Grilled Lamb Chops with Garlic and Caper Sauce and a Spring Salad

Serves: 4 Time to table: 50 minutes

Elegant spring supper for 4. Grilled lamb chops or cutlets with asparagus, new potato and mint salad and fresh garlic dressing.

Method

First of all, in a smallish saucepan put the milk and the garlic on a high heat. Bring to the boil and then reduce to a lively simmer. Cook for 25 minutes. Drain the garlic, reserving the liquid and blitz in a food processor smooth, adding enough milk to form a loose spooning sauce.
Transfer to a bowl and stir in the capers. Season well and set aside. If you want to you can add a spoonful of cream and a knob of butter. Some lightly caramelised softened onions added before blitzing is good too.
To make the dressing combine 30ml/2tbsp of oil, vinegar, mustard and seasoning. It will be quite sharp, but persevere, it will mingle with the butter on the potatoes and asparagus softening it a little.
Preheat the grill and bring a medium-sized saucepan filled with cold water to the boil. Place the chops on a chopping board and brush on both sides with the remaining oil. Season.
Grill for no more than 5 minutes on each side. For a really tender lamb chop, you want them pink in the middle. The more give there is when you touch them with your finger the less cooked they are. A hot grill is absolutely vital though to get a nicely grilled outside without over cooking them. A hot griddle pan is good too. When the chops are done to your liking remove from the grill, transfer to a warm plate and cover with foil to rest.

Recipe courtesy of Oliver Rowe