010/18 – Lamb Steaks with Szechuan Pepper Rub:
I am still emptying the freezer before I buy more meat! I spotted these lamb chops from Yummy Lamb at Craigduckie Farm and after how good the last lamb chops were on the Uuni these had to be cooked on cast iron as well. Looking through my cook list I spotted Lamb Steaks with Szechuan Pepper Rub from Planet Barbecue by Steven Raichlen. Loving the recipes in this book!
The meat:
Gigot lamb chops from Yummy Lamb at Craigduckie Farm – 326g for £5.80. I picked them up from Bowhouse just before Xmas.
The Prep:
I love Szechuan pepper which is one of the main reasons I chose this recipe, plus it’s an excuse for another cast iron cook on the Uuni!
In a frying pan I put 1 tablespoon each of Szechuan peppercorns, black peppercorns, coriander seeds and Maldon sea salt. The black pepper was Kadode Kampot Pepper I have been waiting for the right dish to use this with, perfect opportunity! The pan was set to medium heat and I stirred the contents for around 3 minutes then blitzed them in a spice grinder. I then applied this spice mix to the lamb chops.
At this point I fired up the Uuni 3 with pellets and after about 5 minutes I placed the cast iron dish inside to warm up.
The Cook:
After another 5 minutes the internal temperature was over 500c so I put the lamb chops on the cast iron dish. I had lightly oiled the dish before putting it in the oven, just to darken the metal up but not enough to catch light! As soon as the lamb hit the dish it started to sizzle.
I put the dish inside and left it a couple of minutes then took it out and flipped the meat over. After another 2 minutes I took it out, progressing nicely!
I flipped the meat and put it back in for a minute then flipped the meat again and put it in for another minute (6m total) at this point the lamb was reading 60c internal so I took it off. 
Time to Eat:
To stop the lamb cooking I placed it on a cool dish. The meat smelt fantastic, I could smell the Kampot and Szechuan pepper.
Summary:
Not the greatest photo off my phone but it shows the crust and the pink meat. Lovely dish for a quick dinner, the meat was top quality – really juicy and the Szechuan rub was fantastic. Really enjoyed it! The rub is enough for 4 lamb chops but I put it on two, my wife would have preferred less rub so I will either do 4 chops or use half the rub next time! The thicker parts of the chops were the best, I would cook this again with bigger, thicker chops just to lift it even further!
The Kampot pepper was very nice, look forward to using more of that.
| Cook Difficulty: | 2/5 |
| Cook Duration: | Short: 1/5 |
| Cook Equipment: | Uuni |
| Cook Method: | Cast Iron |
| Charcoal: | Uuni Beech Pellets |
| Smoking Wood: | N/A |
| Cook temperature: | 500c+ |
| Cook time: | 6 minutes and 2 minute rest |
| Internal temperature: | 60C |
| Notes: | 1: Halve the rub or double the chops! 2: Bigger and thicker chops next time |