Chef notes

Grilled lamb skewers are a classic Beijing street food that are reimagined in the form of these juicy lamb lollipop chops. A homemade spice rub makes them incredibly fragrant and impossible to eat, especially when dipped in a homemade sesame sauce.

You’ll need a clean spice or coffee grinder to grind the whole spices for the rub. The blend of cumin, coriander, Sichuan pepper and chili flakes is worth making a double batch of, though, as it’s delicious when used as a rub for chicken, steak and salmon, too. Here, it seasons the lamb chops before they’re pan-seared and basted in a thyme brown butter. Once the chops are cooked, they’re served over a creamy tahini and sesame sauce, sprinkled with flaky salt and enjoyed immediately.

A few secrets to perfecting these lamb lollipop chops: Make sure the grill pan or cast iron pan is really hot before searing the lamb. This ensures a golden, crisp crust on the meat. After cooking the lamb chops, let them rest for a few minutes before serving. Doing so allows the juices to settle and keeps every bite as flavorful as possible. We also suggest cooking the lamb chop to medium for the best texture and flavor.

Serve these lollipop chops as an appetizer or snack, or double the batch and serve them as the main event with a few of your favorite vegetable sides. Don’t forget to have napkins nearby as these are best enjoyed as a handheld fare and can get delightfully messy.

Get Ingredients: If you don’t have everything you need on hand, you can easily purchase all of the ingredients (just click the orange button below that says ‘Get Ingredients’). You can pick and choose exactly what ingredients you need based on what’s in your pantry and they’ll be on your doorstep before you know it.

Ingredients

For the Beijing Spice Rub

3 tablespoons cumin seed
3 tablespoons coriander seeds

3 tablespoons Sichuan peppercorns
1 tablespoon chili flakes

For the Lamb

1 pound rack of lamb
kosher salt, to taste
2 tablespoons canola oil

2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 sprigs fresh thyme

For the Sesame Sauce

1/2 cup tahini sesame paste
2 teaspoons rice vinegar
1 teaspoon soy sauce

1/2 tablespoon warm water
kosher salt, to taste

For Finishing

1 tablespoon sesame seeds

1 tablespoon Coarse sea salt (preferably Maldon)

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Preparation

Make the spice rub:

Toast each spice in a small sauté pan over high heat for about 2 minutes. When you can smell the spices in the air, they are ready. Grind them separately into powders with a spice or coffee grinder, then strain them through a fine mesh sieve. Combine in a mixing bowl.

Prepare the lamb:

Clean the racks of lamb, keeping the fat caps on. Portion them into single chops, then season them generously with the Beijing spice rub (reserving 1 teaspoon) and store them in the refrigerator for 1 hour to let the flavors marinate.

Make the sesame sauce:

In a medium mixing bowl, combine the tahini paste, rice vinegar, soy sauce, warm water and 1 teaspoon of the spice mix. Stir and adjust the seasoning with salt.

Heat up a small sauté pan over high heat. Add the sesame seeds and coarse sea salt in the pan and toss the pan to combine while toasting, about 2 minutes.

Cook the lamb:

Season the spiced lamb chops with salt. Preheat a large cast-iron skillet over high heat. Add the canola oil and place the lamb chops in the skillet, searing all sides until golden, 2 to 3 minutes.

When the lamb chops are finished searing, put the butter and thyme in the pan. Baste the lamb with the brown butter. When the internal temperature reaches 130 F, remove the lamb from the heat and let rest for 5 minutes.

To plate, spread the sesame sauce on the bottom, arrange the lamb chops and garnish with finishing salt and sesame seeds on top.