De retour au traditions – Petites côtes d’agneau grillé mariné à l’ail et cumin et flageolets

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I never bought flageolets beans in the US, last time I ate flageolet was in France. Flageolet are kidney beans that are not fully grown, so they have a nice light green color. They go wonderfully with lamb and it somehow it’s traditional accompaniment. So I thought let’s go back to traditions but at the same time, let’s not spend the whole Sunday cooking. The good thing with lamb cutlets is that they just need to be marinated and cook quickly on grill or under broiler. You need to soak the flageolets the night before, but then they cook quickly. One little trick for cooking dry beans the same day if you forgot to soak them the night before, is to add 1 tsp of baking soda to the beans while cooking. Then you will have to change their cooking water a few times, about 3 or 4 times. This way they cook quickly, I think their flavor is better if soaked overnight but still, it’s an emergency trick that will enable you to eat beans the same day you feel like it.

Ingredients for 4

For the lamb and marinade

  • 8 lamb shanks 
  • 4 garlic cloves
  • 1 tbs cumin powder
  • 1 tsp paprika
  • 1/4 tsp chili powder or chili flakes
  • 3 tbs olive oil
  • salt and pepper

For the flageolets 

  • 1 1/2 cups dry flageolet beans
  • 1/2 onion
  • 3 cloves
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 1 carrot
  • 1 celeri stick
  • 2 branches rosemary
  • 2 tomatoes, chopped
  • 1 garlic clove, cut in 3 pieces
  • 1 tbs olive oil
  • salt and pepper

Preparation

For the marinade, combine all the ingredients in a bowl, mix well and spread mixture on all the lamb sides. Add salt and pepper and place in a air-tight container in the refrigerator for about  3 hours.

Soak flageolets the night before twice their quantity of water.

When soaked, cook flageolets in water with bay leaves, carrot, celeri sticks, 1 rosemary sprig and the onion where cloves have been pinned. Cook for about 30 min or until the beans are cooked but not mushy. 10 min before end they’re done cooking, add salt. 

Let flageolets cool down in their own water. Drain beans keeping a tbs or 2 of their own water.

Heat olive oil in a pan, add garlic clove in 3 pieces, and rosemary sprigs thorn, stir for a while to get the flavors out. Add tomotoes, salt and pepper, and cook for a few minutes. Add beans mix well.

Grill the lamb shanks under broiler at high heat 4 minutes or so each sides, until grilled outside but still rosy and moist in the inside.