Chef Forum banner

Please critique this dish

2K views 23 replies 12 participants last post by  dorine 
#1 ·
I prepared the following dish this evening for dinner. Please read my description and see the photos. I want some critiques and criticisms about the dish, the method, or the plating. Anything you see that could be improved. I promise my feelings won't get hurt. Just be honest.

First I started with some beautiful lamb loin chops (my new favorite cut of meat).



Next, I trimmed off a little of the fat to render down.



I rendered the fat down over medium high heat until the fat was crispy.



Once the lamb fat was crispy, I discarded the pieces and added 4 diced purple potatoes, salt, and pepper.





After about 5 minutes, I added 1/2 of a diced round squash, with more salt and pepper.







I continued to cook for about 5 minutes, then added about a tsp of minced fresh rosemary and place the pan in a 375* oven for about 12 minutes.

I seasoned the lamb chops liberally with salt and pepper, then heated about 2 tbsp of safflower oil in a 12" pan over high heat. When the oil began to smoke, I placed the chops in the pan.



I seared the chops for about 2 minutes on each side, then added 3 tbsp of butter, 2 tsp of minced rosemary, reduced the heat to medium, and began basting with the butter.





After basting on both sides for about 5 minutes total, I removed the chops to a plate to rest, increased the heat to high, then deglazed with 1/4 cup of tawny port. After sauce had reduced by about 1/3, I stirred in about a tbsp of red currant jelly and a tbsp of butter.



I plated the chops around a bed of the potatoes and squash, sauced the chops, then topped with a few pieces of shaved lobster mushroom.







The dish came together great, at least to my taste. The squash was very soft, and the potatoes were perfect. I love cooking potatoes with this method. Please offer any critique, advice, or suggestions you may have.
 
See less See more
15
#2 ·
I think it looks perfect. /img/vbsmilies/smilies//smile.gif I like to use whole herbs, garlic, and shallots when cooking like this. Stuff like this is hard to plate though. The bones, the non regular shape of the potatoes, it all makes for a mess on the plate. If I were serving this combination in a restaurant I would serve the three chops on one plate and the potatoes/veggies in a dish separately. You know, steakhouse style.
 
#3 ·
Main thing is Lamb is cooked perfectly. The rest is if it tasted good to you, what more could you strive for?
 
#5 ·
The last picture surprised me. I'd have thought nine minutes of stovetop cooking would have taken the chops beyond that point. But they look perfect.

For me, the mushrooms would have been superfluous.

I semi-agree with Kuan on plating. His points are valid. But for at-home eating, how much does it matter? Still, if there had been only one chop, partially leaning on the veggies, the negative space that allows would have made the plating totally different.

All in all, I'd call it a job well done.
 
#7 ·
The "cuisson" of your meat is totally perfect, a result of very good timing and a resting period!

There are a few things I would do otherwise, but it's merely inspired by personal preference in taste.

 I never use lambfat and cut the most off. It doesn't taste good IMO. For the same reason I wouldn't cook the potatoes in it. And, before deglazing the pan, I would also get rid of the fat first.

 I sprinkle a little lemonjuice over the lamb when cooked. It neutralizes the fat and gives a deeper taste to the somewhat sweet meat.

 Personally I would make the sauce with deglazing with port or madeira like you did, but add a little previously reduced vealstock in which some raw mushrooms and a sprig of thyme are cooked while reducing, add some small cold butter chunks at the end and just a little rosemary very finely chopped. No currant jelly.

Is that green veggie a round courgette?
 
#10 ·
For me, the mushrooms would have been superfluous.
It was. I liked the mushroom, but the dish would have been fine without it. I had never had lobster mushroom, so I got a small piece at the grocery store to try. It will probably be left off next time.
 
#12 ·
I'm curious about the variation in terms for the courgettes/zucchini's as well.  Perhaps KYH can lend his expertise to this. 

When I hear the term 'round courgette' I think of the squash with a more buttery yellow/orange meat inside.  The one you used above I would call a 'round zucchini' becuase the meat inside is still relatively greenish.

Admittedly this could be the same sqush in different growth stages.  I'm curious to know the difference in them, if any.
 
#13 ·
I didn't. I was cooking and eating by myself, and didn't feel like opening a whole bottle of wine. If I had, it probably would have been a bottle of Chateau Ste. Michelle Merlot, probably 2006.
wow, you made that whole meal for yourself?...right on.... looks like a very fallish meal...only thing i would add is perhaps a sprig or two of fresh thyme or rosemary standing straight up in the center of your triangle...something green...i'm just a sucker for garnish..

joey
 
#14 ·
....

I never use lambfat and cut the most off. It doesn't taste good IMO. For the same reason I wouldn't cook the potatoes in it. And, before deglazing the pan, I would also get rid of the fat first.

I sprinkle a little lemonjuice over the lamb when cooked. It neutralizes the fat and gives a deeper taste to the somewhat sweet meat.

...
One of the greatest contributions that the greeks have given to the world is potatoes roasted in lamb fat. With lemon. I'm not arguing with you about what you should or shouldn't like but this statement reminded me of greek lemon roasted potatoes, possibly my favorite meal in the world.

Excellent dish tyler!
 
#15 · (Edited)
I'm curious about the variation in terms for the courgettes/zucchini's as well. Perhaps KYH can lend his expertise to this.

When I hear the term 'round courgette' I think of the squash with a more buttery yellow/orange meat inside. The one you used above I would call a 'round zucchini' becuase the meat inside is still relatively greenish.

Admittedly this could be the same sqush in different growth stages. I'm curious to know the difference in them, if any.
Courgette is the French word for the Italian word Zucchini. Basically a small "Courge" (squash). The most common are long and green, but some are round, some are yellow, etc. What is used here is a round courgette.

The dish looks very appetizing to me. The one thing that surprised me is that you added the courgettes 5mn after the potatoes. For me, potatoes need MUCH more cooking time than courgettes, and I'm afraid if I added courgettes 5mn after the potatoes, by the time the potatoes are cooked, the courgettes are a mush. Maybe that's what happened but you liked it? Or maybe that didn't happen... I usually like my courgettes to still have a little bit of bite to them when they're in my plate.
 
#16 ·
As FF notes, courgette is the French word for zucchini. It's also used in Great Britain.

Here in the States, what Tyler used would be called a round zucchini, of which there are at least three varieties.

When I grew them I found them to be more watery that straight zucchini, and had to take that into account when cooking with them. 
 
#17 ·
one thing that surprised me is that you added the courgettes 5mn after the potatoes. For me, potatoes need MUCH more cooking time than courgettes, and I'm afraid if I added courgettes 5mn after the potatoes, by the time the potatoes are cooked, the courgettes are a mush.
What I was going for was a contrast in texture between the two. The zucchini (or courgette if you like) was silky and creamy, not quite mushy. Soft in a good way. The potatoes, while cooked through and soft, still had a little more bite to them. I like that contrast.

KY, I found the opposite yesterday. When I sliced the zucchini, it didn't perspire like a typical zucchini.
 
#18 ·
May have been a variatal difference, Tyler. Or even degree of ripeness.

Didn't mean to imply that they were watery; just that they had more moisture than regularly shaped zukes. For me, the round zucchini were about the same consistency as the immature flat tan pumpkins we ate all summer, with the exception that the flat tans were better on the grill.
 
#19 ·
Well Lamb is my favourite winter protein....looks yummy and cooked perfectly

Yes, I would have cooked with a more hardy squash.....but hey , it's all personal preferance

looks like a small spaghettti squash to me...

Great dish....I'm hungry!

Gypsy
 
#20 ·
May have been a variatal difference, Tyler. Or even degree of ripeness.

Didn't mean to imply that they were watery; just that they had more moisture than regularly shaped zukes. For me, the round zucchini were about the same consistency as the immature flat tan pumpkins we ate all summer, with the exception that the flat tans were better on the grill.
I would also assume that a difference could be attributed to the region in which the two were grown. I would assume that the zucchini grown in Kentucky receive more water than those grown in Texas. Simply a more arid climate here. Regardless, it was delicious. Very sweet and delicate.
 
#21 ·
Wow. I'm impressed. The only thing I might do differently would be to slice the potatoes, and cut the squash "french fry style". IMHO [whatever that's worth], this would be more appealing on the plate than a pile of chunks. Is that 3 chops for just one serving???
 
#24 ·
I bet it was delicious!

It sounds like you added an awful lot of salt and pepper. If it was for you to eat, then it was to your taste, and was fine. The salt might have been excessive for a lot of other people. I rejected it for eating as soon as I saw the second addition of salt.

I'd prefer the plate garnished with something raw and involving more color, even if just a bit of the classic parsley.
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top