Lamb Chops with Chanterelle Sauce
I hear that chanterelles are out there. I can’t find them yet. I’ve checked my patches in the mountains. Nothing yet, but reports indicate the findings are still closer to the coast.
by Richard Lyness
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Cantharellus californicus. © Alan Rockefeller (from mushroomobserver.org)
Method
Build the Sauce Base
Combine the stock, red wine, smashed garlic, and diced root vegetables in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, then turn down to low. Simmer for 15 to 20 minutes.
Strain the results through a fine-mesh strainer into a bowl, and pour the clear liquid back into the saucepan. (Discard the solids.)
Bring to a boil over medium heat to reduce until the sauce thickens (about 10 minutes to reduce volume by half). Add a little flour if desired.
Turn off heat, and set this sauce base aside.
Cook the Lamb Chops
Sear your lamb chops in a cast iron or stainless steel skillet. (If using thick loin chops, make sure the skillet is oven-safe, so you can sear for 2 to 3 minutes per side, then transfer entire skillet to a preheated 400°F oven for another 4 to 5 minutes.)
Remove lamb chops from skillet, and place on a warm plate tented loosely with foil. Let them rest for 5 to 8 minutes to let juices redistribute.
Pour the rendered lamb fat out of the skillet, but leave the browned bits (fond) at the bottom.
Finish and Serve
While the lamb rests, place skillet back on stove over medium-low heat.
Pour your sauce base into the skillet to deglaze all the tasty lamb bits from the bottom.
Now’s the time to add your chanterelles and simmer for a few minutes more. On medium-low, stir in the sliced mushrooms. Let them simmer in the sauce base until they're completely tender and have released their juices into the sauce (about 5 minutes).
Cream will be the finishing component. Lower the heat to low. Pour in the cream while stirring continuously. Let the sauce warm through again for about a minute (without letting it boil).
Turn off the heat and (if desired) stir in chopped capers, mint or other flavoring agents you are fond of.
Drizzle sauce over and around the lamb chops, or serve on the side.
Optionally, sprinkle capers or mint sprigs over the dish.
Recipe contributed:
November
2009
Thus far, the best patch I’ve found is the $9.95/lb one at the Santa Cruz Costco. The chanterelles are there now, but may not be there for long. Still, it is a deal not to be missed.
If your patch (or Costco), has provided you with chanterelles, what should you do? You might cook a few small mushrooms with the meat on your grill. Or sauté your chanterelles with a little butter, olive oil and Hennessy XO cognac, a practice I learned from Bill McGuire).
Or, you might try a remarkable treat I experienced this week at a wine maker dinner prepared by Ralph at Nonno’s in Redwood Estates. The main course was grilled lamb chops with a Zinfandel veal stock reduction with chanterelles. Wow!! A terrific treatment that is easy to do. You can do this!!
Here is my approximation of the dish.
Objective:
Sauce / topping / stuffing
Total Time:
About 1 hour
Yield:
4 servings
Suggested Mushrooms:
- Chanterelle (Cantharellus californicus, Cantharellus formosus, Cantharellus subalbidus)
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Ingredients
2 cups veal stock (or low-sodium chicken stock)
½ cup red wine (e.g., Zinfandel*, Syrah/Shiraz or Cabernet Sauvignon)
2 cloves garlic (peeled and smashed)
½ cup of your favorite root vegetables (e.g., finely diced carrots or celery root)
1 Tbsp. all-purpose flour (as needed, to thicken)
1 ½ to 2 cups chanterelles (cleaned and sliced)
⅓ to ½ cup heavy cream, to taste
1 tsp. finely chopped capers (plus a few as garnish)
1 Tbsp. chopped fresh mint (plus mint sprigs as garnish)
Lamb chops (8 rib chops or 4 thick loin chops)
* If you find that using Zinfandel curdles the cream, try an "old vine" Zin, which may have lower acidity. Of course, if you’re cooking fish you will want to use your favorite white wine to prepare the sauce (chardonnay works well).