Extremadura is a land-lock region in west-central Spain. For millennia, it's been a center for pastoralism and animal husbandry and it's known for its high quality pork products and as the home of Merino sheep. It's thus not surprising that much of its cuisine is based on meat products.

One of my dear friends comes from Extremadura and, before they retired, her parents ran a butcher shop in the area. I was thus lucky enough to taste the incredible jamón ibérico from the region and it is outright sublime. It's worth traveling to the area just to taste it. American pork, however, cannot measure up and thus I decided on a dish featuring Extremadura's other famous meat (albeit mine came from Australia). For my quick sojourn into Extremaduran cuisine, this is the recipe I made:

Chuletitas de Cordero con Refrito Extremeño

Extremaduran Lamb Chops

This is an extremely simple and quick recipe that makes the lamb the start of the meal - though use a good wine given how little there is to mask its flavor. I had rather thick loin lambs, and I cooked them for a total of 7 minute, which made them perfectly medium rare.

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Extremaduran Lamb Chops Ingredients 2 lbs lamb loin chops salt to taste olive oil 3 garlic cloves, sliced 1/4 cup parsley leaves, very finely minced 1/2 cup white wine freshly ground pepper Directions Season lamb chops with salt to taste. Heat a thin layer of olive oil in a frying pan over medium-high heat. Add the lamb chops, in batches if necessary, and cook for 3 minutes. Flip and cook for 2-4 minutes or until done to your liking. Remove chops from pan. Lower heat to medium. Add the garlic slices and sauté until they start to brown, about 1 minute. Add the white wine and the minced parsley. Cook until it reduces by half. Return lamb chops to the pan and coat with the sauce on both sides. Season with freshly ground pepper. Turn off heat and let rest for 5 minutes before serving.

Adapted from a recipe at Dia.

Iberian cuisines I've explored so far: Alavesan, Andalusian, Andorran, Aragonese, Asturian, Azorean, Balearic, Basque, Canarian, Cantabrian, Castilian, Catalan, Galician, Gibraltarian, Jerezano, Lisbon

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