Recipes: Mint, Coriander and Honey Marinated Lamb Rack

This is, hands down, my favourite lamb recipe, the mint, coriander and honey perfects the lamb. It is adapted from a marinade created by Yottam Ottolenghi (delicious but heavy on the soy and garlic), and is showy enough for a dinner party but simple enough for a BBQ. It’s incredibly aromatic, utterly delicious and is perfect with sides of dauphinoise and green beans. Perhaps add some fried aubergine for a colourful side.

It can also be used as a gravy for larger joints – if you have met us at at fair, you will have tasted it that way. If you use it this way, warm the sauce through rather than cook it – this way it retains its vivid colour.

The sauce will last for at least a week in the fridge

Serves 4, overnight marinade, 30 minutes cooking. The amount below is generous so that it can be used as a gravy as well as a marinade.

Ingredients

  • 1kg French trimmed rack of lamb
  • 60g flat leaf parsley, leaves and stalks
  • 100g mint, leaves and stalks
  • 100g coriander, leaves and stalks
  • 3 garlic cloves
  • 30g fresh ginger, peeled and sliced
  • 2 chillies, unseeded
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 100ml lemon juice
  • 100ml soy sauce
  • 300ml sunflower oil
  • 6 tbsp honey
  • 4 tbsp red wine vinegar
  • 80ml water

Method

  1. Make sure most of the fat is trimmed off the lamb, leaving a uniform thin layer that will keep the meat moist and add to the flavour.
  2. Use a very sharp knife to separate the rack into portions of two or three cutlets.
  3. Blitz together all the remaining ingredients in a food processor and then pour over the lamb and making sure every piece is well covered.
  4. Place in a non-metal container or Ziploc bag and refrigerate overnight.
  5. Preheat the oven to 200C/390F and heat up a griddle pan.
  6. Remove the meat from the marinade, shaking off the excess. Sear well on all sides (taking about 5 minutes in total).
  7. Transfer to a baking tray and cook in the oven for about15 minutes, depending on the size of the racks and how well cooked you want them.
  8. Heat the marinade in a small pan and simmer for 5 minutes. Both the cutlets and sauce can be served hot or at room temperature.