Spring Lamb with Harissa, Puffed Wild Rice and "Brioche"

5 from 1 vote

I saw these beautiful baby lamb racks the other day at whole foods and couldn't pass them up. Lamb is the perfect ingredient for spring! I remember cooking baby lamb racks years ago the traditional way of roasting in the oven and for some reason they came out tough. They weren't over cooked, maybe they were undercooked. I know sometimes when you undercook lamb it has a tendency to be a little tough.

I've had baby lamb chops since then at one notable place in Paris, L' Atlelier by Joel Robuchon and it was one of the most tender pieces of lamb I have ever had. They cooked their baby lamb on la plancha, I sous vide mine and then finished it in a pan. I also paired this lamb with sweet potato "brioche". " Brioche" because it was made using the technique of isi siphon and "baking" in the microwave. This was a lunch dish I made for a few guest we had in town. Three guys that all scarfed their plates down and also had seconds. The dish came out extremely tasty with hints of modern techniques in the recipe. Here is the recipe, I hope you enjoy!

Ingredients

6 people

Lamb

2 whole lamb racks (baby) trimmed and cleaned
3 tbsp harissa paste
4 tbsp butter soft
3 garlic cloves minced
2 tbsp olive oil

Puffed Wild Rice

1/4 cup wild rice
2 cup grapeseed oil for frying
salt

Sweet Potato Brioche

3 eggs
120 grams roasted sweet potato (no skin)
50 g milk
60 g all purpose flour
50 g butter
30 g sugar
3 g salt
2 g ground cinnamon
0.5 g cinnamon
paper cups (microwave safe)
2 charge cartridges

Butternut Squash Yogurt

1 small butternut squash
1 cup goat yogurt
1 tbsp ground cumin
salt and pepper

Hummus

Nutritional information

Calories: 5572kcalCarbohydrates: 246gProtein: 55gFat: 505gSaturated Fat: 56gCholesterol: 508mgSodium: 4515mgPotassium: 3994mgFiber: 35gSugar: 65gVitamin A: 81676IUVitamin C: 227mgCalcium: 890mgIron: 19mg

Prep Time 1 30

Total Time 1 30

Servings 6 people

For the lamb

In a bowl mix harissa paste, butter, and garlic. Rub all over the lamb and place in the cryovac bag. Seal the bag according to your machines instructions. Then place in a water bath set at 137 degrees. Cook for about an hour. Then take out and let it rest to room temperature.
Alternatively
Preheat oven to 375
Drizzle lamb rack with 1 tbsp of olive oil. Then generously season with salt, harissa (add 1/3 cup of panko crumbs) on top of the rack. Then in a medium hot saute pan add the remaining olive oil. Then place the rack meat side down (panko crumbs down) in the pan. Sear for 2 minutes without burning the paste or bread crumbs. Then turn over and place in the oven for 9-10 minutes. Then take out and let the rack rest for 10 minutes.

For Puffed wild rice

Place grapeseed oil in a pot for frying. Bring to 350 degrees. Then take 1/4 cup of wild rice and place in the fryer. Place a lid on for 3 seconds just encase there is any that have moisture. Take the lid off, the wild rice should have puffed up and should be lightly brown. Strain off the wild rice and season with salt. Set aside until ready to use.

For the Hummus

Place garbanzo beans, garlic, and tahini in a food processor. Puree for 15 seconds, then while the processor is still running start add the water and olive oil. Alternating a little of water and then a little of the olive oil. Once the garbanzos start to pureed really smooth you can add all the water and then the rest of the olive oil. Finish with lemon juice, salt, and pepper. Set aside until ready to use.

For Butternut squash

Meanwhile take your butternut squash and boil in salted water. Cook for 10 or until the they are cooked through. Strain out and puree until smooth (1 1/2 cup) . Combine the butternut squash with the goat yogurt and ground cumin. Season with salt and pepper and set asid

For Sweet Potato Brioche

Place all the ingredients into a vitamix or blender and blend until smooth. Pour into a isi siphon and charge with the first charge. Shake very well ( 1 min) then add the second charge. Shake again very well to make sure the air gets all the way through the batter. Then spray small paper cups with non stick oil and make three holes around the bottom 1/3 of the cup and one whole in the bottom. Then take your siphon and shake it well, fill the paper cup about 40 percent of the way up with the brioche batter. Place the cup in the microwave for 40 seconds then take the cup and flip upside down to continue letting the brioche cook. Continue with more cups as you need them.

To Finish

If you sous vide the lamb, take the lamb out of the bag and season with salt on both sides. Then in a large saute pan on medium high heat add oil and the lamb rack. Sear the lamb for 3 minutes and then turn over and cook for another minute and a half. Then turn off the heat and take the lamb out of the pan to rest. If you roasted your lamb rack just place it back in the oven for 4-5 minutes. Meanwhile add yogurt and hummus to the plate, top hummus with puffed wild rice. Slice the lamb rack and finish with the sweet potato brioche.