With many thanks again to my friend Frank Fariello, who writes the authentic and beautiful blog Memorie di Angelina, I bring you today’s recipe for Lamb Cutlets inspired by his. His lamb cutlets are fantastic, and we have made them quite often.
[Greetings, Readers! Starting today, I am using a new email platform to inform you that there is a new post on Cocoa & Lavender. One big change: instead of receiving the email notification on Sunday morning, it will arrive in your inbox on Saturday about 3:00am Tucson time… The good news? This will give you more time to cook over the weekend! If you get an extra copy of the post on Sunday, just ignore it!]
But, as it is ever my habit, I have made a few changes. Nothing to horrify Frank, mind you, just a few things I like to do when making cutlets of any kind. Aside from taking the meat off the bone (so that all cutlets will fit in the skillet at once), I also season the lamb before breading, especially when I want the flavors as part of the meat. In this case, I sprinkled the lamb with salt and Piment d’Esplette. It adds a subtle warmth to the dish.
I also choose panko for my breadcrumbs. I love the crispness they give. After the breading, my recommendation for all breaded things (fish/seafood, chicken, pork, veal, beef, and lamb) is to refrigerate them for at least 30 minutes (and up to an hour) before cooking. This may seem counterintuitive, but I find it really makes the crust much crispier, and it adheres better to whatever I am cooking.
I also shallow fry the cutlets in a mixture of butter and olive oil, a combination that gives a great flavor to the final product. For this weekend, I served them with a stunning Greek wine — a Xinomavro — from Domaine Karydas in Macedonia. If you aren’t familiar with Greek wine, check out my pairing article on the Provence WineZine. This wine is new to me, and certainly opened my eyes (and palate) to further exploration of Greek wines.
~ David
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Provençal Pairings: Wine with FoodMeanwhile, in the Eastern Mediterranean… - Provence WineZine
July 3, 2021 at 4:18 am[…] And, what did I pair with this venerable Greek wine? Lamb, of course. I made very simple but incredibly tasty lamb cutlets and served them with an arugula and tomato salad and a squeeze of lemon. You can find the recipe on Cocoa & Lavender. […]
Fran @ G'day Souffle
July 3, 2021 at 4:55 amWhen I woke up at 7:00 am NYC time this morning, I was wondering why your email appeared so early in my inbox! Usually it doesn’t appear until Sunday morning, as you noted. Thanks for the tip on chilling the breaded cutlets before frying them. Your lamb cutlets look crispy and flavorful. Since I assumed you were presenting an Italian recipe, I was expecting some ingredients like tomatoes or Italian seasonings- guilty of ‘food profiling’!
Cocoa & Lavender
July 3, 2021 at 11:51 amHi Fran – well, the mailing is going to be earlier now – but we will have to see about this, as there are some glitches. Some providers (ahem Comcast) are blocking the emails. Grrrr.
Yes, it was great fun to mix up my Mediterranean flavors this week – I was all over the place!
Frank
July 3, 2021 at 5:08 amThanks for the shout out, David! These look perfectly delicious, if I do say so myself, lol! And now I want to check out Piment d’Esplette. Far from being horrified, I’m intrigued.
Cocoa & Lavender
July 3, 2021 at 11:52 amThey really are quite good, Frank. I think you will love Piment d’Esplette – it has a lot of flavor and a nice amount of heat. Thanks, as always, for the inspriation
John / Kitchen Riffs
July 3, 2021 at 8:29 amI agree with Frank (as I so often do!) — these look perfectly delicious! 🙂 Nice simple dish bursting with flavor. What more can we ask? Like Fran, I, too, was surprised to see an email from you this morning. Nice, since I know to head over to your place every Saturday, but it’s nice to be reminded. Which email service are you using? Anyway, lovely dish — thanks.
Cocoa & Lavender
July 3, 2021 at 11:54 amWell, stay tuned – this isn’t set in stone yet until I can make sure everyone is getting it! I am using Email Subscriber (through WordPress, I think) and it is working well. It is the providers (like Comcast) that are causing problems.
Glad you like the lamb recipe – it is really good!
Gerlinde
July 3, 2021 at 9:18 amI have to make these delicious looking lamb chops , they remind me of a German schnitzel. Frank’s cooking blog is fantastic, I often drool when I see his dishes.
Cocoa & Lavender
July 3, 2021 at 11:54 amThey are, indeed, very much like a German Schnitzel, Gerlinde. And they are so good!
Karen (Back Road Journal)
July 3, 2021 at 9:44 amI definitely have to try your way of breading, I’ve not tried chilling the breaded cutlets before frying them. My husband had fried lamb chops when we were in Northern Italy and they were great so I can imagine how good yours are.
Cocoa & Lavender
July 3, 2021 at 11:55 amThe chilling after breading has done me very well, Karen – let me know what you think when you try it!
Chef Mimi
July 3, 2021 at 4:57 pmThese look fabulous. Whenever I cook something, anything really, I can hear Gordon Ramsay’s advice in my head, “Season everything!” But it’s great advice. No element goes into my food, just like your lamb, without being seasoned separately, even if it’s salt and pepper.
Cocoa & Lavender
July 10, 2021 at 9:53 amGood seasoning is one of the most important things I have learned (I got it from Jacques Pépin but did just the other day hear Gordon Ramsey say the same thing).
Eha
July 3, 2021 at 5:06 pmWhat a delicious looking plate of food – if my purse allowed would love lamb cutlets more than once a week . . . and with a similar salad but bone-in and unbreaded 🙂 ! I know very little about Greek wines but with the huge number of Greeks callomg Australia home may just find your suggestion in one of our wine cellars . . . or a similar from one of the Greek-Australian vineyards . . .
Cocoa & Lavender
July 10, 2021 at 9:54 amI know you don’t bread and fry — and good on you — but I wish you could taste these in this way! So good.
sippitysup
July 3, 2021 at 5:20 pm‘Tis the season to pre-season! I’ve always done it myself too. GREG
Cocoa & Lavender
July 10, 2021 at 9:54 amI needed a new Kitchen Carol… thanks, Greg.
Andrea
July 3, 2021 at 11:14 pmDear David, breaded chicken breast is my food of choice once a week – love using leftover bread for my crumbs, as I always seem to buy/bake way more bread than we can eat – your lamb cutlets looks quite delicious.
Noch einen schönen Sonntag!
Liebe Gruesse aus dem sonnigne Bonn,
Andrea
Cocoa & Lavender
July 10, 2021 at 9:55 amThanks, dear Andrea! We make cutlets out of everything!
sherry
July 4, 2021 at 11:15 pmwell even tho we don’t eat lamb these look very delicious david. beautifully breaded. I too love panko – so crispy and lovely. I got 2 emails about your post so it’s working!
cheers
sherry
Cocoa & Lavender
July 10, 2021 at 9:56 amSo glad the email is (mostly) working! This breading works well for fish and chicken, too!
John
July 5, 2021 at 3:13 amI just know this would be nothing short of delicious, and I’m with you on refrigerating anything crumbed to make it crisp. It makes all the difference!
Cocoa & Lavender
July 10, 2021 at 9:56 amIt’s amazing the difference it makes, John!
Ben | Havocinthekitchen
July 6, 2021 at 5:16 pmOh this looks and sounds utterly delicious and inviting – perfect summer dish with the Mediterranean vibes! With some wine, this would be fantastic.
Cocoa & Lavender
July 10, 2021 at 9:57 amAnd it was good with the wine, Ben! Thanks! Ben if you get this message, I can’t figure out how to subscribe to Havoc in the Kitchen. Let me know. Would love to get your posts.
Raymund
July 6, 2021 at 8:25 pmOhhh I had never prepared lamb like this, I usually grill them or use them in stews but no pan fried like that which honestly looks amazing
Cocoa & Lavender
July 10, 2021 at 9:58 amGrilling is pretty standard for us, too, Raymund — but this is a nice treat!
Jean | Delightful Repast
July 8, 2021 at 11:32 amDavid, what a beautiful plate of food! And I can’t wait to try the refrigerating after breading—I’d like to do some the usual way and this new way and do a side-by-side comparison of crispness. Not that I doubt you at all, but it just sounds like my kind of geeky fun in the kitchen!
Cocoa & Lavender
July 10, 2021 at 9:59 amI can’t wait to hear the results, Jean. I know there are a few of us on the refrigeration side!
Valentina
July 8, 2021 at 12:01 pmThese cutlets look so good! Thank you — to you and Frank. 🙂 And as always your food plating is so lovely! ~Valentina
Cocoa & Lavender
July 10, 2021 at 9:59 amIsn’t plating hard, Valentina? To make the least if things look like the most… Thanks for that lovely and generous compliment. 💖
Kelly | Foodtasia
July 8, 2021 at 1:13 pmDavid, these lamb cutlets look absolutely mouthwatering! I had to google piment d’espelette and now I’ll have to try it! Thanks for the tip on refrigerating breaded foods before cooking. Yay for extra crispy!
Cocoa & Lavender
July 10, 2021 at 10:00 amYou will love Piment d’Esplette, Kelly! It adds more that heat – such good flavor.
Christina Conte
July 17, 2021 at 11:21 amOh my, oh my! These look wonderful! I’ve never done this with lamb, but am salivating just looking at this picture so I think I’m destined to do this very soon! Love Frank’s site so much! He’s brilliant!
Cocoa & Lavender
July 23, 2021 at 8:02 amThey are truly delectable, Christina! Adding a little bit of the piment d’Esplette directly to the lamb before coating it adds a nice bit of heat.
Inger @ Art of Natural Living
July 21, 2021 at 7:45 pmSounds heavenly David. Reminds me I need to inventory my freezer to see if I have room for a lamb this year. I can just taste the rack of lamb melting in my mouth! (And now I want a glass of wine before bed 🙂 )
Cocoa & Lavender
July 23, 2021 at 8:03 amYes, now that you mention it, I believe we are getting half of them this year, too. Where will we put it!?