Top round, a muscle from the leg, is starting to pop up in supermarkets around the country. (If your market doesn't carry it yet, ask your butcher.) This small, quick-cooking cut has the succulence you'd expect from lamb but is so convenient that you needn't wait for a special occasion or a large gathering to savor it.
Lamb can be cooked in a hot lightly oiled large (2-burner) ridged grill pan over medium-high heat, turning once, 12 to 15 minutes total for medium-rare.
Recipe information
Total Time
45 min
Yield
Makes 4 to 6 servings
Ingredients
Preparation
Step 1
Prepare a gas grill for indirect-heat cooking by preheating all burners on high, covered, 10 minutes.
Step 2
Butterfly lamb horizontally through middle (without cutting all the way through, so piece opens out like a book to double its size and is 1 to 1 1/2 inches thick). Pierce meat in several places with tip of a sharp knife (so seasoning will penetrate).
Step 3
Finely grind together cumin, coriander, and peppercorns in grinder. Mince and mash garlic to a paste with 1 teaspoon salt, then stir together with ground spices and yogurt in a bowl to make a paste.
Step 4
Rub paste all over lamb.
Step 5
Reduce grill heat to medium-high and oil grill rack. Sear lamb over middle burner, covered, turning once, until well browned, 2 to 3 minutes total.
Step 6
Turn off middle burner (burner under lamb if there are only 2) and grill, covered, until an instant-read thermometer inserted into center of meat registers 120 to 125°F for medium-rare, 4 to 6 minutes more. Transfer to a cutting board and let stand, loosely covered with foil, 10 minutes before slicing.
Step 7
Serve with: orzo with feta, tomatoes, and dill , <a></a>corn on the cob
