Sous Vide Lamb Chops With Mint Chimichurri

Check out these little beauties. Sous vide lamb chops cooked to perfection. Moist, tender and no stress about over cooking. Worth the extra cook time if you have it.

I love a simple mint chimichurri to drizzle over the chops because mint pairs so well with lamb. As always, you can try a few variations and even a shortcut.

I use lamb loin chops for this recipe which are like mini T-bone steaks cut from the waist of the lamb. Rack of lamb and lamb chops are the most expensive and tender cuts of lamb.

Typically, lamb from New Zealand is cheapest. Costco sources its lamb from Australia, known for high quality and tender meat. Here’s a guide to buying and cooking lamb.

For those who are new to the sous vide method of cooking:

Sous vide is a technique in which food is sealed in a bag, immersed in a water bath and cooked at a precise temperature. This cooks the food to the exact desired temperature (e.g. medium rare) for perfect results. No worries about overcooking. Meats are amazingly tender. And the whole cooking process is pretty much stress free.

Although the lamb chops need a couple of hours to sit in the water bath, the actual hands-on time for this dish, including the chimichurri sauce, is about 10 minutes.

Why sous vide lamb chops? The pros and cons

Lamb chops only take a few minutes on the grill and can taste delicious. So why bother with the sous vide cooking method?

Well, if you’ve made loin lamb chops before, you will know they can be easy to over cook, they can be a little on the chewy side and the centers might be pink while the outer edges are brown.

You can eliminate all these hiccups with sous vide.

• choose the temperature you prefer – rare, medium rare, etc – and the lamb chops are guaranteed to come out that way. Edge to edge.
• count on tender, moist chops – as long as you don’t cook them for more than the suggested time.

There are a couple of downsides though. First, the longer cook time (1 1/2 – 3 hours). And second is the extra step of a final finishing sear to make the meat look good.

Bottom line: If you have the time and want guaranteed amazing tender lamb chops without the stress of worrying about over cooking, lamb sous vide is a great way to go.

What to serve with lamb chops

These sous vide lamb chops are fabulous with 15-minute hasselback sweet potatoes (especially of you’re finishing the chops on the grill), crispy oven roasted potatoes, curried rice with raisins and grilled carrots with balsamic glaze.

The lamb chops would make a nice alternative to a roast lamb or ham for an Easter dinner menu.

Tailor To Your Taste

Seasoning: In addition to salt, pepper and garlic powder, try a bit of cumin and/or oregano.

Chimichurri: Vary the fresh herbs you use with the parsley to make the chimichurri. Good examples are cilantro, chives and oregano. If you like mint and can’t find mint leaves, add a couple of teaspoons of bottled mint sauce.

Shortcut

Skip the homemade chimichurri and use a bottled chimichurri sauce, mint jelly or any fruit chutney.

Make Ahead

Sous vide the chops a day ahead and place them in the fridge in the bag. To finish, bring them to room temperature and sear or grill for 40-60 seconds per side (or slightly longer if chops are very thick).

Make the mint chimichurri several days ahead and keep it in a sealed container in the fridge.

Other sous vide recipes you might like

If you love sous vide cooking or you are just starting with this cooking method, try our best sous vide recipes post which includes lots of tips and great recipes. Chicken, beef, turkey and pork are all covered.

How to make sous vide lamb chops with mint chimichurri