I truly enjoy the flavor of slow cooked pork ribs, grilled whole pork tenderloin sliced into medallions, pork loin roasted and smoked a bit, a smokey pulled pork  sandwich with lotsa ‘bark’ on the surface to kinda chew on and taste the smoke. When it comes to beef – well gimmie a sirloin, a ribeye beef steak, porterhouse, tenderloin, standing rib, flat iron, hanger steak, slow cooked brisket (Texas style if you please) and just about anything else grilled, slow cooked or roasted and barbequed with some smoke. And do I even have to mention chicken, turkey, duck, pheasant, quail, goat, wild boar, veal and a couple other sublime tasty meats that are oh-so-DEE-LISH-US when grilled, roasted, smoked or barbequed?.

Yep – I love it all!

But maybe, just maybe. At least for today maybe – a lightly seasoned and grilled-roasted rack of lamb is one of my top favorite meats to enjoy. Tonight I prepared a smallish 1 lb rack of New Zealand lamb on the Big Easy Smoker-Roaster-Grill as part of my shake-down experience with this new product from Char-Broil.  I gotta tell you I  just couldn’t be happier with the result.

Individual chops sliced from a rack of lamb grilled-roasted to RARE please! Lightly seasoned to compliment the natural flavor of the meat.

The methods to prepare many different cuts of meat on the grill are nearly identical. Once you get the method or technique mastered – you can feel confident approaching the variety of meat available to you and expand your meal time enjoyment.

Inspect and tidy up the meat prior to cooking.

First things first. Inspect the meat and trim away excess fat and any miscellaneous stuff that doesn’t add to flavor and should be removed prior to cooking.

The lamb I purchased came already ‘Frenched’ with the meat between the ribs cut away and the bones were fairly clean. But I noticed there was some silver skin on the meat and some of the trims needed a touch up. I used a sharpened paring knife to trim away excess fat off the meat as well as some excessive fat that wouldn’t add to flavor.

I dried the moisture from the lamb and then lightly seasoned with sea salt, black pepper, ground cumin and curry powder. Some folks like this combo and some don’t. I enjoy a light touch of seasoning on grilled meat – nothing too over powering and always to add a layer of flavor that is complimentary to the flavor of the meat.  But that’s my taste you are the head chef at your house – season meat to please yourself and your guests!

I enjoy just a light touch of seasoning... to compliment the meat, not over power it.

If the word “curry” keeps you away – just read the label for the ingredient list and you will think you are using a Southern-style rub from a BBQ master!  Some folks prefer to use a mustard paste at this stage to help form the crust.  It’s all up to your taste buds!

The lamb rested for about an hour so the flavors could be absorbed into the surface of the meat – as the salt helped to draw up some natural sugars and proteins. combining with the seasonings to begin the first step in a flavorful crust that will form on the meat when grilled using high heat.

I spritzed the meat with some canola oil and placed the lamb meat side down on the HOT (450F – 650F degree) grates that were brush cleaned prior to starting the grill.

I started the cook with the meat side down on the hot grates.

I wanted to sear mark the meat and get the crust started so that when I turned (about 4 minutes) it would show.

The initial sear gave some nice brown marks to the meat and started to form the crust - that 'brown' will be full of flavor and enhance the 'mouth feel.'

Using tongs I moved the racks around just a bit to ensure they were cooking evening – checking the internal temperature with an instant read thermometer several times to get an idea of how the inside was cooking. When the internal temperature hit 120F degrees it was about the same time the surface of the meat looked browned and seared – glistening with some of the rendered fat and seasonings.  I removed it to a pan and left it on the grill with the heat off to finish.  I checked it in a few minutes and the internal temperature was 135F degrees. That’s RARE according to the USDA and I like it that way.

Lightly seasoned rack of lamb - Tasty on a plate!

The racks rested in the kitchen while I prepared the other parts of the meal and just prior to service trimmed the chops to show on the plate. Does that look DEE-LISH-US to you? It was.

Here are a few recipes for lamb that may inspire you this weekend:

CB’s EZ Grilled Lamb Loin Chops

CB’s Classic Rotisserie Roasted Leg of Lamb

Chef Chris Koetke ROSEMARY LAMB CHOPS

Chef Chris Koetke LAMB AND PORTABELLO SKEWERS WITH CHIMICHURRI SAUCE

Chef Erik’s Lamb & Veggie Kabobs with Mint Pesto

CB’S EZ “Souvlaki-Style” Grilled Lamb Skewers

Thanks and…

Happy Grilling!