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Sophisticated, restaurant-quality recipe: Pistachio Crusted Rack of Lamb served with roasted carrots and asparagus.
I had a single old rack of lamb (only 8 skinny ribs in total) laying in my freezer for over a year. Each time I wanted to cook it, my husband would object: "let's save it for the special occasion, when we have guests". Whenever we had guests, I would look at that lonely rack of lamb in the freezer and would think, hmm, that doesn't look like enough food for 6 people, unless we want to serve an average of one rib per person, which would make us look like one of those fine dining restaurants that serve a tiny portion of meat on a huge plate. So, I would close the freezer and skip the lamb. For some reason, this type of reasoning has continued for about a year.
Finally, on one sunny day when we were not expecting any guests, I was scanning the freezer for the meat to use and when I saw that over-year-old-lonely-single rack of lamb, I for some reason decided to grab it, defrost it and cook it that very night.
To my luck, the rack of lamb did not suffer any freezer burn and the end result was more than satisfying: this Pistachio Crusted Rack of Lamb that you see on the photos!
This is a simple recipe that does not require a lot of work, except to make sure that you don't overcook the lamb. The lamb itself is so flavorful - that's what makes the dish. I just added a couple of accents, such as pistachio crust and 3 simple side dishes (mashed potatoes, carrots, and asparagus).
How to make pistachio crust for rack of lamb:
Place pistachios, bread crumbs, salt and pepper into the food processor and process until really crumbly. Drizzle 1 table spoon of olive oil all over the bread and pistachio mixture and mix until well combined. Set aside, and use it as described below.
How to roast rack of lamb:
For complete recipe scroll down to the recipe box, but below are some helpful step-by-step photos describing how to cook rack of lamb at home.
1) Preheat oven to 400 F.
2) Season lamb with salt and pepper.
3) Warm a large skillet over high heat. When the skillet is hot , add olive oil enough to film the bottom of the pan (1 tablespoon of oil, maybe a little bit more)
4) Add lamb to the skillet, cooking for about 3 minutes on each side to brown.
5) Transfer lamb to a medium size roasting pan, with the fatty side up like shown on this picture below. Spread mustard (2 or 3 tablespoons) over the top portion of the rack (the fatty side). Then pat pistachio and bread crumb mixture over mustard coating on lamb. Press to make sure it adheres.
6) Roast lamb for about 20-25 minutes, medium-rare. If using thermometer, it should register 130 F. Transfer to a cutting board or a plate.
7) Cut the lamb into chops, 2 ribs each.
What to serve with rack of lamb:
Roasted Carrots:
1) Slice each carrot into 4 pieces, lengthwise, so that you have thin long pieces of carrots.
2) Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a large skillet on high heat. Add the carrots, they should sizzle. Stir to coat with oil. Add a pinch of salt. Add a little bit of parsley and oregano.
3) Cook on high heat, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until carrots are nicely browned and get the "roasted" look - for 10-15 minutes. After that, remove from heat, cover with lid and let carrots stay covered for at least 10 minutes
Asparagus:
1) Bring medium size pan with water to boil. Add asparagus and cook for about 10 minutes until asparagus is somewhat soft but still crunchy.
2) Drain asparagus, pat dry. Add to the skillet with carrots. Stir to coat with oil. Add salt if necessary.
I also suggest that you served mashed potatoes with your rack of lamb, along with the roasted carrots and asparagus.
Pistachio Crusted Rack of Lamb
Ingredients
Pistachio mixture
- ¼ cup pistachios without shells
- ¼ cup bread crumbs
- ⅛ teaspoon salt
- ⅛ teaspoon black pepper
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
Lamb
- 1.5 lb rack of lamb (1 rack of lamb or 8 ribs)
- ¼ teaspoon Salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard or more
Vegetables
- 3 carrots
- ¼ teaspoon oregano
- ¼ teaspoon parsley
- 8 oz asparagus
- ⅛ teaspoon salt to taste
Instructions
How to roast rack of lamb
- Preheat oven to 400 F.
- Place pistachios, bread crumbs, salt and pepper into the food processor and process until really crumbly. Drizzle 1 table spoon of olive oil all over the bread and pistachio mixture and mix until well combined.
- Season lamb with salt and pepper.
- Warm a large skillet over high heat. When the skillet is hot , add olive oil enough to film the bottom of the pan (1 tablespoon of oil, maybe a little bit more).
- Add lamb to the skillet, cooking for about 3 minutes on each side to brown.
- Transfer lamb to a medium size roasting pan, with the fatty side up like shown on this picture below. Spread mustard over the top portion of the rack (the fatty side). Then pat pistachio and bread crumb mixture over mustard coating on lamb. Press to make sure it adheres.
- Roast lamb for about 20-25 minutes, medium-rare. If using thermometer, it should register 130 F. Transfer to a cutting board or a plate.
- While you roast the lamb in the oven, prepare the roasted carrots and asparagus as described below.
- Once, the rack of lamb is cooked, cut the lamb into chops, 2 ribs each.
Roasted carrots
- Slice each carrot into 4 pieces, lengthwise, so that you have thin long pieces of carrots.
- Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a large skillet on high heat. Add the carrots, they should sizzle. Stir to coat with oil. Add a pinch of salt. Add a little bit of parsley and oregano.
- Cook on high heat, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until carrots are nicely browned and get the “roasted” look – for 10-15 minutes. After that, remove from heat, cover with lid and let carrots stay covered for at least 10 minutes
Asparagus
- Bring medium size pan with water to boil. Add asparagus and cook for about 10 minutes until asparagus is somewhat soft but still crunchy.
- Drain asparagus, pat dry. Add to the skillet with carrots. Stir to coat with oil. Add salt if necessary.
- Serve each individual portion of rack of lamb with roasted carrots and asparagus at the base.
Nutrition
Nutrition Disclaimer:
The nutritional information on this website is only an estimate and is provided for convenience and as a courtesy only. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed. It should not be used as a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
Wow, this looks like something that's served in a fancy restaurant!
Hi Julia, oh my goodness, I can't get the words lack of ramb off my head! That lack rooks amazing. See? Thanks for visiting our site, your food is lovely.
LOL, you're funny!
Hi there. This week's Food on Friday is all about lamb! So it would be great if you linked this in. This is the link . Have a good week.
ha! i always do that with food! especially with special food...there is always an excuse to save it for another time. i'm glad you went for it, it looks amazing!
I know, I now have 3 quails in the freezer with the same history. Time to finally cook them too. Still saving them for some future "special" occasion that never comes. 🙂
I never ate lamb growing up...it must have not been a part of the Louisiana culture. I was an adult when I tasted lamb for the first time. I loved it. Rack of lamb is my favorite and yours looks so delicious.
Lamb has such a different flavor than any other meat, which is why I really like it. Leg of lamb is my second favorite cut after rack of lamb (ribs).
Wow this looks incredible!!! Love those pistachios 🙂
Yeah, they never fail in a recipe...
Your rack of lamb looks amazing! As it should since you were waiting over a year to eat it 🙂 I think I've only cooked rack of lamb once and it was years ago. Really should cook lamb more often though because I love it. I have 2 hungry teenagers to feed so may have to go with leg of lamb so I don't go broke.
The pistachio crust sounds delicious.
The leg of lamb is pretty good too. I once cooked it Moroccan style, with lots of cumin and coriander - yummy!
what kind of mustard did you use?
Cathy, I used Dijon mustard. Just spread a little bit of it over the top portion of the rack - I use it as a glue for the crust.
Perfect!
In Poland we can't buy lamb. As well as many other things. I more think about emigration.
You have a lovely site! And it's amazing how well the Google Translator works on your site - it translates pretty well.
Mmm.. This rack of lamb looks AMAZING! What a wonderful job! I think any day should be special enough for a fabulous dinner! Have a fabulous week!
Thank you! I agree - I aim to have at least one day a week for a special dinner.
Hi Julia, Your photos are so gorgeous. Photography is such a challenge for me! Your lamb looks amazing. I used to enjoy it but somehow my tastes changed and I can no longer eat it. My husband still loves it though and he would enjoy this lamb quite a bit! Hope you're having a great weekend.
Judy, most people around me don't like lamb much, either, but this rack of lamb is always a hit, mainly because this is the high quality lamb cut. I cook lamb quite often, I actually have 2 more lamb recipes lined up I will post soon. My husband loves lamb, too.
Hi Julia,
The rack of lamb looks delicious! lovely blog.
Thanks for visiting my site.
I liked your site because you feature so many great ethnic dishes - Indian recipes, mostly, right?
Julia, thanks for visiting my site. I LOVE your blog and images. Beautiful work.
Stay in touch.
Thank you!
Wow! Great story to go with a gorgeous looking dish!
Thanks!