Grilled Xinjiang-Style Lamb Rib Chops (新疆燒烤羊扒, San1 Goeng1 Siu1 Haau1 Joeng4 Paa4)

This recipe was updated on 11 Apr 2015. Some ingredient quantities and instructions were updated.

This recipe was adapted from that published in Saveur Magazine, June/July 2013 issue in the article, “Fire in the Belly”. The original recipe was for lamb skewers. The spice paste, consisting of red chili flakes, cumin, Sichuan peppercorns, and oyster sauce would go well with any meat. I happen to have two racks of lamb in my freezer, so it made sense to use them instead of making skewers with lamb shoulder as called for in the original recipe. The article makes the point that a very hot fire is used for cooking, so I piled the charcoal into one-half of the grill to place the coals as close to the grill surface as possible. You may have to decrease the cooking time depending upon the heat of your grill. Cooking time is fast for medium-rare rib chops, so be careful not to overcook the lamb.

 

Enjoy!

Ingredients

1-2	1-2	Rack of lamb, cut into individual lamb rib chops (羊扒, joeng4 paa4), about 1½ lb. (750 g.) per rack
4 Tbs.	60 ml.	Dried red chili flakes (指天椒, zi2 tin1 ziu1)
2 Tbs.	30 ml.	Whole cumin (孜然, zi1 jin4)
2 Tbs.	30 ml.	Whole Sichuan peppercorns (花椒, faa1 ziu1)
1 tsp.	5 ml.	Salt (鹽, jim4)
3 cloves	3 cloves	Garlic (蒜, syun3), crushed in a garlic press
2 Tbs.	30 ml.	Oyster sauce (蠔油, hou4 jau4)
2 Tbs.	30 ml.	Shaoxing rice wine (紹興酒, siu6 hing1 zau2) or dry sherry
3 Tbs.	45 ml.	Oil

 

Equipment

		Garlic press
		Spice or coffee grinder
22.5 in.	57 cm.	Covered charcoal or gas grill (or larger)

 

Grilled Xinjiang-Style Lamb
Rib Chops Marinade

Instructions

1. Place the dried red chili flakes, the whole cumin and Sichuan peppercorns, and salt into a spice or coffee grinder. Grind the spices and place the ground spices into a large covered container that will hold all the lamb chops. Crush the garlic in a garlic press and add to the spice mixture. Add the oyster sauce, Shaoxing rice wine or dry sherry, and oil to the spice mixture and mix all the ingredients together to form a paste in the large container.
2. Cut the lamb rack into 1- or 2-rib thick chops. Coat each rib chop in the spice paste. Allow the ribs to marinate in the spice paste for at least one hour or overnight in the refrigerator. If marinating the lamb overnight, take it out of the refrigerator at least one hour before cooking. Soak the wood for smoking (pecan, oak, or any other wood can be used) for one hour if desired. I use dry and not soaked wood.
3. Prepare the charcoal or gas grill for indirect cooking following the manufacturer’s instructions. Light the charcoal or preheat the gas grill accordingly.
4. If using a charcoal grill, arrange the lighted coals on one half of the grill. The side of the grill with the coals (the “hot” side) will be used to grill the lamb and the side without the coals (the “cool” side) will be used for smoking the lamb. For a gas grill, follow the manufacturer’s instructions as to which burners to leave on for indirect cooking. Put the smoking wood onto the coals or as per the instructions for the gas grill.
5. Place the lamb on the hot side of the grill, being careful not to crowd the hot side of the grill. If there are more lamb chops than grate space, grill the lamb in batches. Cooking time may need to be decreased depending upon the heat of your grill. Allow the lamb to brown for 1½ to 2 minutes uncovered. Rotate the lamb 90⁰ to produce cross-hatched grill marks. Allow the lamb to brown for another 1½ to 2 minutes uncovered. Flip the lamb over and allow to brown for 1½ to 2 minutes uncovered. Move the lamb to the cool side of the grill when cooking is complete before adding the next batch and repeating the browning procedure.
6. Cover the grill and allow to smoke for 3 minutes. Remove the lamb from the grill and allow to rest for at least 5 minutes before serving.