Moorish Marinated Lamb Cutlets / Chuletitas de Cordero Marinadas

by Omar Allibhoy from Spanish Made Easy (Quadrille)

These Moorish spiced lamb cutlets are to die for. You can actually use any meat to prepare this dish, such as pork chops or chicken drumsticks. The key is in the marinade.

If you are planning a BBQ, don’t overlook this recipe.

Serves 4 as a main or 8 as a tapa

Ingredients

12 lamb cutlets (chops)

2 garlic cloves, finely chopped

10 sprigs fresh thyme, leaves removed, plus extra to serve

200ml (scant 1 cup) olive oil

1 tbsp honey

2 tsp ground cumin

2 tsp dried oregano

1 tsp sweet or hot pimentón (sweet or hot smoked paprika)

a pinch of salt

freshly ground black pepper

Method

Place all the ingredients except the meat in a large mixing bowl.

Whisk until well combined, then add the lamb cutlets, making sure they are well coated. Marinate for at least 1 hour or up to 2 days, covered, in the fridge.

Remove any excess marinade from the meat and cook on a very hot dry griddle or frying pan for 2 minutes on each side if you like your meat pink, or 4 minutes if you like it well done. Take care not to burn the outsides. You could also cook them over charcoal or under the grill (broiler) for 10 minutes. Sprinkle with the thyme leaves and some sea salt flakes before serving, if you like.

If you’re serving as a main meal this works really well alongside a frisée lettuce, pomegranate and olive salad.

Drinks tasted on air alongside the dish:

Jörg Geiger 36° Grenache Damson https://joerg-geiger.co.uk/ & Rocha Rosa https://www.portuguesevinhos.uk/