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These are the ultimate Pan Seared Lamb Chops that are just like a restaurant but made easily at home in a cast-iron pan. With just a handful of ingredients and 15 minutes, you can have this gourmet recipe on the table.
Pan-fried lamb chops may be our favorite way to enjoy lamb. Aside from the fact that they cook incredibly fast in just 15 minutes (which we love), lamb rib chops have the perfect balance of fattiness to meatiness. They also sear up incredibly well in a cast-iron pan on the stovetop. A couple of chops is all you need per person for a meal thanks to how flavorful they are.
Served with a simple side dish like our Pea and Goat Cheese Salad or Roasted Green Beans, this quick dinner can be as casual or elegant as you’d like. If you also would rather grill lamb chops, we’ve got a recipe for that too!
Why You’ll Love this Recipe
- Easy restaurant-quality meal at home. This is truly a foolproof gourmet recipe that is made with just a handful of ingredients. Why save lamb chops for your restaurant order when you can get the same golden crust and juicy meat in your own kitchen?
- Perfect quick recipe for any occasion. Whether it’s a dinner party with friends, weeknight dinner, or a holiday, these are great to whip up for a large gathering. Serve as a main dish or a hearty appetizer.
- Simple ingredients. Made with just 5 ingredients, but you’d never know it! These pack some major flavor.
- Almost no mess! With just one pan and the stovetop, this pan-fried lamb chops recipe is so easy to clean up.
Table of Contents
About Rib Chops
Lamb rib chops are cut from the rack of lamb, or the top part of the back attached to the ribs. This cut of meat is incredibly tender and flavorful.
Most often when you purchase either a rack of lamb or rib chops, they have been “frenched.” “Frenched” means the last inch or so of meat attached to the ends of the ribs have been trimmed away, leaving a bare bone. This French trimming method gives the meat a more refined, elegant look. You can easily do this yourself, but nowadays lamb rib chops are usually already sold this way, or your butcher can do it for you quick.
Ingredients
- Garlic: you’ll need a few cloves of garlic for this recipe. Simply smash them with the side of a chefs knife and add them to the pan. This will add a nice garlic flavor without overpowering the dish.
- Rosemary: fresh rosemary pairs incredibly well with lamb (and garlic). The dish takes on a lovely earthy flavor and the rosemary gets slightly fried, giving it a nice crisp texture.
- Fennel Seeds: another great pairing is fennel seeds and lamb! If you aren’t keen on fennel seeds you can also use cumin seeds.
- Lemon: fresh lemon slices add bright tartness and take on a nice char in the pan.
- Lamb Rib Chops: This recipe uses lamb rib chops, which are also often referred to as lollipops. This type of chop is smaller than the other two types of lamb chops—shoulder chops and loin chops—and feature a long slender rib, giving them that “lollipop” look. If you can’t find lamb rib chops, you can also use lamb loin chops—they’ll just need a bit more time in the skillet.
- Kosher Salt and black pepper
Lauren’s Tip
Invest in a good cast iron skillet. It’s the one requirement for this recipe. You will want to preheat the skillet until it is screaming hot before you cook your lamb chops. This is guaranteed to get you that perfect sear every time.
How to Make Pan Seared Lamb Chops
The process of pan-frying rib chops couldn’t be simpler. Most recipes call for a neutral, high-heat oil like vegetable, canola or grape seed to fry them in. Olive oil generally isn’t suited for searing things over high heat because it has a lower smoke point. But since they cook so quickly, we prefer to sear lamb rib chops in olive oil.
The key to making really good pan-seared lamb rib chops is to get a cast-iron skillet ripping hot before adding the chops. Since these chops are smaller, they cook very fast. Which means you have a small cooking window to infuse these chops with flavor and get some nice browning on them.
- Preheat a large cast-iron skillet.
- Generously season the lamb chops with salt and pepper.
- Add oil to the pan and swirl to coat.
- Add garlic, rosemary and fennel and cook 1 minute, stirring frequently.
- Add chops and cook until deeply golden brown on both sides.
- Sear lemon slices until browned.
Expert Tips
- Be sure to buy French trimmed lamb chops. This means the last inch of meat is removed from the bone. Ask your butcher to do this if they aren’t already Frenched.
- Use different herbs or aromatics. We use garlic, rosemary, fennel seed, and lemon. Some other great options are thyme, whole coriander seed, and orange.
- Set your chops out at room temperature for 15 minutes prior to cooking. This takes the chill off of the meat and helps it cook more evenly.
- Make sure your pan is very hot before searing. We are repeating this tip because it’s so important to success! This is how the lamb chops get a nice golden brown sear just like a professional chef.
Temperature Guide for Lamb Chops
Single lamb rib chops cook so quickly that checking the internal temperature can be more of a hassle than helpful. But if you have an instant-read thermometer, go right ahead and use it! Using internal temperature as a guide for cooking meat is always a good idea.
Lamb rib chops are best served medium-rare or medium (the USDA recommends cooking lamb to a safe internal temperature of 145ºF). Any more and the meat will start to dry out and lose some of its tenderness (which is what makes them so good!).
- 125°F (52ºC) for rare
- 135°F (57ºC) for medium-rare
- 140°F (60ºC) for medium
How Long to Pan Sear Lamb Rib Chops
- A good rule of thumb to follow for single-cut rib chops is 1½ minutes per side over medium-high heat. This length of time and temperature will result in medium-rare chops.
- If you like lamb on the rare side, drop the cook time down to one minute per side.
- If you prefer lamb to be prepared medium, or medium-well cook for 2–2 ½ minutes per side.
- And lastly, if you choose to use double ribs chops, sear the meat on all four sides, about 2 minutes per side.
Storage & Leftover Tips
- Store any leftover cooked lamb rib chops in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
- Gently reheat cooked lamb chops in a 200-degree oven until warmed through or in a skillet over medium-heat.
What to Serve with Pan-Fried Lamb Chops
- Make them a full meal and serve them over Mashed Celery Root Potatoes
- For a light, summery meal, add these Roasted Green Beans or Sautéed Broccoli.
- We also like to serve these with Garlic Naan and homemade Hummus.
- Our Vegan Potato Salad (vinaigrette-based) is a perfect pairing!
- Add a pat of Black Truffle Butter for even more depth of flavor and savoriness.
- Serve with a simple side salad such as this Butter Lettuce Salad, Garden Salad or Caesar Salad.
FAQ
You’ll know they are done cooking when their internal temperature reaches 125ºF for rare or 135ºF for medium-rare. The chops will have a nice golden crust and rosy pink interior.
We’ve got a recipe for grilling them!
Garlic, rosemary and fennel seed is a great go-to seasoning. We also like Za’atar, cumin seeds, and herbs de Provence.
We like to marinate them in yogurt with some sumac and lemon zest. It’s simple and effective. (Similar to soaking them in milk.)
More Lamb Recipes to Try
- Our Lamb Vindaloo is a deliciously rich braised dish that’s perfect with Cilantro Lime Brown Rice or naan.
- Lamb Tikka Masala, featuring our Tikka Masala Simmer Sauce, is another rich and full-flavored dish to try. You will fall in love with this one!
- Make use of ground lamb in our Spicy Ground Tacos or make Kofta with all the fixings!
- If you love meatballs, we’ve got lamb meatballs too! Stewed in a saucy tomato broth that is outrageous!
- Pull out the Instant Pot for a show-stopping dinner of Lamb Shanks or our Moroccan Lamb Stew.
Pan Seared Lamb Chops
Description
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Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 3 cloves garlic, smashed
- 2 sprigs rosemary
- 1 teaspoon fennel seeds
- 8 lamb rib chops (¾- to 1-inch think), seasoned with kosher salt and black pepper
- 1 lemon, sliced
Instructions
- Heat a large cast-iron skillet (12-inch) over medium heat for 5 minutes. Add oil, garlic, rosemary and fennel seeds and cook 1 minute.
- Increase heat to medium-high; add rib chops in a single layer and cook until golden brown on first side, 1½–2 minutes. Move garlic and rosemary around the pan to avoid burning, setting on top of chops if needed. Flip chops and continue to cook until golden brown on second side, 1½–2 minutes more.
- If you have an instant-read thermometer, cook to desired doneness by temperature; insert the thermometer into the center of the meat, but not touching the bone (125°F for rare, 135°F medium-rare, and 140°F for medium).
- Transfer chops to a serving platter and drizzle oil and spices over top. Add lemon slices to now-empty hot pan and sear for 1 minute on each side; add to platter with chops and serve.
Equipment
Notes
- Store any leftover cooked lamb rib chops in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
- Gently reheat cooked lamb chops in a 200-degree oven until warmed through or in a skillet over medium-heat.
Nutrition
Wow!!! Just WOW!!!
These were as beautiful as they were delicious!
Oh yay! I love to hear that!
We love lamb and this is one of our new favorite recipes! Thank you!
Lamb makes the perfect dinner! So glad you enjoyed it!
Made these the other night and they were phenomenal. Flavor was good. My daughter and hubby loved the lamb!
A good rack should have a nice layer of fat on it- your fat is uncooked. It takes much longer to pan-sear lamb. You start fat side down- get it really brown and caramelized- then you cook the sides.
It takes about 1/2 hour to correctly cook a rack.