Rosemary just have a great affinity with lamb.   The rosemary is finely chopped, releasing its inner oils into the vinaigrette.    The lamb is cut carpaccio thin, creating as much surface as possible as a vehicle for the tasty vinaigrette.  You really have to love your meat rare to appreciate this dish.   In the King Mushroom Coins in Rosemary Vinaigrette post, you can use the same dressing for your vegetarian friends so that they don’t miss out on this yummy vinaigrette!

Chef’s tip:  Freezing the meat slightly, about 20 minutes, will help you to cut it razor thin.

Vinaigrette:
1/3 cup grapeseed oil or other nuetral flavor oils
1/2 tespoon dijon mustard
2 Tablespoons rice wine vinegar
2 Tablespoons honey
1 teaspoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon rosemary, finely chopped
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

6 oz lamb loin, whole
1 Tablespoon garlic olive, or use extra vurgin olive oil with a lightly smashed garlic
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper

To make the Vinaigrette:
1.  Combine all ingredients in a glass bowl and whisk to combine well.  Set aside.
To make the Tataki:  
2.  Marinate the lamb loin in garlic-roasted olive oil, salt and pepper for at least 2 hours.
3.  Heat a cast iron skillet over high heat.   Sear the lamb loin on all sides.
4.  Transfer the lamb loin on a plate.  Refrigerate at least one hour.  20 minutes before serving, pop the lamb into the freezer. 
To Assemble:
5.   Slice the lamb loins against the grain as thin as possible.   Arrange on serving plate, overlapping the slices. 
6.   Drizzle with the vinaigrette, give it a few turns of black pepper from a mill and serve immediately.

Serves: 4

Tags: Fusion, Japanese, Lamb.

Yummy herbed-infused kofta burgers. Instead of ketchup, we use a lemony tahini.

Chef’s tip: Chilling the meat makes it easier to form patties. If you want all your burgers to be of a standard size, use an ice cream scoop.

Ingredients

Burger:
½ pound ground lamb
½ pound lean, ground beef
¼ cup panko breadcrumbs, soaked with water, squeezed dry
½ small red onion, grated, and squeezed to remove liquid (reserve the other half for condiment)
2 cloves garlic, minced
½ egg
1½ teaspoons kosher salt
1½ teaspoons ground cumin
½ teaspoon ground fennel
½ teaspoon ground black pepper
½  teaspoon ground chili/ cayenne

¼ cup parsley, chopped
¼ cup cilantro, chopped
2 Tablespoons mint, chopped
½ cup roasted pistachios or almonds, chopped finely
¼ cup crumbled feta
2 Tablespoons canola oil

Tahini:
1 small shallot, peeled and quartered
1 small clove garlic, peeled
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
½ Tablespoon cumin, ground
4 Tablespoons lemon juice
¼ cup tahini paste, at room temperature, stirred if separated
4 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
½ teaspoon kosher salt

Cilantro leaves
1 tomatoes, sliced
3 pieces of Iceberg lettuce
½ small red onion, sliced
10 mini brioche buns

Preparing the burger patties
1.    Combine the burger ingredients together. Chill for 5 minutes in the freezer.
2.    Mince the parsley, cilantro, mint and chop the nuts.  Mix into chilled burger mix.
3.    Form meat into golf ball size balls. Using your finger, make a hole into the patty, add a small half teaspoon of feta, and form the meat around the feta.  Gently form into 2-inch patties.  Using your thumb, make a small dimple in the middle of the patty.  Place on a slightly oil baking sheet.
Cooking the burger
4.    Preheat oven to 375°F
5.    Heat a fry pan over medium-high heat.  Working in batches, sear burgers 1 minute on each sides, drain on paper towels then transfer to a sheet pan.  Transfer the burgers to the oven to finish cooking, about 4 minutes for medium rare.
Preparing the tahini
6.    Mix together all ingredients in a blender, and pulse till it forms a smooth paste
Assembly
7.    Split and toast buns.  Assemble burgers with tomatoes, onions, lettuce and a smear of tahini sauce.

Serves: Makes 10 mini burgers

Tags: burger, finger foods, kofte, meatballs, Persian, sandwich, sliders, tahini.

On the Silk Road path, the Uyghur cuisine in north western China uses a lot of spices and features goat and lamb dominantly. It’s not what one would typically think of as Chinese foods. The Uyghurs also serve most of their dishes with a chewy flatbread that reminds me of bagel just holeless.

This Xinjiang Lamb Mini Pita Pockets dish takes its inspiration from the flatbread and the grilled leg of lamb that you find in many Xinjiang restaurants.

I think Marco Polo would approve.

Chef’s tip: If you are buying whole lamb loins, freeze it for 20 minutes before cutting. It will help you make really thin slices.

Ingredients:

½ lb of lamb loin (or pre-sliced shabu-shabu lamb)
3 cloves garlic, finely minced
1 tablespoons ground cumin
1 tablespoon dried mint
1½ teaspoons ground fennel
1 teaspoons Hungarian paprika
½ teaspoon cayenne/chile powder, less depending on preference, optional
½ teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
2 tablespoons canola oil
½ cup watercress, daikon sprouts or any peppery micro greens
4 mini pitas

Preparing the lamb:
1. Slice the lamb as thin as possible (alternatively buy the pre-sliced shabu-shabu lamb meat).
2. Mix all the dried spices, salt and pepper together in a small bowl.
3. Marinate lamb with the garlic and spices, for at least 20 minutes, preferably overnight.
4. Cooking the lamb: Add ½ tablespoon of oil in wok or a cast iron pan over high heat till very hot, almost smoking. Sear the marinated meat in 2 batches, about 3 minutes or until meat is nicely brown and caramelized. Repeat with more oil for remaining meat.
Assembling the pockets:
5.  Cut pitas into 2. Stuff pita with 2 tablespoons of spiced lamb and some micro greens.

Serves: 4

Tags: Chinese, finger food, sandwich, Spices, Xinjiang.