Cardamom Marinated Lamb Chops

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Things I love: cilantro. lamb. cardamom.  Well, I did not include any cilantro in this recipe.  But what a win with the other two!
Setting up the marinade with yogurt and garlic

Nom nom nom - my favorite cut of lamb

Cardamom!

Sauteing the shallots for the pear chutney

Pears for the chutney

The chutney was this amazing mix of sweet, spicy and savory.  The pears and sugar made it super sweet.  The shallots were some like secret ingredient to jazz everything up. The green chiles made it spicy.  I can't even begin to describe how fragrant this was - just when I got a whiff of the sticky pears, it quickly was replaced with the warm, almost pungent, smell of the green chiles.

Savoring every bite!!

Cardamom Marinated Lamb Chops with Pear Chutney, adapted from Everyday Exotic

For the Lamb Chops (made for 1 rack of lamb, while his recipe was for 2 racks)

• 1/2 cup greek yogurt
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 1/2 tbsp. ground cardamom
• 1 tbsp. oil (I used olive, but you can use vegetable)
• 1 rack of lamb cut into chops

Pear Chutney

• 2 bosc pears, peeled, cut into large diced pieces
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 1 tbsp. white wine vinegar
• 1/2 stick cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp. ground cardamom
• 1 green chile, sliced and de-seeded
• 1 tbsp. fresh minced ginger
• 1 tbsp. butter

Place the yogurt, garlic, cardamom and oil in a large bowl and stir to combine.  Place the lamb chops in the marinade and place in the marinade and place in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes, but up to 24 hours.  

The original recipe said to make these over a grill.  But we have a problem with our grill in that it always explodes in smoke, the fire alarm goes off, and Cooper runs to the basement, scared for his life.  You could probably do this in a pan too, but we decided to do it in the broiler.  

So set the oven to the broiler setting, and put the lamb in.  I cooked it for about 6 minutes on each side.  I removed the lamb from the oven, and covered it in foil so it would cook just a tad bit more.  Bear in mind I like my meat medium rare.  

While your lamb is marinading, prepare the pear chutney.  Heat the butter in a saute pan over medium heat.  Add the shallots and cook until they are translucent.  Add the pears, stir, and cook until tender.  Add the sugar in and stir.  Once it has all dissolved, add the white wine vinegar and stir.  Then stir in the cinnamon, chile,  and minced ginger.  Cook this mixture until all the liquid has dissolved.  It will be incredibly aromatic at this point too - try not to lick the spoon!  

Top each serving with some of the pear chutney, and enjoy warm! 

Note that this recipe also called for some cous cous but I didn't make that as an accompaniment.