Lamb Rumps with a Parmesan Crust

, from Issue #35. August, 2015
Photography by Aaron McLean.
Lamb Rumps with a Parmesan Crust

The trick with making the crust stay on is to add just enough butter to bind the mixture and to also ensure the seared meat has cooled before applying the crust. Too much butter and the crust will slide off when it gets hot.

Serves: 6

INGREDIENTS

3 x 300 gram lamb rumps
olive oil
6 medium vine tomatoes
8 large silverbeet leaves, stalk removed

Parmesan crust
½ cup fresh white breadcrumbs
½ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
30 grams butter, very soft but not melted
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1 clove garlic, crushed
2 teaspoons finely chopped thyme or rosemary
sea salt and freshly ground pepper

METHOD

Lamb: Season the lamb and heat an ovenproof sauté pan with a little olive oil. Quickly sear the lamb rumps on all sides until golden. Set aside to cool.

Preheat the oven to 200˚C.

Crust: Place all the ingredients in a bowl and using a fork, combine to make a paste. Spread evenly over the tops of the cooled lamb and place on a roasting tray. Roast for 20 minutes for medium rare lamb. Carefully transfer the lamb to a plate, taking care not to disturb the crust, cover loosely and rest for 10 minutes. Put the tomatoes in a baking dish, drizzle with olive oil and season. Roast for 5-8 minutes until their skins start to split.

Cook the silverbeet in a saucepan of boiling salted water. Drain well and toss with a knob of butter and season.

To serve: Using a very sharp knife, slice the lamb 1 cm thick. Serve with the boulangère potatoes, silverbeet and roasted tomatoes.