Cumin Roasted Lamb Ribs, Garlic Labneh, Crispy Leeks and Chilli Oil

A midweek winner you'll dash home for: Cumin Roasted Lamb Ribs, Garlic Labneh, Crispy Leeks and Chilli Oil

Lamb ribs that will make you look like a kitchen genius (but are quicker to cook than the average take out delivery)

Serves: 2
Preparation: 5 minutes
Cooking: 15 minutes

Ingredients
For lamb
1kg lamb ribs
2tsp cumin, ground
1tsp paprika, ground
1tsp garlic powder
1tsp onion powder
10g stevia
100g olive oil

For chilli oil
250g grapeseed oil
50g chilli flakes, dried
5g Sichuan peppers, dried
10g dried garlic

For leek
1 large leek
250g grapeseed oil

For garlic labneh
1kg Greek yoghurt or 500g store bought labneh
3-5 cloves confit garlic (from 2-3 garlic heads)

Method
For garlic labneh (if not store buying)
To prepare the labneh, place a sieve over a deep bowl and line with a piece of muslin or cheesecloth approximately 50cm square. You'll need the bowl to be deep enough to allow the whey to drain out of the yoghurt. Place Greek yoghurt into the cloth, tie corners loosely together and wrap up to cover. Place into the refrigerator for 12 hours or overnight, reserve whey for another recipe, use labneh as desired.
To prepare the confit garlic, slice roots of garlic heads, keeping as much flesh intact as possible.
In a small to medium saucepan or a baking dish, submerge all ingredients in the olive oil. On the stovetop you want to maintain the gentlest of simmers, no bubbles. Alternatively, in the oven the temperature can be between 70-90°C. Cooking will require at least one hour but can be cooked for up to three hours if on very low.
Allow confit ingredients to cool, and then place all in an airtight jar and use as you wish from the fridge for up to two months.

For ribs
Preheat fan-forced oven to 200°C.
In a roasting tray, thoroughly combine all marinade ingredients. Add ribs and thoroughly toss them through the marinade.
Roast for 10 minutes before turning and return to oven and roast for a further 15 minutes or until some char is present.

For crispy leeks

Cut the white and pale green part of the leek off the stem and cut remaining part into equal lengths of approximately 10cm, wash and dry thoroughly. Thinly slice the lengths into 1mm wide strips/
Heat oil in a small saucepan to a medium high heat. Fry leeks in batches until crispy, remove and drain well. Will further crisp on drying, set aside until required.

For chilli oil
Add oil, dried chili, peppers, garlic and salt (if desired) to a small pot and stir. Heat to medium-low heat and stir often for about 5 minutes.
Do not allow the oil to smoke, this could burn the chilies, making them bitter and ruin the flavour of the oil.
After 5 minutes, remove from heat and cool. Pour into an airtight jar and refrigerate for use within a month.

To serve Place a generous pool of labneh on a platter, cover with ribs, drizzle over the oil and scatter leeks.

Tips:
If you marinate your ribs the morning before you cook them, they will be even more flavoursome come dinner time.
Lamb ribs are very versatile and can be cooked low and slow or fast, high heat cooking with very similar results!

 

Reclaim your Mid-Week Meal-time Mojo

Picture this: it's time to leave work, you're hungry, tired and lacking inspiration to cook a healthy meal. On the way home, it's likely you'll open a food delivery app or duck into the local takeaway and eat anything but a healthy meal. Sound familiar?

It's a story Aussies are repeating over again and research from Australian Lamb has found 5.40pm to be the exact time we lose inspiration to cook, with 57% of the nation agreeing work stress is the leading cause.

It's time to reclaim our midweek meal mojo and remember why cooking a delicious dinner dish in the week can make you feel like a superstar. In fact, 89% of us feel happier and healthier when we cook our own meals, so Australian Lamb has teamed up with MasterChef winner and super mum Elena Duggan to get you loving the lamb and ditching the takeout.

"I wanted to create fast, tasty, healthy dishes that anyone can cook in under 30 minutes. I like to think of these recipes as the perfect takeaway swaps, inspired by some of my favourite cuisines," said Elena.

If the sound of sizzling lamb isn't enough to get you motivated, why not tune into the specially curated Meal-time Mojo Playlist on Spotify including some of Elena's favourite cooking tracks.