A low effort, quick, affordable, and—most importantly—delicious lamb dish for one. Tender lamb served over garbanzo beans with the flavors of hummus, and a cooling, herby tzatziki sauce ready in record time.
| Servings | Prep Time |
| 1 | 30 minutes (including the meat coming to room temp) |
| Cook Time |
| 10 - 12 minutes |
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A low effort, quick, affordable, and—most importantly—delicious lamb dish for one. Tender lamb served over garbanzo beans with the flavors of hummus, and a cooling, herby tzatziki sauce ready in record time.
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Ingredients
- 1 6 - 8 ounce lamb shoulder blade chop or arm chop (1/4" thick), or 3 - 4 lamb rib chops (about 12 ounces)
- 1 t-spoon garlic-infused olive oil
- 1/4 t-spoon kosher salt
- 1/4 t-spoon cumin seeds
- 1 t-spoon white sesame seeds
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice freshly squeezed
- 1 14-ounce can garbanzo beans drained and rinsed very well
For the Tzatziki
- 1 small pickling or kirby cucumber
- 1/4 cup Greek yogurt
- 1 tablespoon sour cream
- 1/2 - 1 t-spoon lemon juice freshly squeezed
- 1/2 t-spoon garlic-infused olive oil
- 1 tablespoon fresh minced dill
- 1 tablespoon fresh minced mint
- 1/4 t-spoon kosher salt
Servings:
Instructions
- Start by sprinkling the meat on both sides with some salt and coating in the garlic infused olive oil. Set this aside and let it come to room temperature—about 30 minutes.
- While you’re at it, set a cast iron skillet over medium-low heat on the stovetop to heat through.
- Meanwhile, grate the baby cuke through the large holes of a box grater and place on a few pieces of paper towel. Squeeze and press on them in the paper towel to remove as much of its natural liquid as possible.
- Stir together everything for the tzatziki, including the cucumber bits, and set this aside. Stir it occasionally to help blend the flavors a bit.
- Once the meat has come to room temperature, crank the heat on the cast iron to medium-high and give it about 5 minutes or so to really heat up. Then, sear the meat on one side until deeply browned before flipping it over to do the same on the other side; if you’re doing the shoulder or arm chops it literally takes no more than a minute or so per side as they are very thin cuts, while chops, depending on their thickness and how you like them cooked, only need about 2 – 3 minutes per side. Remove the meat to a warm plate.
- Turn the heat down on the pan and toss the cumin and sesame seeds in. Stir them about in the pan to lightly toast, but take care that they don’t get too dark and burn. After this—scant 30 seconds at most—tumble in the drained and rinsed chickpeas. Toss them about in the fragrant oil, sprinkling them with salt, and let them warm through a bit.
- Squeeze in the lemon juice and let it bubble up and finish heating the beans before tumbling them onto your plate with a mound of cooling, herby sauce alongside.
Recipe Notes
- If you don't have any garlic oil—a recipe can be found here—sprinkle a pinch of garlic powder on the lamb and throw a smashed clove in the pan with them, keeping it in there for the beans, too.
- The aforementioned cuts of lamb have bones in them—the shoulder and arm chops usually having the least—but a boneless leg steak would work, too.
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