Bone-picker BBQ Lamb Ribs for Damien

Last week, as mentioned in my last post, we kicked off Damien’s birthday with a French 75 cocktail. However, we broke the Golden Rule of Cocktails and had, on average, three. So the tone for the day was well and truly set.

With the guests being as marinated as the lamb, we had to get it cooking quite quickly.  We needed something sticky and satisfying to line our stomachs.

This dish uses six three-rib lamb racks, untrimmed. You need to keep as much fat and skin on the lamb to get a sticky sweet crust which keeps the meat deliciously moist as it gets roasted directly over the hot coals.

Follow this easy recipe and your guests will be picking the bones for the last scraps of meat hours after the coals have died down.

Music to listen to while preparing this dish: ‘Good Vibrations’ by The Beach Boys

Ingredients

• 6 racks of lamb of three chops each
• 350ml Olive Oil
• 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
• 1 Rosemary bunch with the leaves chopped
• An extra 6 sprigs of rosemary, intact
• 2 Lemons – juiced with the rinds cut in 4 pieces each
• 1/2 Tablespoon salt
• 2 Resealable food bags

Method

1. Skewer each of your lamb racks with your sprigs of rosemary – right through the centre of the chop. Trim the woody base as this could puncture your food bag while it marinates.
2. Mix the olive oil, lemon juice, chopped rosemary and salt until they are well combined and divide the mixture between your two food bags. Divide the lemon rinds between the two bags and add your racks of lamb – 3 per bag.
3. Squeeze the air out of the bags and seal, making sure the marinade is coating each of the racks and none of your rosemary skewers are puncturing the bag. Leave to marinate for at least 4 hours, preferably overnight, in the fridge – making sure to agitate the bags every now and then to make sure the marinade does its job.
4. Once the coals are ready (you know the drill – fire up the BBQ then let the coals get a covering of ash) put your racks, skin side down, on the grill and close the lid. Don’t look at it for at least 15 minutes.
5. After 15 minutes check your racks, they should be dark, really dark, and sticky. If they are turn them over (if not leave another five minutes). Add the lemon rinds from the marinade to the BBQ at this point – they make for a great presentation.
6. After another 20 mins your racks are done. Present them on a bed of rocket on a chopping board with the griddle lemon rinds.
7. Carve to the sound of the ‘Ooohs’ and ‘Aaaahs’ of an inebriated crowd.

If you haven’t drank your fill already, try this with a Barberous Domaine Capmartin – an easy drink but not bland it packs a fistful of delicate spice but isn’t too fruity.