Roasted Lamb Cutlets with Balsamic Glaze and Red Onions

This recipe is great for a crowd. I used to sear the cutlets in a frypan before baking it all but to be honest, that was just extra work. Now I throw them all into a pan and bake the lot together (though if you want to sear them, go for it – heat a frypan to super hot and sear both sides quickly before putting into your baking pan.)

Be generous with the onions, tomatoes and rosemary as the leftovers cook down to a lovely ‘jam’.

INGREDIENTS

  • 4-5 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
  • 8 lamb cutlets – ‘French cut’ (meat is removed from the bone to form a little handle)
  • 10 cloves garlic, peeled and halved
  • 1 red onion, cut into slices
  • 1 punnet cherry tomatoes
  • 6 sprigs of fresh rosemary, leaves pulled off the stem
  • ¼ cup balsamic vinegar
  • 3 heaped tablespoons brown sugar
  • 2tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

METHOD

  1. Preheat oven to 180°C
  2. Sprinkle some extra virgin olive on the base of a shallow baking pan.
  3. Arrange cutlets in a single layer.
  4. Scatter the garlic, onion, rosemary and tomatoes around the cutlets.
  5. Mix the brown sugar and vinegar together then pour over the cutlets.
  6. Cover with foil and bake for 15 minutes.
  7. Increase the oven heat to 200°C then remove foil from the baking pan and bake another 10-15 minutes (depending on how cooked you like your meat – I like these still pink in the middle.)
  8. Lamb should be slightly pink in the middle – so don’t overcook! If you push on one with your finger it should feel firm but bouncy (squishy means it’s still raw – hard means overcooked).
  9. Serve with mashed potatoes and greens, or a salad.

NOTES

This recipe works really well with pumpkin, or veal cutlets.
If you have a lot of the sauce, onions and tomatoes left over – put them all in a large frypan and simmer on very low for about 40 minutes until cooked down to a jam.

Photo credit: David Lyons

Roasted Lamb Cutlets with Balsamic Glaze and Red Onions