Anyone know what compliments lamb? I've never made it before

[LaydeeBug]

and I now have some chops I have to get through. I am thinking mashers but maybe wild rice? And what veg? I am also not sure about using a mint sauce...I think I am going to use a red wine and rosemary sauce instead. The mint thing might freak me out a little. Talk me down from the ledge. :hi:

[yellerpup]

1. Lamb is a fave of mine.

I don't care for the ubiquitous mint jelly accompaniment, although I have made a basil-mint-walnut-garlic-lemon peel-olive oil pesto that is just yummy along side it. My personal preference is mashed potatoes or oven fries for a side. Either one (or the rice) would be great with the red wine and rosemary sauce. Peas & pearl onions, sauteed mushrooms, green beans--I'd eat lamb with anything. I made it two nights ago in Thai red chile sauce and coconut milk with baby eggplant, onion slices and red pepper strips. I've also baked lamb ribs (standing) with a crust of crushed pistachio nuts. Use your imagination and a lemon-herb-olive oil marinade and toss it on a charcoal grill. Good luck and have fun! :hi:


Edit to add coconut milk.

[LaydeeBug]

4. that sounds do good. thanks. nt

[Stinky The Clown]

2. Garlic, lime, rosemary have a distinct affinity for lamb.

You can go a lifetime and never have lamb with mint.

The whole idea behind mint and lamb goes back, actually, to mutton, which is FAR stronger a taste than the lamb we get today. The mint was intended to mask the flavor. Today's lamb is sweet and succulent. Who would ever wish to mask it?

[LaydeeBug]

5. yanno, it was the mint thing that sorta creeped me out about lamb.

the red wine rosemary sauce was excellent. I think the shallots made it though.

[htuttle]

3. I usually cook lamb Greek or Indian style

For Greek, I'd use olive oil, garlic, rosemary, parsley, maybe a little marjoram and oregano on skewered lamb kabobs roasted in the oven. Spinach pie is good on the side. Roasted potato wedges in olive oil, garlic and rosemary go well, too. Maybe cous cous, too. Tzatziki sauce is excellent on top of it all. Pita breads are good on the bottom of it.

For Indian, lamb works as well in curries as chicken does. Tandoori style lamb is also really good. For sides, I'd think about sarson ka saag (spicy spinach and mustard greens), basmati rice, pakora, etc... Plus some kind of flat bread like chapatis.

[LaydeeBug]

6. I know curry can be very spicy sometimes...

and I prefer meats a bit on the mid-rare side...how do you prevent overcooking? Or do you just 'go with it'? Also, do you make the curry spicy (red curry is pretty spicy, no)? This sounds like a lot of fun.

[htuttle]

7. I usually make fairly mild curries, but sometimes I get out of hand

Basic curry recipe: Saute a bunch of diced onions in ghee (or oil...) on a fairly hot flame. They should just start to carmelize (which releases a lot of sugars).

When they start to get golden, add a smaller amount of minced garlic and minced ginger, and maybe a deseeded and diced jalepeno or other hot pepper. Saute a few minutes.

Add the diced meat. I usually use chicken thighs, but sometimes use lamb. I saute just barely long enough to change the color. Do NOT cook it all the way. I don't saute it for longer than a couple of minutes.

Add tomato paste and your dry spices. There is no 'official' curry spice mixture. It varies from family to family, and sometimes from meal to meal, but are usually some combination of cumin, cardamom, coriander, cayenne and some others (listed in order of importance) OR add some prepared curry paste (Patak's is good).

Saute the pasty mixture for one minute, then douse with a diced tomatoes and a little water. Then I turn it way down to low simmer and let it simmer for about 20-25 minutes.

If you find the curries too hot, you can cut down the spices and also add some yogurt near the end. If you had a fair amount of heavy cream to a mild curry, you end up with something passable as a 'korma', which is basically a mild curry with cream and/or coconut milk (varies according to region).

I usually add about 2 tablespoons of yogurt about 5 minutes before it's done, so I end up with something in between a curry and a korma. I also like to sprinkle fresh chopped cilantro on top right at the end. I usually provide extra yogurt so that diners can cool the curry down more if they wish.

Wow...that was sort of a 'data dump', I guess...:)