This is a fairly meaty cut and sells at a higher price than some other
lamb cuts. The photo specimen, purchased at a multi-ethnic market in
Los Angeles, conforms to neither Style A (13th rib only) or Style B (no
rib) in having ribs 11 12 and 13. It was 11 inches by 6 inches and
weighed 2.1 pounds. Cut to Style A it would have been 1 pound 11 ounces,
9 inches by 6 inches. The short loin part of the tenderlon can be seen
in the upper right.
Yield: Prepared as described below and using all parts including the skirt and rib offcuts a 2 pound loin resulted in only 6 ounces of debris plus some rendered fat, so lets call it 7 ounces. This leaves 25 ounces edible or 78%. Actual served weight will be slightly less due to water loss, but this is still a very good yield.
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The loin may include 1 to 3 ribs which are not proper loin chops (the
photo shows two rib chops on the left). The loin chops are quite meaty,
containing only a thin T-shaped bone. Actually, they are mineature T-Bone
and Porterhouse steaks. A 2 pound loin yielded 2 rib chops and 7 loin
chops about 1 inch thick.
These chops are very tender and very flavorful. They can be pan fried, broiled or grilled. Making a couple of cuts through the fatty membrane will reduce bulging from the membrane shrinking. Count two to three per person depending on expected hunger and whatever else you will be serving.
Preparation is easy. You needn't have the butcher make any cuts if you have a sharp Chinese cleaver knife and a soft faced mallet. First make cuts between any ribs. Place your cleaver aligned with this cut and knock it through the bones with the mallet to free them. Cut crosswise the same way to shorten the tail so they more match the loin chops. There will be a lump of bone in the top corner opposite the rib. Cut this away with the cleaver knife and mallet.
Cut away the skirt below the chops. Now turn the loin outside up and using the cleaver and mallet cut the loin into about 1 inch slices. The skirt below the loin chops is quite edible, but is much tougher so should be reserved for another use or for the enjoyment of the cook.
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