Lamb Chops with Gorganzola

Grilled lamb chops with Gorgonzola is the kind of plate you’d expect at a chophouse. Frenched rib chops get seared over high heat with nothing but salt, pepper, and olive oil, then finished with a Gorgonzola cream sauce built from a white wine reduction. The sharp, salty blue cheese is the right counter to the rich, gamey lamb.

Use a young Gorgonzola dolce, not the aged piccante. Dolce melts smooth into cream while piccante can break and turn grainy. If your cheese is too sharp, the sauce can taste medicinal instead of silky.

Reduce the white wine by half before adding cream. That step burns off the alcohol and concentrates the wine’s acidity, which keeps the finished sauce from feeling heavy. Skip the reduction and the sauce tastes flabby.

Wrap the exposed bones with aluminum foil before grilling. Eight ounces of butter is whisked in last, off the heat, in pieces. Adding it cold while the pan is still hot is what gives the sauce its glossy emulsified shine. Boil the butter in and you’ll break the sauce into a greasy puddle.

The lamb wants to come off the grill at 130°F to 135°F (54°C to 57°C) for medium-rare. Rest the chops five minutes before plating so the juices redistribute.

Pro Tips

• Pat the chops bone-dry before oiling. Wet meat steams instead of searing and you lose the crust.
• Bring lamb to room temperature 30 minutes before grilling. Cold chops cook unevenly and the outside burns before the inside reaches medium-rare.
• Make the sauce while the lamb rests. It comes together fast and reheats poorly, so timing matters.

Variations

• Swap Gorgonzola for Roquefort or Stilton for a different blue cheese profile.
• Add a tablespoon of fresh thyme or rosemary to the cream while it reduces for an herbal lift.
• Finish with a drizzle of balsamic glaze for a bright sweet-tart counter to the cheese.