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Slow-roasted lamb rack with quinoa salad and tahini sauce

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Simple but spectacular: Lamb rack with quinoa salad and tahini sauce.
Simple but spectacular: Lamb rack with quinoa salad and tahini sauce.William Meppem

Prepare the salad while the lamb cooks and this lovely mediterranean-flavoured dish can be ready in an hour. If you are cooking for a big meal, a Moroccan-style eggplant salad (see bottom of recipe) would be a great accompaniment. Tip: Use the same garnish in this lamb recipe to roast a chicken - or even a whole fish such as ocean trout or salmon.

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Ingredients

  • 2 racks of lamb, with 8 bones

  • sea salt

  • 6 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

  • 1/2 bunch thyme sprigs

  • 8 cloves garlic, skin left on

  • 1 tsp sumac

  • 200g tri-coloured quinoa

  • 25ml lemon juice

  • 1/2 cup tahini paste

  • juice and zest of half a lemon

  • 100g pitted green olives, roughly chopped

  • 100g toasted pistachios, coarsely chopped

  • 1/2 bunch flat-leaf parsley leaves, roughly chopped

  • handful mint leaves, roughly chopped

  •  

Method

  1. Preheat the oven to 90°C. Trim fat from the lamb and season with salt. Heat 1 tbsp of olive oil in a frying pan on a medium-high heat. Gently pan-fry the racks until golden brown all over.

    On a baking tray, make a bed of thyme and place lamb on top, along with the unpeeled garlic cloves. Sprinkle with sumac and roast for 45-50 minutes, or until a meat thermometer registers an internal temperature of 54°C. Remove from oven and allow to rest somewhere warm for 10 minutes. Check the garlic; if needed, continue to roast until very soft.

    Cook the quinoa in a saucepan with plenty of cold water and a pinch of salt. Bring to a boil, then simmer, covered, for about 15 minutes. Drain off any remaining liquid and allow to cool.

    Make a dressing from 25ml lemon juice, 4 tbsp of olive oil and seasoning.

    In a food processor, squeeze out the puree from two cloves of roasted garlic and add tahini, lemon juice and zest, 1 tbsp of olive oil and seasoning. While the processor is running, add around 1/2 cup of warm water (depending on viscosity) in a steady stream. Stop, scrape down the sides of the bowl, and add water until desired consistency is achieved.

    Just before serving, mix the quinoa with olives, pistachios, herbs and lemon dressing. Carve the lamb and plate with tahini sauce, quinoa salad, and extra cloves for those who love their roast garlic.

    Eggplant salad recipe suggestions


    Food photography by William meppem. Food styling by Hannah Meppem. Food preparation by Alice Story.

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