lamb

best lamb cutlets with special basil sauce

servings
4

method

This dish is fantastic and you can literally have it ready in just over 5 minutes. Use either wild mushrooms that are in season, like girolles, trompettes de la mort and pieds de mouton, or more readily available farmed mushrooms like field, chestnut or oyster, as these are really tasty when cooked properly.

These lamb cutlets are best cooked on a hot barbecue with wood or charcoal, to give you a wonderful smoky flavour. Otherwise use a preheated ridged griddle pan. Slap the cutlets with the heel of your hand to flatten them slightly. Then bash up your thyme in a pestle and mortar and add a little olive oil. Mix together, then rub the oil over the cutlets and season both sides of them. Put to one side.

Cook the mushrooms dry on the bars of your hot griddle pan. This is quite an unusual way to do it, but it gives you a nutty flavor that you wouldn’t get otherwise. Just grill them on both sides to mark them and put them into a large bowl. Once the mushrooms are done you can put the lamb on the barbecue or griddle pan. If the cutlets are about 1.5cm thick, just give them 3 or 4 minutes on each side until they’re really golden. This should cook them medium. (To be honest, I’m not really into rare lamb cutlets, but if you prefer them like that then cook for a little less time.)

When cooked, put the lamb cutlets into the bowl with the mushrooms and drizzle with a little olive oil. Tear over the parsley, in quite large pieces, and add a good squeeze of lemon juice. Season lightly and toss around. Place to one side to rest, to allow all the lovely juices to get sucked up by the mushrooms.

Meanwhile you can make a really quick sauce. It looks a bit like pesto, but although it contains basil and pine nuts it has no similarity in flavour. In a pestle and mortar pound up the pine nuts until you have a mushy pulp – this will give the sauce a creamy flavor and texture. Remove the mixture to a bowl, then use the pestle and mortar to bash the basil up into a pulp. Add this to the pine nuts and loosen with extra virgin olive oil so that the sauce easily drops off the end of a spoon. Now you need to balance it with quite a lot of balsamic vinegar to give it a good zing, almost like a mint sauce, but add it to taste. Give the lamb and mushrooms a final toss. I like to serve this up on a big platter and let everyone help themselves. Have the sauce and a simple watercress salad on the side.

• from Jamie's Dinners

ingredients

• 12 lamb cutlets
• a small handful of fresh thyme, leaves picked
• extra virgin olive oil
• sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 400g mushrooms, brushed clean and torn
• a small handful of fresh flat-leaf parsley
• 1 lemon
• 2 handfuls of pine nuts
• 2 large handfuls of fresh basil
• 3-5 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

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1. by B.D on Sat 12 Nov 2011 @ 16:37

Hey Jamie, i love your food! I love to make your food and im only 13. i cant seem to find your 30 minute program anymore, i would always make my food from your T.V. shows. could you please e-mail me the time and date of when your shows are on? Thanks

2. by Peter on Sun 15 May 2011 @ 18:13

hey you the best. how do you prepare french salad and kebabs{viennas,carrot,cheese,cucumba}

3. by jason on Thu 07 Apr 2011 @ 08:07

hey oliver, i dont know if you even read these but you are amazing with food. i am only 16 and try my best to make my food like you/ i try to cook an awsome meal each week from your recipe and am gonna try and conqour this one tomorrow night :)<br /> <br /> again, your awsome and my idol with food.<br /> <br /> Have a good one, Jason

4. by ray on Mon 13 Jul 2009 @ 23:49

this went down an absolute treat at a dinner party

5. by Bernhard on Mon 06 Jul 2009 @ 13:57

This sounds awesome. I'm defnitely gonna try this next weekend.

Jamie: you rock! :)

For all of you in search of the *Lamb Shanks* recipe, you may want to take a look here:
http://www.jamieoliver.com/forum/viewtopic.php?pid=190043#p190043

Hope this helps!

6. by Les on Sun 25 Jan 2009 @ 12:31

I LOVE to cook (just an enthusiastic amateur!!) Doing your lamb chops with basil for old friends tomorrow night.Would love to have your lamb shanks recipe.
What better way to spend time with friends, than to cook some great food, a good bottle of red, and laughter? Luv it!!

Cape Town SA

7. by dsxygoddess on Thu 08 Jan 2009 @ 04:57

i love it .your show and the book wow amazing!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

8. by Pia Suffredini on Sun 04 Jan 2009 @ 09:21

I have never laughed so much in my life when I saw you on Top Gear, making a salad in the back of a van that the Stig was driving. You were classic when the salad was all over your face, rolling around in the back...and you just kept going!!! It was great!

9. by Amanda on Sun 16 Nov 2008 @ 00:03

DEAR JAMIE, HI HOW ARE YOU, JUST THOUGHT I WOULD LET YOU KNOW THAT I COOKED THE BEST LAMB CUTLETS WITH SPECIAL BASIL SAUCE AND I ADDED MASHED POTATO AND STEAMED SNOW PEAS WITH BUTTER AND SEA SALT AND IT WAS BLUDDY BEAUTIFUL.KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK JAMIE ITS NICE TO SEE PEOPLE DOING GOOD THINGS IN THIS WORLD. CHEERS FROM AMANDA

10. by Joanna Dupuy on Wed 03 Sep 2008 @ 20:33

I just love Jamie Oilver. Iam having a hard time finding his recepet for Lamb Shank Stew with a Red wine sauce served on polenta. I have the cookbook but Iam out of town for a while., Iwas hoping you could email it to me. I want to have a dinner party. I have goggled it but can't seem to get that on my screen. Thank you

Joanna

11. by ASB on Sat 19 Jul 2008 @ 12:42

Hey Jamie - I just by coincidence caught your show on TV here in Istanbul (first time). I have to say I was really impressed (I love your parking the bike in the apt, too;-) though I think you need to cut down on the cheese and cream a bit. Otherwise, all was fantastic.

12. by Sarah on Fri 18 Jul 2008 @ 17:14

this is Great!!
I'm making this for my mother's birthday:)

tnxx

13. by spacey on Mon 23 Jun 2008 @ 14:52

hi, im looking for the lamb shanks recipe as well.
Thank you. but will try to cook this as well. it looks yum yum...

14. by Gail on Mon 12 May 2008 @ 13:39

I saw a show a while ago where you prepared lamb shanks and it looked delicious and was looking for the recipe.
I live in South Africa.
Thank you
Gail

15. by Eleece on Sat 10 May 2008 @ 09:24

i have to make my mum dinner for mothers day but i dont no what to cook she dosent eat pork!!
please sent me a good recipie

16. by chef mark on Wed 13 Feb 2008 @ 10:38

hey jamie it's me mark from south africa! just want to this receipe is great! i have seen the fifteen on DVD!That was really inspiring for me! But they still have alot to learn!

17. by Passion on Mon 04 Feb 2008 @ 00:51

My first time watch your first episode February 2nd, 08. I so much admire your cooking. You always use fresh ingredients. All your recipes are easy and fast. You find equipment that can be used from anyones home. I'm hoping one day I will have a garden with all fresh vegetables and herbs. Please continue to give us your wonderful ideas and recipes. Thank you.

18. by Marye on Thu 20 Dec 2007 @ 18:20

My nineteen-year-old son made this - it was amazing! Thank you, Jamie, for getting boys cooking.

19. by Lincoln Grice on Mon 10 Dec 2007 @ 01:13

Im Going to cook this tonight!
Cant wait!

20. by Jody McLoughlin - Almere Holland on Sun 04 Nov 2007 @ 11:34

I can't/wouldn't/couldn't cook. Then I got some of your cook books and low and behold, I love cooking. My boyfriend of 14 years thinks I have been taking the mickey for years saying I couldn't cook. Thanks Jamie, this is his favorite and he is getting it today 04.11.2007 as a surprise. I would like to do a football dinner one time so all of your suggestions would be most welcome. Maybe you should do a sport cook book :o)
Again many thanks
Jody (ex Dublin)

21. by mini me on Sun 28 Oct 2007 @ 06:00

sounds nice

22. by David on Sat 08 Sep 2007 @ 23:40

I thought this recipe was excellent especially the basil sause. Thanks

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