Rosemary Rack of Lamb Recipe on Stove Top or Grill

It's been a while since I've shared a recipe with you all. CT and I have been cooking a lot the past few months sticking to a lot of our favorites, but trying out and perfecting some new recipes to share. This recipe we first cooked back in July for my Dad's birthday dinner and have cooked often since then. Rosemary is a key ingredient for this seasonal dish and one of my most favorite spices.

Ingredients

1 rack of lamb

4 garlic cloves, minced

1 cup of Dijon mustard

1 cup of extra virgin olive oil

4 tablespoons of finely chopped rosemary

2 lemons

What You'll Need

Aluminum foil

1 gallon sized ziploc bag

Tongs

Cast Iron Skillet for stove top or a grill

Instructions

In the ziploc bag, mix the following: 4 minced garlic cloves, 1 cup of Dijon mustard, 1 cup of extra virgin olive oil, 4 tablespoons of finely chopped rosemary (or more if preferred if you love this spice as much as I do), and juice from 2 lemons. 

Use a spoon to stir the marinade or seal the bag and shake to mix the ingredients. Once mixed, save a small portion of the marinade for dressing your lamb after it is cooked.

Next, place the rack of lamb inside the ziploc bag and seal. Then slowly shake and roll the ziploc bag so the marinade fully covers the rack of lamb. 

Lay the bag flat on the counter so the lamb is covered with the marinade. Let is sit for at least 20-30 minutes. If you'd desire a longer marinade, place the lamb in the refrigerator for up to 3 hours or overnight if you prefer.

This meal can either be cooked on a grill or on a stove top and oven (for apartment dwellers). We have cooked it both ways, but prefer the grill. See cooking instructions for both below:

Stove Top / Oven:

Set the oven to heat at 375 degrees. Place a skillet that can go in the oven, (recommend cast iron skillet) on stove top and set to high heat. Lightly coat skillet with olive oil, about half a tablespoon. 

Once skillet is fully heated (oil should be steaming slightly if you look closely), place the lamb meat-side down. Sear for 2 to 4 minutes (depending on heat level and desired sear – but be careful not the blacken the meat unless you like a bit of blackening, we do to mimic a grill effect).

Flip rack of lamb to bone-side down, then remove the skillet from the stove top and place into the oven. Leave the skillet in the oven for 16 minutes (rare), 20 minutes (medium), or 30 minutes (well done). Once finished with desire preparation (rare, medium, or well done), remove skillet from oven and serve.

Grilling:

Set the grill to medium-high heat, or approximately 375 degrees. The grill should remain uncovered for the duration of the instructions below:

Remove the rack of lamb from the ziploc bag, and place a foil covering the bones. This step is optional, but will ensure that the bones do not deteriorate under the high heat. If you prefer, you can cover the bones half-way through cooking to allow them to blacken without burning all the way through.

Place the rack of lamb meat-side down. For rare cooked meat, cook for 8 minutes before turning. For medium cooked meat, cook for 12 minutes. For well-done meat, cook for 14 minutes.

After cooking meat-side down for desired time, flip the rack of lamb over and grill the bone-side for the same amount of time (8 minutes = rare, 12 minutes = medium, and 14 minutes = well done).

Once finished cooking, you can use tongs to sear the ends of the lamb rack.

Cooking Tips:

If you’re cooking the rack of lamb for multiple people with different preferences of preparation (rare, medium, or well done), place the meat on the grill or in the oven at the same time, once the rare rack is finished (8 minutes per side), remove and wrap completely in foil. The meat will continue to cook inside the foil, but will still be perfect for rare meat-lovers.  

If you’re cooking multiple racks of lamb, you may need to allow more time than prescribed above for desired preparation.