Description
Remember to keep the lamb pink, as the more it is cooked, the drier it becomes. This doesn't apply, of course, if you are cooking it slowly in liquid - when making a stew, for example.
Ingredients
2 sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
4 small Maris Piper potatoes, peeled and halved
2 parsnips, cut into chunks
1 red onion, sliced into wedges
1 garlic bulb, cut horizontally in half
5 tbsp olive oil
1 mild red chilli, de-seeded and chopped
1 mild green chilli, de-seeded and chopped
8 lamb loin chops
salt and freshly ground black pepper
For the minted lime salsa
2 tbsp olive oil
2 shallots, finely diced
2 tsp grated fresh ginger
2 tbsp fine-cut lime marmalade
1 lime, juice and grated zest only
2 tbsp chopped mint
1 tbsp chopped coriander
Recipe taken from MASTERCHEF GOES LARGE published by Ebury Press and now on sale in bookshops. Copyright Shine Limited 2005. Used by permission of Ebury Press. All rights reserved.
Method
1. Preheat the oven to 220C/425F/Gas 7.
2. Put the potatoes, parsnips, red onion and garlic in a shallow baking dish. Drizzle three tablespoons of the olive oil over the vegetables and season with salt and pepper. Place in the oven and roast for 30 minutes. Stir in the chillies five minutes before the end of cooking.
3. For the salsa, mix all the ingredients together and set aside.
4. Heat the remaining olive oil in a heavy-based frying pan. Season the lamb chops, add to the pan and sear for 5-6 minutes on each side (you will need to cook them in batches). Cover and keep warm.
5. Arrange the roasted vegetables and lamb chops in a serving dish. Spoon the minted lime salsa over the chops and serve.
