Lamb Loin Chops with Greek Salad and Yogurt-Lemon Sauce Recipe

By
Nick Kindelsperger
Nick Kindelsperger is a contributing writer at Serious Eats.
Nick Kindelsperger is a food critic at the Chicago Tribune.  His food writing appears in The Washington Post, Newsweek, Epicurious, Baltimore Sun, Serious Eats, Grub Street, New York Magazine, and Tasting Table, among others.
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Updated April 23, 2019
Nick Kindelsperger

Like BLTs, the best time to indulge in a Greek salad is during tomato season. That's the time when this mix of raw vegetables—usually tomatoes, cucumbers, red onions, and olives—tastes vibrant and dynamic, instead of watery and sad. And no one loves a sad salad.

To stretch this salad into a full meal, I immediately thought of lamb. Sadly, I didn't have time to roast a whole leg of lamb (shame), but I did have the eight minutes necessary to cook up these cute little lamb loin chops (which look like miniature t-bone steaks). The two components would have tasted fine together, but I wanted to find a way to truly combine them. That's where the yogurt-lemon dressing with feta comes in. The cooling sauce plays nicely with the lamb, while also adding some creamy and tart notes to the salad.

Recipe Details

Lamb Loin Chops with Greek Salad and Yogurt-Lemon Sauce Recipe

Active 30 mins
Total 30 mins
Serves 4 servings
Cook Mode (Keep screen awake)

Ingredients

  • 4 tablespoons olive oil

  • 2 tablespoons fresh juice from about 1 lemon, divided

  • 2 large tomatoes, stems and seeds removed, chopped

  • 1 cucumber, peeled, quartered lengthwise, and chopped into 1/4-inch pieces

  • 1/2 medium red onion, thinly sliced

  • 1 cup Kalamata olives, pits removed, cut in half

  • 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano

  • 1/4 cup plain Greek yogurt

  • 2 ounces feta cheese, crumbled

  • Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

  • 4 lamb loin chops, 4 to 6 ounces each

Directions

  1. In a large bowl, whisk together 1 tablespoon of the olive oil and 1 tablespoon of the lemon juice. Add tomatoes, cucumber, red onion, and olives, and toss until combined. Set aside.

  2. In a medium-sized bowl, whisk together 2 tablespoons of the olive oil, the yogurt, and the remaining 1 tablespoon of lemon juice. Stir in the crumbled feta. If necessary, season with salt and pepper.

  3. Season the lamb loin chops with salt and pepper on both sides. Heat remaining tablespoon oil in a 12-inch stainless steel skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add the chops. Cook without moving until brown crust develops, about 3 minutes. Carefully flip and cook until medium-rare, about 3 minutes longer. Transfer chops to a plate and allow to rest for 5 minutes.

  4. Using a slotted spoon, divide the Greek salad between four plates, leaving as much of the liquid behind as possible. Add a lamb loin chop to each plate and drizzle with the yogurt-lemon sauce. Serve with more of the yogurt-lemon sauce.

Nutrition Facts (per serving)
616Calories
48gFat
11gCarbs
37gProtein
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Nutrition Facts
Servings: 4
Amount per serving
Calories616
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 48g62%
Saturated Fat 17g86%
Cholesterol 116mg39%
Sodium 832mg36%
Total Carbohydrate 11g4%
Dietary Fiber 3g9%
Total Sugars 5g
Protein 37g
Vitamin C 18mg91%
Calcium 148mg11%
Iron 4mg23%
Potassium 697mg15%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.
(Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)

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