Lamb Chops with Blueberry Sauce
If you’re a regular reader, you may have noticed my quiet love for blueberries (unlike my less quiet love for strawberries), and so I thought it would be nice to enjoy them in a savory dish rather than the sweets I usually flock to. In my mind, two proteins go beautifully with fruit: pork and lamb. Based on the randomness of my cravings, lamb it was, and so for this dish, we have Lamb Chops with a Blueberry Sauce.
If you’ve never had a savory application of blueberries like this, you might make a face at the thought of this, but I promise, this is a surprisingly great match. Aside from lamb chops being delicious, the dish as a whole was gamey and rich, the sauce tannic, full-bodied, dark, and lightly spiced with star anise. I was also a big fan of the color: the sauce was vividly dark (oxymoron anyone?)–ok, strikingly dark–on the plate. It had an appearance that looks like it took a lot more work that it did, which is another bonus for this dish: you could feasibly do this one during the middle of the week as its very quick and easy to prepare. Now if only I could eat lamb chops once a week…
- 2 lamb chops (shoulder, loin, whatever you prefer/can find)
- salt
- ground pepper
- 1 shallot
- 1/4 cup port/red wine
- 1/2 cup fresh blueberries
- 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
- 1 tablespoon butter
Begin by prepping for the sauce: mince up the garlic and shallot finely and set these aside. Then, season the lamb with salt and pepper on all sides.
Now, in a hot pan with a bit of both oil and butter, brown the lamb for about a minute or two on all sides. Then transfer this to a 400°F oven (I put the meat on a rack, but if you want to keep it in your pan, do whatever works for you) for about 6-10 minutes (it depends on the thickness of the meat–err on the side of more rare since overcooked lamb is sad lamb). Then, remove from the oven and let this rest for about 5 minutes.
While the lamb is in the oven, get to work on the sauce! Since I freed up my pan and had the lamb on a rack, I was free to use all of those oils and juices from browning before. So in the hot oil that remains, sauté the shallot for 5-8 minutes, add in the garlic for another minute, and then deglaze the pan with the wine. Finally, add in the blueberries, balsamic, and star anise. Let this simmer for 2-5 minutes.
At this point, we need to sex the sauce up a bit since otherwise, it just looks like a mess. So remove the star anise, puree the contents of the pan as best you can (food processor, blender, whatever), and then strain the puree so that all that remains is a silky smooth, dark, seductive looking sauce. The consistency should be pretty thick, but if you’d like to reduce it further, just simmer it a bit more until you’re ready to serve.
With everything done, simply plate the lamb with a dab of sauce and have at it! I served this with a side of mashed potatoes. Enjoy!
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August 29th, 2008 at 5:03 am
oh i think i could take a liking to this. i have never paired the two with each other but i totally trust your tastebuds Mike! that’s why i like coming here because i am sure to find a unique way of serving great food!
August 29th, 2008 at 5:59 am
Nop, I never had a savory application of blueberries, but I guess I’ll have too after seeing this! Mike your lamb shops looks just divine! Really nice pictures too!
August 29th, 2008 at 6:41 am
What? You mean you like strawberries??
I’m not usually a big fan of fruit with meat, but I had blackberry sauce with duck confit a few days ago and it was fabulous. So I totally trust this this would have been lovely. Lamb is really delicious atm!
August 29th, 2008 at 8:04 am
I’m a total sucker for pork and lamb dishes with savory fruit sauces. They go so well together. This blueberry sauce looks wonderful! I definitely need to give it a try.
August 29th, 2008 at 8:15 am
I love savory dishes paired with fruit but have never had blueberries before. It looks delicious.
August 29th, 2008 at 8:25 am
Lamb chops with blueberry sauce sounds like a nice combo!
August 29th, 2008 at 8:28 am
I am the oddball that is not a lamb liker at all, but I certainly could go for this on some pork chops. This sounds like an incredible dish.
August 29th, 2008 at 8:35 am
Oh I am going to try this one! Blueberries are one of the few fruits I like, and we’re getting a whole lamb (butchered up) tomorrow! I’ll just have to pull out a pack of lamb chops to thaw!
August 29th, 2008 at 9:04 am
Mmmm… yummy! I’m sure you probably saw my post last month on Pork Tenderloin w/ Blueberry bbq sauce- that was really great.
I did make some lamb chops once that had a blueberry sauce that had a habanero pepper twist to it.
I agree… lamb and pork are wonderful friends of the blueberry!
August 29th, 2008 at 10:24 am
Oh Mike…you are killin’ me with these fabulous recipes!
Seriously. Is it wrong to crave Lamb Chops with Blueberry Sauce when it’s not even 9:30 in the morning?
P.S. You forgot chicken. Fruit, especially the tropical varieties, pair nicely with chicken.
August 29th, 2008 at 10:53 am
I just love those ingredients!….Port….blueberries….balsamic vinegar and lamb has to = YUMO!!
August 29th, 2008 at 6:19 pm
I guess you people are making the best of berries, I recently saw another blog post where blackberry sauce was used over chicken, this is another great idea:-)
X M
August 29th, 2008 at 6:28 pm
Sexxing up the sauce is always great and you did that quite well! Nice job with the blueberries.
August 29th, 2008 at 7:42 pm
Love that you included some star anise in the sauce — it really adds a whole other dimension to fruit dishes.
August 29th, 2008 at 8:34 pm
what a great idea…. i could just imagine how the taste would compliment each other… looks really good… definitely, a must try recipe… thanks for sharing…
August 29th, 2008 at 11:45 pm
how creative! i love fruit in savory applications but have never thought of blueberries. this is lovely!
August 30th, 2008 at 5:33 am
have you ever heard of lamb chop’s play along? that’s the first thing that sprang to mind when i read your title this morning. yeah…it must be early.
meanwhile, that’s the thickest, most luscious blueberry sauce i’ve ever seen, and i’d like some with my pancakes now. thanks.
August 30th, 2008 at 9:18 am
I’m surprised at the match, but that sauce looks rather nice.. almost as dark as chocolate!
August 30th, 2008 at 11:02 am
Love that you used them in a savoury dish! Looks delicious!
August 30th, 2008 at 2:04 pm
I saw this sauce with bacon-wrapped scallops. And this one here sounds even better. Love the coloring.
August 30th, 2008 at 7:18 pm
hmm … surly never tried pairing these 2 together, have to give it to you for originality
having said that pls now can i try some :p
August 31st, 2008 at 9:38 am
And yet another stunner Mike…& another notch up goes my blueberry envy! Sheer torture…just reading the post makes me hungry for some yummy chops!!!
September 1st, 2008 at 12:17 am
Mike, this absolutely rocks!! I agree, pork and lamb are perfect for fruit (although chicken isn’t bad for a last minute option). The star anise must do wonders for that sauce
September 1st, 2008 at 3:58 am
I would never have thought of using blueberries in this way ….and now I wonder why as it seems to make good sense!
Thanks for the idea
September 1st, 2008 at 4:43 am
I was initially skeptical too, but I can’t argue with your logic. Pork and lamb (and fowl, too!) do go beautifully with fruit. Blueberries are an unusual, but lovely pairing, Mike. And very beautiful.
September 1st, 2008 at 9:59 am
Oh now that sounds really interesting! Yum!
September 1st, 2008 at 3:19 pm
I have no idea how that blueberry wine sauce is going to taste but I just know I’m going to like it. The star anise makes it all the more interesting to me.