How Jeff Mauro Gets Lamb Cooked Just Right Every Time

Cooking lamb can be challenging for many American cooks, if only due to lack of practice. By some measures, the average U.S. resident eats only about 1 pound of lamb per year, a fraction of the quantity consumed by other countries. But a growing number of lamb-loving devotees are changing that dynamic, in no small part due to well-known chefs extolling its virtues. Fortunately, we have some insights to share on that topic, straight from the mouth of celebrity chef Jeff Mauro, who partnered with Bayer Aspirin to promote heart health. In anticipation of spring holiday dinners, particularly Easter when more Americans than usual feature lamb on the menu, we asked Mauro if he had any cooking tips. His response was an enthusiastic "yes" followed by two words: double cut. 

That's a crucial component in how Mauro gets lamb chops cooked just right every time. The term "double cut" is exactly what it sounds like when referring to a rack of lamb. Mauro never purchases individual chops, rather a whole rack of lamb. "Then I split them so you get two bones per chop." Next, he marinates them for about an hour in "a little vinegar, little oil, crushed garlic, some fresh rosemary, whatever you have, (and) something a little acidic like red wine vinegar." He then dries them out, bringing to room temperature, and begins a double cooking process involving a stovetop pan and an oven. It is simpler than you might imagine. He also shared his opinion on how not to serve them.

When the double-cut lamb chops have finished marinating and reached room temp, it is time to bring the heat from both stovetop and oven. Noting the petite nature of lamb chops, Mauro explains that chefs can much more easily control the heat in an oven. But he first makes a lovely, crispy char in a stovetop pan, describing the duo process as "a little kind of hot/cool, direct heat method."

He further elaborates on that balancing effect. "I think there's so much fat in a lamb chop that it needs that high heat to render," he says, noting that you end up with "that kind of Goldilocks zone of perfectly medium, medium-ish in the middle, but charred on the outside." The important thing is for lamb chops to ultimately reach an internal temperature of 135 degrees Fahrenheit, according to Mauro. A similar searing/baking approach could apply to other cuts of lamb as well. If you need more hands-on info about searing, check out our tip for perfectly searing lamb.

Finally, we get a straightforward opinion from chef Mauro on the popular serving practice of "frenching" the bones, which involves trimming away any fat, meat, sinew, and unsightly bits from the lamb bones, sometimes even capping them off with little paper hats or "crowns." That fancy stuff definitely does not fly with this chef, who calls it a waste of meat, saying "that's where all the good stuff is." He jokingly compares himself to Tom Hanks in the 1988 movie "Big," when the actor meticulously nibbles a piece of baby corn as if eating a full-size corn cob. "You should see me at the Trivoli eating lamb," Mauro says.