Our Greek lamb cutlets recipe makes quick and easy lamb cutlets with rosemary and lemon on a creamy white bean purée, garnished with flowering rosemary for fragrance and lemon for squeezing. Fresh rosemary is used in the marinade, with dried oregano, garlic and good olive oil. Cooked in minutes in a griddle pan, or on a barbecue or under a grill, these cutlets are fantastic with a Greek salad, tzatziki, and flatbread for scooping up the garlicky purée and lamb juices.
If you’re fond of lamb but thought lamb cutlets were hard to cook and easy to over-cook, you’re not alone. I’m frequently checking the supermarket lamb section for discounted cutlets and I can’t tell you how many times I’ve been asked how to cook lamb cutlets. And, yes, it is possible to find cutlets on special. They’re so expensive here in Australia that large packs are often discounted — more so than Scotch fillets, much to mum’s disappointment.
If you’re a lover of Greek food, you’ll adore these Greek lamb cutlets with rosemary and lemon. I cook the cutlets in a griddle pan, but they’re great on the barbecue for a casual weekend lunch in the sun — or, if the weather is cool where you are, a cosy meal indoors. I often make these lamb cutlets on a weeknight on the stove-top. They’re so quick and easy, they’re ready in minutes and the entire meal is on the table in half an hour.
Mid-week I’ll serve these lamb cutlets simply on a white bean purée with tzatziki and a Greek salad. But if I was feeding a group and preparing a feast of Greek food, I’d start with mezedes such as taramosalata, the spicy red pepper feta dip, htipiti, the eggplant dish melitzanosalata, perhaps pan-fried feta with honey and herbs, and a watermelon feta salad. And a couple more mains to share like keftedes (Greek meatballs) and grilled skewers (souvlaki).
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Greek Lamb Cutlets Recipe with Rosemary and Lemon on White Bean Purée
Now is the time to buy lamb if you’re a lover of lamb, especially Australian lamb and lamb cutlets. They’re superb this time of year. However, lamb cutlets are one of the more expensive meat cuts, so I usually wait until they’re discounted, which tends to be mid-week rather than weekends. No matter when you make these tender, juicy, Greek-style lamb cutlets, I guarantee they’ll get you dreaming of simple pleasures on sunny holidays in Greece.
Although funnily enough, my memories of eating lamb in Greece are usually of winter and spring road trips around mainland Greece, the Peloponnese, and mountains of Crete, researching and updating travel guidebooks with Terence. Lamb, especially lamb chops and roast lamb, featured much more heavily on restaurant menus than seafood, along with fava, lentils, chickpeas, and white beans, hence the white bean purée.
We rarely get Australian lamb at home in Siem Reap. We get Australian beef, which Cambodians love, but we don’t often see Aussie lamb in the supermarket, and I’ve never seen lamb at butchers’ stalls at the local markets, for obvious reasons. When was the last time you saw sheep grazing in rice paddies?!
So since I’ve been back in Australia caring for my elderly mum, who was diagnosed with dementia earlier this year, I’ve been making her loads of delicious meals, including lots of dishes with lamb, which she adores. I buy lamb whenever l can and make lamb chops, lamb shoulder, lamb mince, you name it, but her favourite is lamb cutlets.
I make this Middle Eastern-inspired lamb ragu, this Moroccan lamb tagine with prunes and almonds — which Terence learnt to make from Jamila, the lovely cook at our beautiful riad in Marrakech way back in 2010 on the year-long global grand tour that launched Grantourismo — and these Turkish lamb chops with bulgur which Terence made in our Istanbul kitchen that same year.
But mostly, I make these lamb cutlets — and variations with other herbs and spices. Because not only are lamb cutlets incredibly flavoursome and fun to eat — who doesn’t love lamb juices dripping down your hands?! — they’re versatile. I’ve made them with Middle Eastern spices and herbs such as sumac and za’atar; with native Australian ingredients river mint and pepperberry; and, with a nod to my Russian-Ukrainian grandmother, with cumin and loads of fresh dill.
As long as you time your lamb cutlets, you really can’t mess them up. And while lamb in itself unadorned is wonderful, marinate the lamb cutlets and you inject them with lots of lovely flavours, garnish the lamb with fresh herbs such as rosemary for fragrance as much as aesthetics (we eat first with our eyes after all), and squeeze on some lemon juice for zing and zest, and you have the best lamb cutlets.
Just a few tips to making this Greek lamb cutlets recipe for melt-in-the-mouth lamb cutlets with rosemary and lemon.
Tips to Making these Greek Lamb Cutlets with Rosemary and Lemon on White Bean Purée
Here are a few tips to making these Greek lamb cutlets with rosemary and lemon. My memories of this style of Greek lamb are of a platter of lamb chops served with tzatziki, a Greek salad, and dish of fava, puréed split yellow peas. But I prefer lamb cutlets to lamb chops and a white bean purée to fava. Let’s start with the lamb cutlets.
The Lamb Cutlets
Firstly, I have to say, I often see lamb cutlets and lamb chops used interchangeably, but they are different, and it’s not just the thickness but the cut of lamb. Lamb cutlets are cut from a rack of lamb, which are the rib bones, as well as back bone and rib eye muscle.
Lamb chops can come from loin (the animal’s waist), shoulder (forequarter), and chump (rump/hind leg). They’re more chunky and look like small stubby t-bones, which is why lamb chops are often thrown on a barbecue while lamb cutlets are usually reserved for more elegant meals.
For fancy French meals, the fat is always cut off the bone for lamb cutlets, which is why trimming the fan from lamb cutlets is called ‘Frenching’. If you’re buying lamb cutlets from a butcher, they’ll usually ask if you want them ‘Frenched’.
We love the fat left on the bone — my mum loves nothing more than eating lamb cutlets with her hands, the fatty juices running down her arms! — but if you’re not as fond of it as we are, you can cut the fat away from the bone.
The fat left on the bone renders during cooking, melting in the pan to keep the meat moist, and the fat becomes golden and crispy, so it’s crunchy and juicy to bite into, rather than soft and chewy. If you find you’re still not a fan, just cut it off after cooking.
I’ve used 12 lamb cutlets in the recipe, which is around a kilo of cutlets in Australia, which is a typical number for a large pack. I’ve indicated that this serves 4 people, if you’re serving 3 cutlets per person, as well as sides. But I have to confess that my mum and I can easily eat 4 cutlets each for dinner (that’s devotion!) and we’ll have the leftovers for lunch the next day.
Marinate the Lamb Cutlets
A classic Greek lamb marinade is super simple and usually just consists of salt, pepper and dried oregano. You can sprinkle those ingredients separately over your lamb or combine them to make ‘alatopiperigano’ — ‘alati’ is salt, ‘piperi’ is pepper and ‘rigani’ is oregano.
I like to mix them up first, store the stuff in a glass jar or shaker with lid, and sprinkle it over grilled meats and vegetables. It’s also great eaten as a snack, as you would dukkah, dipping grilled flatbreads, or any kind of bread, into a dish of good extra virgin olive oil, and then into the alatopiperigano.
But back to our marinade: to a large non-metallic bowl, add the olive oil, half the sprigs of fresh rosemary, dried oregano, lemon juice only, smashed garlic cloves, and a pinch of sea salt and grind of freshly ground black pepper.
Add the lamb cutlets to the marinade, toss to fully coat them, cover the bowl, and refrigerate for a minimum of 20 minutes to marinade the lamb cutlets, but longer if you like.
Make the White Bean Purée
While the lamb cutlets are marinating, make the white bean purée. To a blender or small food processor, transfer a can of drained butter beans (or cannellini beans or your favourite kind of white beans), 2 garlic cloves, sea salt, onion powder, and extra virgin olive oil, and blend until you have a fairly smooth consistency.
Taste the white bean purée, and season it with a little salt if you like, and blend it again. I used to add salt to my white bean purée but I dramatically reduced salt from diet a hypertension diagnosis a couple of years ago and very rarely use salt these days. It’s amazing how our taste changes. Even a tiny pinch of salt tastes too salty to me these days.
The white bean purée can be made ahead so if you’re not going to be serving in the next 20 minutes, transfer it to a bowl and refrigerate until ready to use.
Cook the Lamb Cutlets
The lamb cutlets are quick and easy to cook as I said, made in minutes in a griddle pan on the stovetop, or even on an outdoor grill or barbecue, or under a stove grill or broiler to our American readers.
To clarify what I mean by a griddle pan: in Australia, New Zealand, the UK and many other countries, a griddle pan is a pan with ridges and a griddle plate is a grooved barbecue plate, whereas in the USA a grill plate and a griddle plate can be flat. I’m talking about a grooved griddle pan or griddle plate.
A tip: some long tongs are handy, even if you’re not grilling over an open fire or coals, as it can get very hot. When you’re finished griddling, soak your griddle pan in water for easier cleaning later.
Heat the griddle pan over medium-high heat and use the tongs to transfer the lamb cutlets to the pan, cooking them for 2 minutes each side if you like medium-rare (as we do), 3 minutes each side for medium, or longer if you like; another minute a side for done.
When the lamb cutlets are cooked, use tongs to transfer them to a tray, cover them with foil, and let the cutlets rest for at least 5 minutes. This is a very important step so don’t skip it!
Plate and Serve the Lamb Cutlets on White Bean Purée
Spread the white bean purée over a large serving plate and use tongs to arrange the lamb cutlets on top, along with the flowering rosemary sprigs and lemon slices.
Serve the lamb cutlets with warm flatbreads, any leftover white bean purée in a dish (it’s very moreish!) and more lemon wedges for squeezing over the lamb. I love to serve a big Greek salad and bowl of tzatziki on the side.
Greek Lamb Cutlets with Lemon and Rosemary on White Bean Purée
Equipment
Ingredients
- 12 lamb cutlets - around 1 kilo, untrimmed — or Frenched if you’re really not a fan of lamb fat
- 3 tbsp olive oil - best quality you can afford
- 4 sprigs fresh rosemary - preferably flowering, cut into thirds or quarters depending how long they are
- 1 tsp dried oregano - or fresh if you like
- 1 lemon - juice only
- 5 garlic cloves - divided, smashed with a pestle
- 1 pinch sea salt
- 1 pinch freshly ground black pepper
- 210 g can white beans — butter beans or cannellini beans - drained and rinsed
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
Instructions
- Marinate the lamb cutlets — to a large non-metallic bowl, add the lamb cutlets, olive oil, half the sprigs of fresh rosemary, dried oregano, lemon juice only, 3 smashed garlic cloves, sea salt, and freshly ground black pepper. Toss to fully coat, cover the bowl, and refrigerate for a minimum of 20 minutes but longer if you like.
- Make the white bean purée — transfer the drained butter beans, 2 garlic cloves, sea salt, onion powder, and extra virgin olive oil to a blender or small food processor, and blend until you have a fairly smooth consistency. Taste, season with a little salt if you like, and blend again, then transfer to a bowl and refrigerate until ready to use.
- Cook the lamb cutlets — heat a griddle pan over medium-high heat and use tongs to transfer the lamb cutlets to the pan, cooking them for 2 minutes each side for medium-rare, 3 minutes each side for medium, or longer if you like. When they’re done, transfer them to a tray, cover with foil, and let them rest for 5 minutes.
- Plate and serve — spread the white bean purée over a large serving plate, use tongs to arrange the lamb cutlets on top, along with the flowering rosemary sprigs and lemon slices. Serve with warm flatbreads, leftover white bean purée, and more lemon wedges. A Greek salad and tzatziki also make great sides.
Nutrition
Please do let us know if you make our Greek lamb cutlets with rosemary and lemon on white bean purée, as we love to know how our recipes turn out for you. Feel free to share your feedback and tips in the comments below.
