Ingredients
- 12 Quality Mark lamb cutlets
- 24 small basil leaves
- 1 cup dried white breadcrumbs or panko crumbs
- 1/4 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese
- 1/4 cup flour
- 1 egg, lightly beaten with a little milk
- Oil for shallow frying
- HERB VINAIGRETTE
- 6 tablespoons olive oil
- 3 tablespoons lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 1 teaspoon liquid honey
- 3 tablespoons chopped fresh herbs, such as Italian parsley, mint and chives
- GREEN VEGETABLES
- 16 spears asparagus, base snapped off, lower stalks peeled if woody and sliced in half on a diagonal
- 250g snow peas, trimmed
- 2 cups green peas, frozen
Method
Recipe shared courtesy of NZ Beef + Lamb
Lamb
Trim most of the fat from the lamb cutlets. Rub cutlets with a little oil. Press a basil leaf on to the meat on both sides of cutlets. Mix the breadcrumbs and Parmesan cheese together and place on a large plate and the flour on another. Place egg mixture in a shallow bowl. Dip the cutlets in the flour dusting off any excess, then the egg and finally in the breadcrumbs, pressing them down so the cutlets are well coated. Place on a tray and cover. Refrigerate lamb cutlets if you are not cooking them within 20 minutes.
Herb vinaigrette
Place all ingredients in a small bowl and whisk to combine.
Green vegetables: Steam or boil green vegetables until just tender, drain and place in a serving bowl. Pour over the herb vinaigrette while still warm and toss gently.
To serve
If refrigerated, bring lamb cutlets back to room temperature. Pour enough oil into the base of a large frying pan so it comes up the sides by about 2cm. When hot, place in half of the lamb cutlets and pan-fry for 4 minutes, turning once. (This will depend upon thickness of cutlets, see tips). Remove from the frying pan and place on paper towels to drain. Sprinkle with a little salt. Repeat with the remaining cutlets. Place lamb cutlets on a warm serving platter and serve with the warm green vegetables.
