These pan-fried lamb chops have a melt-in-the-mouth texture and an amazing flavour. With my simple garlic and rosemary marinade you can make them at home any night of the week.
These lamb rib chops are pan-fried in a frying pan or skillet. They take only 3 to 5 minutes per side to cook, making this one of the simplest and fastest meals ever. What's more, they are so juicy and tender that everyone will love them.
The chops are marinated in a mixture of olive oil, garlic and chopped rosemary for half an hour so you should factor this into your schedule. However, you could mix them with the marinade the night before and leave them in the refrigerator until you are ready to cook them. Just allow the lamb to come to room temperature first.
My favourite way of serving these rib chops is with butter roast potatoes and a selection of vegetables, but they will be just as good served with mash, crispy smashed potatoes with rosemary or even chips.
I've made this recipe with lamb rib chops which can have quite a thick piece of fat running along the back. I like to trim this away before cooking these chops as the short cooking time isn't sufficient to render the fat properly.
There's a lot of flavour in lamb fat, so rather than throwing it away you could render the fat down over a low heat and use the resultant fat to fry the chops. If you don't want to do this you can simply put the marinated chops into a hot frying pan. There should be sufficient oil in the marinade to ensure the chops cook properly, or you could add an extra splash of oil if necessary.
Now I know this sounds unhealthy, but to be honest it's not as bad as it sounds. The rendered fat doesn't get reabsorbed into the meat, so you are ingesting less fat than if you left the fat on the lamb in the first place.
Let me show you how to make them.
What you will need
Equipment
You will need a flat dish to marinate the rib chops. I use a glass Pyrex dish, but as long as your dish is large enough to fit all the chops into, you'll be fine.
For frying the chops you'll need a heavy-duty frying pan. If you have a cast iron pan you can use that instead.
And if you want to remove the outer layer of fat from the ribs you will need a sharp knife and a chopping board.
Ingredients
Apart from the lamb rib chops, all you will need to make this dish is a simple marinade made with chopped fresh rosemary, a drizzle of olive oil, some garlic and a sprinkling of salt.
- Lamb rib chops - this recipe has been specifically written for lamb rib chops and the cooking time reflects this. You could use shoulder or chump chops but the cooking time will be longer.
- Olive oil - this helps to tenderise the meat.
- Garlic - the garlic adds flavour and you can either crush fresh garlic cloves or simply use a spoonful of ready-crushed garlic from a jar.
- Rosemary - fresh rosemary is definitely preferable to dried rosemary for this dish. However, if you don't have fresh, dried rosemary will be better than nothing.
- Salt - this is to your own taste. I like to sprinkle the lamb chops with a little salt before putting them into the marinade.
This recipe is sufficient for 2 people, but you can easily increase the quantities to cater for more.
**You can find the exact quantities on the printable recipe card at the end of this post**
What to do
Using a sharp knife, carefully remove the layer of fat from the side of the chop.
Strip the leaves from a sprig of rosemary and chop them coarsely.
Combine the chopped rosemary, olive oil and garlic and rub it well into the lamb rib chops. Optionally sprinkle the lamb with salt. Arrange the chops in a shallow dish, cover with plastic wrap and leave in the refrigerator for at least half an hour to marinate.
The next two steps are optional. I like to do this because I think the lamb fat that renders out provides an extra element of flavour to the chops. If you prefer not to do this you skip these steps.
Cut the lamb fat into one-inch pieces and place it in a dry frying pan.
Cover the pan with a lid and fry over low heat for about 30 minutes until the fat has rendered. Stir occasionally. Remove the pieces of fat from the oil and discard them. Use the rendered lamb fat to cook the chops.
If you prefer not to use the lamb fat to cook the chops, you can use sunflower or olive oil instead.
Remove the lamb from the marinade and place the chops in a hot frying pan. Allow the chops to fry for between 3 and 5 minutes per side until they are brown on the underside.
Turn the chops and continue to fry for another 3 to 5 minutes, or until your preferred level of 'doneness' is reached.
Transfer the chops to a plate or serving dish and allow them to rest for 5 minutes. Serve the chops hot with your choice of potato and/or vegetable side dishes.
Hint: You don't have to remove the fat from the chops if you don't want to. However, I find that the fat doesn't cook properly in the time it takes the meat to cook and I end up cutting it off and leaving it on my plate anyway.
Storage
I wouldn't recommend freezing the cooked lamb chops. They are best eaten freshly cooked.
You can safely store them in a covered container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Reheat in the microwave or in a dry frying pan on the stove. Reheat only until the chops are hot - be careful not to overcook them.
Top tip
If you decide to marinate the chops in advance, don't leave them for more than 24 hours before cooking them. Leaving them for longer will result in the meat becoming mushy.
FAQ
Lamb chops should be cooked to at least 63C or 145F as measured on a digital probe thermometer. This will result in a rare chop.
For medium cook to 65C or 149F
For medium well done cook to 70C or 158F
For well done cook to 75C or 167F.
If you don't have a thermometer, you can cut into a chop to test. It's fine if the lamb is slightly pink, but if there is still visible blood showing you should cook it for longer to be on the safe side.
The cooking time given in this recipe depends on the thickness of the chops - thinner chops will cook faster than fatter ones.
When the lamb is in contact with a hot surface, the outer surface of the meat contracts, forcing the juices to the centre. If you cut into it at this stage, the juices will spill out all over your plate.
When the lamb rests the outer surface has a chance to relax, allowing the juices to to be reabsorbed into the meat.
These lamb rib chops don't have a lot of meat, and there is also quite a lot of bone in them. I would recommend 3 to 4 chops per person depending on appetite.
Save for later
If you would like to try these pan-fried lamb chops, why not save the recipe to one of your Pinterest boards so you can find it easily? Just click on the image below.
Alternatively, you can save the recipe by clicking on the floating heart icon on the right-hand side of the screen.
Related
Looking for other recipes like this? Try these:
You can find these and other similar recipes on my lamb recipes page.
Pairing
These are my favourite potato dishes to serve with pan-fried lamb chops:
📋The recipe
Pan-fried lamb rib chops with garlic and rosemary
(Click the stars to rate this recipe)
Equipment
- Flat dish
- Frying Pan
- Sharp Knife
- Chopping Board
Ingredients
- 1 pound / 450 grams lamb rib chops 6 to 8 chops
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 teaspoon crushed garlic or more to your own taste
- 1 sprig fresh rosemary
- ½ teaspoon salt or to your own taste
Instructions
- Using a sharp knife, carefully remove the layer of fat from the side of the chop.1 pound / 450 grams lamb rib chops
- Strip the leaves from a sprig of rosemary and chop them coarsely.1 sprig fresh rosemary
- Combine the chopped rosemary, olive oil and garlic and rub it well into the lamb rib chops. Optionally sprinkle the lamb with salt. Arrange the chops in a shallow dish, cover with plastic wrap and leave in the refrigerator for at least half an hour to marinate.2 tablespoons olive oil, 1 teaspoon crushed garlic, ½ teaspoon salt
- Optional. Cut the lamb fat into one-inch pieces and place it in a dry frying pan.
- Optional. Cover the pan with a lid and fry over low heat for about 30 minutes until the fat has rendered. Stir occasionally. Remove the pieces of fat from the oil and discard them. Use the rendered lamb fat to cook the chops.
- Remove the lamb from the marinade and place the chops in a hot frying pan. Allow the chops to fry for between 3 and 5 minutes per side until they are brown on the underside.
- Turn the chops and continue to fry for another 3 to 5 minutes, or until your preferred level of 'doneness' is reached.
- Transfer the chops to a plate or serving dish and allow them to rest for 5 minutes. Serve the chops hot with your choice of potato and/or vegetable side dishes.
Notes
For medium cook to 65C or 149F
For medium well done cook to 70C or 158F
For well done cook to 75C or 167F.
If you don't have a thermometer, you can cut into a chop to test. It's fine if the lamb is slightly pink, but if there is still visible blood showing you should cook it for longer to be on the safe side.
The cooking time given in this recipe depends on the thickness of the chops - thinner chops will cook faster than fatter ones. I wouldn't recommend freezing the cooked lamb chops. They are best eaten freshly cooked. You can safely store them in a covered container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Reheat in the microwave or in a dry frying pan on the stove. Reheat only until the chops are hot - be careful not to overcook them.
Nutrition
I am not a nutritionist. The nutrition information has been calculated using an on-line calculator, and is intended for information and guidance purposes only. If the nutrition information is important to you, you should consider calculating it yourself, using your preferred tool.
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