Lamb Patties with Spring Greens and Mint Salad
This recipe for Lamb patties with Spring Greens and Mint Salad is a delicious, easy meal for a spring or summer dinner. The lamb patties are seasoned with fresh garlic, chives, and lemon zest before you sear them in a hot skillet. They are served over a green salad with fresh mint and a lemon vinaigrette.
Table of contents
Why We Love This Recipe For Lamb Patties with Spring Greens and Mint Salad
Mint and lamb, as in a big old roast leg of lamb with that jarred green mint jelly sauce, is a classic combination I grew up with. This recipe riffs on that flavor combo, but with fresh mint leaves in the salad and zesty lamb patties on top, the take is light and modern.
Recipe Highlights
- Just 30 minutes to make
- Great for an easy spring or summer dinner
- Patties and dressing can be made ahead
Key Ingredients For These Lamb Patties
- Lemon: Both the zest and juice of lemon are used here. If you can find Meyer lemons which are a bit sweeter and more floral than the typical Eureka lemon, use them.
- Extra-Virgin Olive Oil
- Honey: I like using orange-blossom honey for its bold flavor, but any honey will work.
- Poppy Seeds
- Dijon Mustard
- Kosher Salt & Freshly Ground Black Pepper
- Garlic
- Lean Ground Lamb: You’ll need 1 pound of ground lamb. If you can find (or ask for) ground leg of lamb that’s a great option as it’s typically very lean.
- Spring Greens: I like to use a blend of greens that are tender and mild. Mache (lamb’s lettuce), uplands cress or watercress and/or butterhead lettuce are all great in this salad.
- Fresh Herbs: Chives and mint leaves
Step-by-Step Instructions to Make This Recipe
Step 1: Make dressing
Whisk together the lemon zest, lemon juice, olive oil, poppy seeds, honey, Dijon, salt and freshly ground pepper in a large bowl.
Step 2: Make lamb patties
Mash the garlic with salt using the side of a chef’s knife, then combine the garlic, chives, more lemon zest and ground black pepper in a medium bowl. Add the lamb and gently knead until combined. Form the mixture into 4 patties. Coat a large non-stick skillet with cooking spray and heat over medium heat. Cook the patties until barely pink in the center, 3 to 5 minutes per side. Transfer the lamb patties to a plate and tent with foil.
Step 3: Serve lamb patties with spring greens and mint salad
Add greens and mint leaves to the dressing and toss to coat. Serve the lamb patties with the greens.
FAQs and Expert Tips
You could use ground beef, ground chicken or ground turkey for this recipe.
Store them in a sealable container in the fridge for up to 4 days. Reheat in the microwave for 1 to 2 minutes, or until warmed through.
Patties can be formed and refrigerated 4 hours ahead. Dressing can be made 1 day in advance.
Additional Lamb Recipes to Make
At Healthy Seasonal Recipes, we specialize in cooking with fresh veggies and creating weeknight meals. Sign up HERE to get more produce-forward dinner ideas for FREE! If you make this recipe, please come back and leave a star rating and review. I would love to hear what you thought! Happy Cooking! ~Katie
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Lamb Patties with Spring Greens and Mint Salad
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 4 patties 8 cups salad 1x
Description
This recipe for Lamb patties with Spring Greens and Mint Salad is a delicious, easy meal for a spring or summer dinner. The lamb patties are seasoned with fresh garlic, chives, and lemon zest before you sear them in a hot skillet. They are served over a green salad with fresh mint and a lemon vinaigrette
Ingredients
- 3/4 teaspoon lemon zest, divided, preferably Meyer lemon
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice, preferably Meyer lemon
- 4 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 teaspoon honey, preferably orange-blossom honey
- 1/2 teaspoon Poppy seeds
- 1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 3/4 teaspoon salt, divided
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper, plus more to taste, divided
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 2 tablespoons chopped chives
- 1 pound lean ground lamb, preferably from the leg
- 8 cups tender spring greens such as mache (lamb’s lettuce) uplands cress and butterhead lettuce
- 1/2 cup mint leaves
- 2 tablespoons chopped chives
Instructions
- Whisk 1/4 teaspoon zest, lemon juice, olive oil, poppy seeds, honey, Dijon, 1/2 teaspoon salt and freshly ground pepper to taste in a large bowl.
- Mash garlic and the remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt with the side of a chefs knife, chives, the remaining 1/2 teaspoon zest, and the remaining 1/2 teaspoon pepper in a medium bowl. Add lamb and gently knead until combined. Form into 4 patties. Coat a large non-stick skillet with cooking spray and heat over medium heat. Cook patties until there is just a hint of pink in the center, 3 to 5 minutes per side. Transfer to a plate and tent with foil.
- Add greens and mint leaves to the dressing and toss to coat. Serve patties with the greens.
Notes
Make-Ahead: Patties can be made and refrigerated 4 hours ahead. Dressing can be made 1 day in advance.
This recipe is adapted from my own which I did for EatingWell in 2010. In the magazine, I did this recipe on a whole-grain bun. You can see it here.
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 patty 3 1/2 ounces each, 2 cups salad
I’m a little late to the party, but I only just found your blog and your story really resonated with me!
When my daughter was 3 or 4 years old, we were having grilled lamb chops, and she asked, as she usually did, “What meat is this?” We told her it was lamb, and she said, with a slight frown, “Lamb? You mean a cute little baby sheep that runs in the field and goes ‘baa’?” Her dad and I looked at each other, concerned. We turned to her and one of us said yes. “Oh. Yum!” was her response, and she took a huge bite of the chop.
Also, I agree with you about eating intuitively, except I would just call it eat what you want and it will all sort itself out by the end of the week!
So here it is five months(+) later and I just read this.
How delightful to know that I’ve managed to inspire anyone via a package of salad dressing mix.
Thanks so much for the shout out. And keep on blogging. Do it to entertain and inform yourself. That’s what I find keeps me going.
Cheers,
Michael
Yes! Exactly to inform myself. I find, especially when writing posts like this, it helps me figure out and sort my thoughts. Since writing this post, I have had such an attitude shift in blogging, and I am so glad to have sorted through it. I’d also like to say that your writing is fantastic Michael and I am so honored to have you come by for a visit. Cheers!
Thanks for publishing this article. Yummy recipe-so fresh and delicious! I found your blog via Google when I was searching for LAMB. I and my kids are a crazy fans of lamb.
~Diana
Thanks for coming by Dr. Diana, I appreciate your leaving a comment letting me know how you found me.
Hi, Katie,it is my first time to your blog from Pinterest, attracted by the delicious picture and most of all the subject: LAMB. My family is a crazy lover of lamb. However, I have never thought of making lamb patties for ourselves. Your picture and subject caught me in my thought that why I never think of before. I made dumplings (You know that those Chinese style ones, somewhat in Wonton shape but with different kind of wrappings) with minced lamb (In Canada, we can buy frozen well packed lamb from New Zealand, where I believe there are one of the most beautiful place to raise their own spices of animals). If we were to choose only one kind of meat on earth to live on with, we definitely will pick lamb to eat in the rest of our lives. . . . . Love your recipe, we will definitely have a treat. Thanks.
I love reading your comment Edna. Thank you so much for writing to tell me your thoughts.I look forward to hearing how you liked the recipe.
With what I can see this is a great recipe. Thanks for the share. Can’t wait to try it.
Thank you Koby.
Yummy! I grew up on lamb but disliked it for two reasons: 1, my mother didn’t put much seasoning in it and 2, I found out from a lamb grower that the meat was probably more mutton than Spring lamb. Everything I bought from him was delicious. (You and I must be having the same cravings; I have Shepherd’s Pie baking in the oven!) I grew up in the days when no one knew anything much about food and my grandparents raised registered Angus cattle. We loved the handsome cattle (and I do think they are more attractive than said lamb!) but happily had big extended family dinners of roast beef and each family got 1/4 of a steer periodically. I did and still do like grain fed, well marbled beef. Can’t eat grass fed. I do eat less of it though… Everything in moderation including cute lambs or less cute chickens and fish… ;-D
What a cool thing to know about your grandparents Debbie. And what a funny coincidence about the Shepherd’s pie.
Heads up…your recipe post lists this:
1 pound lean ground lamb, preferably from the leg
8 cups tender spring greens such as mache (lamb’s lettuce) uplands cress and butterhead lettuce
1/2 cup mint leaves
2 tablespoons chopped chives
1 pound lean ground lamb, preferably from the leg (see ingredient note)
8 cups tender spring greens such as mache (lambs lettuce) uplands cress and butterhead lettuce
1/2 cup mint leaves
In other words: REPEAT?
This. THIS. THIS!!! You are so awesome. Talking about that dorito chicken helped and this helps more. You are so right about being authentic and trying not to make those comparisons — it’s just so hard. I loved Procopio’s piece (thanks for sharing) and will try hard to keep his writing and this piece in mind whenever I post and get crickets for comments. And while I don’t think I’m ever going to get there on hunting and field-dressing, you know I’m right there with you on knowing your farmer and your meat. Thanks a million for this post (and the lamb patties).
Aww Julianne, it is always awesome to commiserate with a friend, and I am here for you. Glad to know you are there for me too 😉
Great recipe-so fresh and delicious! I will admit to being one of those people, not fond of lamb, but your recipe makes me want to try again :-)And really great post too-stick with your guns. Always!
Thank you for your support EA!
Thanks for summing it up for all of us! Do you know I’ve never had lamb? I must try this recipe 🙂
Anne,
Thank you. I wasn’t sure what others would have to say. It makes me feel better that others agree. I grew up eating lamb (my mom was a very adventurous cook) and it never occurred to me that someone wouldn’t love it the way I did. I say if you are a meat eater, give it a go.
*Fist of Solidarity*
1. I also feel my own blogging journey is pretty sisyphean. I focus on producing good content that is scientifically grounded and provides practical answers. But my fan base is dwarfed by people who focus on cute memes and whatnot (my own version of dorito dishes). I have no answers on this – just saying I totally feel you on that front.
2. I love lamb! I’m sorry some of your readers aren’t OK with that but I totally am. Sweet Clover carries local ground lamb (usually in the frozen section) and I’ll totally make these. We also sometimes top lamb burgers with non-fat greek yogurt and fresh mint.
Yum….tasty little lambs. Cute and flavorful ;P
Alexis,
Thank you for commiserating! When I read Michael’s post it was great to be reminded about the real point of blogging to begin with. That erased a lot of the frustration. I agree there probably aren’t answers. It is good to have friends like you to complain to though when the frustration creeps in. LOl about the lambs… Literally out loud! You always make me laugh Alexis.
I got so caught up with commenting on your post that I forgot to mention that these lamb patties look amazing!
Ahh, thanks Bill!
Wow! This whole post could have come from me! Great minds minds think alike, right? I also struggle with getting ahead! It’s so frustrating that I’m always trying to catch up to get posts done and I’ve only had one week in 1 1/2 years that I’ve felt like I was ahead. I completely agree with everything you said about meat. I’m a huge animal lover but a equally huge carnivore. I do care about where my meat comes from and I just bought a chest freezer and bought an 1/8 of a cow from a White Oak Pastures where they care deeply about animal treatment and only raise grassfed beef. Great post, Katie and btw, one of my favorite posts of yours was your less safe ones about guacamole!
That is so good to hear Bill. How cool that you got a freezer. I have found that we end up eating a lot of cuts that I would normally pass over when we buy in that way. Lots of stew meat. It is so great to know your farmer.