb. I love lamb, most people can't take the strong flavor. I hope you enjoy this as much as my wife and I did.
Love my local Sam's, they had a closeout on lamb last week, so I picked up a double rack pack. Now I've smoked lamb before, and it's verrrrry tasty. This time I changed up the marinade a little bit and I'm glad I did, this is definitely the best batch I've made yet.
Meat, and I was surprised that Sam's had pre-frenched these (cut the fat off the actual loin) and all I had to do was trim away a little silver skin (take the silver skin off, otherwise you get a chewy tidbit and I think it sours the taste of the meat)
Marinade (good for two racks):
3/4 cup red wine vinegar
1/4 cup dijon mustard
4tbsp of Rosemary
2tbsp of kosher salt
2tbsp of coarse ground black pepper
8 garlic cloves
2tbsp Lawry's Garlic Spread
Toss this all in a blender and puree until the garlic stops banging around
<yes, banging around, that's the scientific term here>
Place each rack of lamb in a Ziploc bag. Pour 1/2 of the mixture over each, cradle and swish until everything is covered. Leave in bag, place in fridge for 24 hours. Yes, you'll have to plan ahead on this, sometimes I'll let them fester in marinade for two days, the longer the better, lamb needs to be over-seasoned IMHO.
Pictured above, after letting them fester all night and day, I placed them on a sheet and redusted both racks with kosher salt, coarse pepper, and a light dusting of butter buds so the smoke would stick a little more in the smoker. I've also shellacked them with butter buds and apple cider, this time I went for a meaty taste, and it turned out bueno.
Turned on the Traeger, let it smoke up and light the fire, then took it up to 400 degrees (takes about 20 minutes). Placed the racks directly on the grill, closed the lid, and took the temp back down to 225 to apply smoke. This gives the outside a little more crust in the end I find.
Let the racks go for about 2 and a half hours until the internal temp was 140, using my new iGrill meat thermometer with the bluetooth (ran it with my Android tablet) which is a nifty unit I must say. Here's a pic of them on the unit, sorry for the blur, I didn't plan enough ahead to grab the camera and used my phone:
I had to use up the Oak in my cooker, which gave it a nice reddish brown hue, and the taste was downright perfect. Next time I'll use a fruitwood, I like peach best.
Here's a few pics of it indoors and when I cut the chops from the rack:
140 was just rare enough, gave a nice but not too dense crust on the outside, and the seasoning held it's own. Verrrrry tasty if I do say so, definitely the best batch I've done so far.
