Easiest Rack of Lamb
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I think I found a magic sauce. It transformed my chicken-breast eating experience and now my rack-of-lamb-eating experience. Never would I have guessed that a simple stir of mayonnaise, mustard and some fresh herbs would play such a role in my meat-cooking endeavors these days. Seriously, everything this sauce touches turns to mouth-watering goodness.
Let’s see, how else can I sell this recipe to you? It takes five minutes to prepare. It’s foolproof. And if you enjoy gnawing on bones as if they were lollipops, this recipe is for you. Make it.
Easiest Rack of Lamb
- Total Time: 35 minutes
- Yield: Serves 2
Description
The best, easiest rack of lamb you will ever make! This recipe takes five minutes to prepare. It’s foolproof. And if you enjoy gnawing on bones as if they were lollipops, this recipe is for you.
This rack of lamb goes beautifully with crispy fingerling potatoes.
Ingredients
- 1 rack of lamb, about a pound
- kosher salt
- fresh cracked pepper
- 2 T. mayonnaise
- 2 tsp. mustardchopped fresh herbs*: rosemary, thyme, chives, mint, tarragon — whatever you have
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 475ºF. Place lamb on a parchment-lined (for easy clean-up) rimmed baking sheet. Season with salt and pepper on all sides. Mix together mayo, mustard and herbs. Spread in an even layer across the rack of lamb — you might not need it all.
- Place pan in the oven. Bake for 10 minutes, reduce heat to 400º and bake for 10 more minutes. Take pan out of the oven and place lamb on a board to rest. Let rest for at least 10 minutes. Seriously, no less than 10 minutes — I can’t emphasize resting enough. Cut and serve.
Notes
*Rosemary and lamb always go well together but I adore tarragon with this recipe as well.
The lamb takes about 20 minutes to cook but depending on the size of the rack, the temperature of the lamb (room temperature or cold), and the reliability of your oven, the time will vary slightly. It might take a teensy bit of practice to nail it. For example, I made a rack today that weighed .92 lbs, and I removed it before the 20-minute mark because after 18 minutes it felt perfectly firm.
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: American
This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy.
74 Comments on “Easiest Rack of Lamb”
Look at that beautiful colour. If one dish has inspored me blogging today this is it!!
My fiancée and I tried rack of lamb once at a swanky steakhouse downtown(thank you, restaurant.com!), and it was one of the finer things we’ve eaten out. Someday we’ll be bold enough to try it at home — this will be the recipe!
Cheers,
*Heather*
I am a huge rack of lamb person. If it is on the menu i order it. Most of the time i make mine with rosembary and garlic and make it into a paste. But this looks fabulous major and mustart. I think i just need to try this next time.
Hi,
Looks gorgeous! Could you please tell me what type of mustard you use?
Thanks so much,
Angela
What kind of mustard did you use
I’ve always used dijon on this and it so yummy. Hope this helps.
Thank you, Lisa! That’s what I use as well 🙂
Love this-I make the same topping and add parmesan to it and in tomato season slater this on whole tomatoes (topped off) and bake-really good. I will definitely try both lamb and chicken this way.
Oh lordy – I may have to change my dinner plans for tonight and go out and find myself a nice rack of lamb because this looks incredble!
Made this for a dinner party – HUGE hit. I love cooking rack of lamb and this is the easiest recipe ever. Next time I will add mint to the oregano, rosemary, thyme and garlic blend I used. Thanks! BTW – this technique is also awesome on boneless, skinless chicken breasts – keeps them from drying out.
Yummers! What kind of mustard do you use?
I used this recipe to my make my first rack of lamb. It turned out PERFECTLY and my husband couldn’t stop raving about the dish, especially the coating. I used tarragon, thyme and rosemary. Thank you so much for such an easy recipe with exceptional results!
Wonderful to hear this Teddi! Tarragon has to be my favorite herb. It imparts such flavor. So happy this worked out for you. I love this one, too.
How many pieces do you need for each guest? 2?3? along with the rest of the meal of course.
I would estimate at least 2 per guest. Some of the guests will want more, some will be happy with just 2. Better to have more than less — these are kind of irresistible, so if you have a platter of chops lingering in the center of the table, they most likely will disappear. Hope they turn out well!
Tried it tonite…loved it! Great recipe!
I came to your blog through cup of jo and loved it so much that I looked at all recipes from beginning to end and selected a ton to try. Made this yesterday with your oven fries and a salad and it was incredible, thank you so much!
(it didn’t look half as pretty though, I think because the mustard had less fat in it, as it was very strong french mustard. I compensated by adding a little more mayo, but I think I still have to work a little on that)
Rita, I’m so happy to hear this! We live on those oven fries all winter, and the rack of lamb is one of my favorites, too. I hope you find the right mix of mustard to mayo, but looks are overrated anyway, right? Thanks for writing in.
Very nice meal. Marinated for 24 hours which added a great deal of flavor and tenderness. Will make again.
Great to hear this, Jim! Will try marinating next time, too.
Still waiting on what’s the best mustard???
Hi! Don’t know how I missed this! Typically, I use Grey Poupon Dijon Mustard. I do love the Maille brand, too. Can’t go wrong with either!
I sent my husband to the store to buy something QUICK for dinner and he came back with rack of lamb “they were having a great sale I couldn’t pass it up”. Came across your recipe and threw it together with what we had – rosemary, basil, parley, grain mustard and mayo. It turned out great! The cook time was right on… although our rack was nearly 1.5 lbs it was perfectly rare. The only thing I did differently was broil it for about 3 minutes at the end because it wasn’t as crusty as I wanted. Super easy, super delicious, thank you!
Hilarious story re husband at store … love it! Thanks for sharing. I’m so glad this worked out well for you. And nice work with the broiler — I’ve been using my broiler so often these days to finish things off. Such a great tool. Have a wonderful Thanksgiving!!
I made this tonight. Superb! Mine was exactly the same as your photo.. I have my photo to prove it. This was so easy for a great result.
So happy to hear this, Lesley! I love making this one this time of year—so festive!
I can’t find the ‘print’ function for this recipe!
Just put it in print-friendly form! I’m still updating older recipes. Thanks for the nudge!
I was lookinf for a different rack of lamb recipe, came across this one and can’t emphasize enough how easy , fast and effortless it was to make!! My husband absolutely loves ans asked me to cook it again soon. I made it with rosemary, thyme and 2 small garlic cloves. Big hit ! Tks for another great recipe.
So happy to hear this Brianne! Thanks for writing in.
would you add garlic and what kind of mustard is best. thanks
Hi Julie!
I use Dijon mustard, and I think a little bit of garlic would be nice! Just be sure to finely mince it — wouldn’t want it to burn with the high heat.
Huge lamb fan. I made this last and it was amazing. Just perfection. My boyfriend and I finished the entire rack. So easy and so delicious. Can’t wait to try it on chicken!
So happy to hear this, Gabriela! I love lamb, too. I always forget about it until Easter arrives 🙂
This was absolutely wonderful! I have never liked rack of lamb, but I am now a convert. My hubby requested I mark and keep this for the future. Thanks again!
So happy to hear this!
Alexandra,
This was the best rack of lamb I’ve ever had! I normally grill the individual chops but baking the rack whole has a really nice taste and leaves it really nice and rare and juicy. The sauce is remarkable. I used 1/2 Dijon mustard, 1/2 Gulden spicy brown mustard and for the herbs tarragon, parsley and chives. The best part is sucking on the bones for dessert. Nicely done. Thank you.
Ron / Scottsdale Arizona
So happy to hear this, Ron! Couldn’t agree more re sucking on the bones — so good. Grilling sounds delicious as well!
I really enjoyed the simple goodness
of this recipe! If you want to try to
make your first lamb – this is a great
place to start. Appropriate for
company or laid back dinners.
So happy to hear this, Lisa!
I’ve chosen to prepare this lovely recipe for a dinner party this weekend! One question: did you do anything with the fat layer on the rack before applying the mayo mixture? I’m not sure if I should trim the fat away or leave it be.
Great question — I should make a note. If there is a thick layer of fat, I would trim away some of it. I typically leave about 1/4 inch of fat. Hope that helps. I love this recipe! So easy and good.
Excellent, thanks! I’m really looking forward to making this dish. I plan to serve it with savory mashed sweet potatoes & caramelized onions, and sautéed broccolini. Should be a pretty plate.
Ohh, that sounds beautiful Diane! Yum.
I made this tonight it was amazing, The only thing I did different was made chimichurri and mixed that with the mustard.
So happy to hear this, Kelly!
I love this deviation on the traditional dish. As a chef, I cannot tolerate mint sauce and find it abominable that it served as a sauce, so this is a much welcome substitute. Rack of lamb, in my opinion, is one of the most elegant pieces of meat and to serve it inaccurately will cost you, at $20+ a pound, you do not want to overcook or mis-step this serving. This recipe makes the piece dummy proof. I will make a few suggestions. First off, you can and should trim your lamb of ALL fat. It does not make the texture or taste vary, but is much better as a choice, as your guests do not need to take the time to “trim the fat” and can dig right in. It does not vary the cooking time either, so there is no reason to serve this fat laden as it add’s 65% more calories per serving! This recipe also works for Lamb Loin, but make sure again that you trim the fat, then add spices, and tie your loin up and then cover with the mayo/mustard sauce prior to cooking. Never have I had a dish of mine with more requests for the recipe.. and it is nothing more than a simplistic take on ordinary condiments… nobody is the wiser! Kudos
Thanks for all of this Mark! So many great suggestions.I will absolutely trim all of the fat next time! Great to hear re lamb loin, too.
I don’t like lamb so don’t cook it very often. My husband’s grandpa was a sheep herder so he ate lamb a lot growing up. He devoured 1.5 lbs rack last night. I heard words like fantastic and amazing coming from his mouth. That doesn’t happen very often. Thanks!!!
So happy to hear this Shauna! I have a lamb-loving husband as well 🙂
This was amazing / I made it with a cherry wine balsamic glaze
Wonderful to hear this, Carolyn!
I’d love to hear how you made your cherry wine balsamic glaze … it sounds delicious!
I made this for some friends this past weekend. First of all, the smell was so delicious in the house. My one friend who only eats beef, actually tried it and thought it was really good.
I am going to make it again tonight for dinner.
Thank you for the delicious recipe.
Wonderful to hear this, Jennifer!
So good! My first time cooking a rack of lamb! So easy…. so good!
Fantastic!
I don’t really like mustard, do u think I could replace w some Parmesan cheese and add herbs or would’ve it be weird??? Or is there something else I could add in place of mustard?
Hi Christa! I would maybe use some olive oil or a little bit more mayonnaise to replace the 2 tsp mustard. But I think parmesan and herbs sounds delicious!
This was delicious. I loved the simplicity of it too!
Great to hear, Lesley! Thanks for writing 🙂