Sriracha and Pomegranate Lamb with Beetroot Tabbouleh

It’s often the weird and wonderful, utterly disparate ingredients that unify to make the most satisfying of meals. Pomegranate molasses, with its lip-puckering tanginess, marries very well with the salty spice of sriracha chilli sauce. The tabbouleh is earthy, but offers random bursts of revitalising sweetness as the pomegranate seeds pop in the mouth.

Serves 4

For the lamb

8 lamb cutlets

1 tbsp olive oil

4 tbsp sriracha

2 tbsp pomegranate molasses

1 tsp fine sea salt

30g (1oz) unsalted butter

For the tabbouleh

250g (9oz) cracked bulgar wheat

600ml (1 pint) boiling water

2 large handfuls of flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped

3 small beetroot, peeled and coarsely grated

4 spring onions, finely sliced

Seeds from 1 pomegranate

Extra virgin olive oil

Sea salt flakes and coarse black pepper

In the morning, put the lamb into a mixing bowl and add the other ingredients except the butter. Stir together until the lamb is evenly coated – I find it easiest (not to mention incredibly satisfying) to use my hands. Cover the bowl and refrigerate all day.

When you’re ready to cook, put the bulgar wheat into another mixing bowl and cover with the boiling water. Cover and leave to soak for 15–20 minutes while you cook the lamb.

Heat a large frying pan over a high heat. Once the pan is very hot, add the lamb cutlets and fry for 2½ minutes per side. In the last 30 seconds throw in the butter and allow it to fizz and foam, using a spoon to baste the lamb with it. Once cooked, put the lamb on a plate to rest, and pour over the cooked butter.

Once the bulgar wheat is soft, drain away any excess water, then add the parsley, beetroot, spring onions, pomegranate seeds, a very generous drizzle of extra virgin olive oil and salt and pepper to taste. Serve an enticing mound of tabbouleh topped with the tender lamb cutlets.

This recipe is from A Flash in the Pan: Simple, speedy, stovetop recipes by John Whaite

If you liked this, why not try this recipe for Braised Lamb Shank from Institut Paul Bocuse Gastronomique?