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Dolly’s Rub Is The Only One You Ever Need For Lamb

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grilled leg of lamb

Dolly the Lamb (July 5, 1996 to February 14, 2003) was the first cloned mammal. She was produced by Ian Wilmut, Keith Campbell and other scientists at the Roslin Institute near Edinburgh, Scotland. Wilmut said “Dolly is derived from a mammary gland cell and we couldn’t think of a more impressive pair of glands than Dolly Parton’s”. So naturally I have to name my BBQ and grilling lamb rub after her.

Rosemary and garlic are the classic seasonings for lamb and mutton, with good reason. Forget the mint jelly, please. Now if you want to chop up a bit of fresh mint, go for it. But remember: Lamb is very much like beef, a hearty red meat. You wouldn’t put mint jelly on a roast beef would you?

Dolly's Lamb Rub Recipe


grilled leg of lamb
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4.27 from 197 votes
Rosemary and garlic are classic seasonings for lamb and mutton because it enhances the flavor and brings out the best qualities of the meat. This recipe includes both and is the only one you need for any lamb dish.

Course:
Rub
,
Sauces and Condiments
Cuisine:
American
difficulty scale

Makes:

Servings: 0.5 cup

Takes:

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Ingredients

For the rub

  • 10 cloves garlic
  • 2 tablespoons dried rosemary leaves (broken or crushed a bit by hand)
  • 1 tablespoon whole mustard seeds
  • 1 tablespoon ground black pepper
  • 1 tablespoon paprika
  • 1 teaspoon ground bay leaves

For the paste

  • 6 tablespoons water

For the dry brine

Notes:
About the bay leaves. These are usually sold whole, so you'll need to grind them yourself in a spice grinder, blender, food processor, or coffee grinder.
About the salt. Remember, kosher salt is half the concentration of table salt so if you use table salt, use half as much. Click here to read more about salt and how it works.
Metric conversion:

These recipes were created in US Customary measurements and the conversion to metric is being done by calculations. They should be accurate, but it is possible there could be an error. If you find one, please let us know in the comments at the bottom of the page

Method

  • Dry brine a leg of lamb, rack of lamb, or lamb shoulder a few hours before cooking. Overnight is better. You want the salt to have a chance to soak in. Use 1/2 teaspoon Morton coarse kosher salt per pound (454g) of meat.
  • For the rub mince, press, or crush the garlic, then mix it with the remaining rub ingredients in a bowl. You can store this for later use or you can mix it with the water to make a paste and use it right away. To make the paste, add about half the water and stir. If it is too thick, add more water until you have a slurry that spreads thickly. To use the paste, coat the brined meat with it and start cooking.

Related articles

Published On: 1/27/2014 Last Modified: 8/12/2024

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  • Meathead, AmazingRibs.com Founder And BBQ Hall of Famer - Founder and publisher of AmazingRibs.com, Meathead is known as the site's Hedonism Evangelist and BBQ Whisperer. He is also the author of the New York Times Best Seller "Meathead, The Science of Great Barbecue and Grilling", and is a BBQ Hall Of Fame inductee.

 

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