Instant Pot Lamb Chops (Lamb Shoulder Recipe)

Instant Pot Lamb Chops. Pressure cooker lamb shoulder chops, with flavors from southern France.

My first meal in Paris was in an empty bistro. I was jet lagged, desperate to eat before I crashed, and I showed up the moment they opened at 6PM. The place was empty; no self-respecting Parisian would eat dinner so early. I didn't care, I ordered the lamb steak, and “un quart” - a quarter carafe of wine. The lamb, while full of flavor, was a little tough. Did I care? No. I had a cute bistro in Paris all to myself while I sipped a glass of wine. How could I be upset?

Jump to:

• Ingredients
• How to make Lamb Chops in the Instant Pot
• Substitutions
• 🛠 Equipment
• 📏Scaling
• How long to cook lamb shoulder chops in Instant Pot?
• 💡Tips and Tricks
• Storage
• What to serve with Instant Pot Lamb Chops
• Instant Pot Lamb Chops Recipe
• ☃️ Storage
• 🤝 Related Posts
• 💬 Comments

I came home, and wanted to make lamb steaks in the pressure cooker. I switched to lamb shoulder chops. Like pork shoulder chops and beef chuck steak, hard-working lamb shoulder meat is better in the pressure cooker. (Or long, slow cooking in the oven. But you know me, I’m pulling out the pressure cooker.)

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 3 pounds lamb shoulder chops, cut ¾-inch thick (I got 4 chops)
• 1½ teaspoons fine sea salt
• 1 medium onion, diced
• 3 cloves garlic, peeled and smashed
• 1 teaspoon Herbes de Provence
• ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
• ½ cup red wine
• 1 cup chicken broth or beef broth (preferably homemade broth, or use store-bought low sodium chicken broth)
• ½ teaspoon fine sea salt (if using homemade broth)
• 15-ounce can diced tomatoes
• 1 pound carrots, peeled and cut into 2-inch lengths

How to make Lamb Chops in the Instant Pot

Brown the lamb shoulder chops in batches

Set an Instant Pot or other pressure cooker to Sauté mode adjusted to high (medium-high heat in a stovetop PC.) Add the tablespoon of oil and heat until shimmering. While the oil is heating, sprinkle the lamb chops evenly with 1½ teaspoons fine sea salt. Once the oil is heated, brown the lamb chops on one side, in batches, until golden brown, about 3 minutes each. (My lamb chops were large enough that I had to do them one at a time). Move the browned chops into a rimmed platter, and repeat until all the chops are browned on one side.

Sauté the aromatics, simmer the wine

Add the onions and smashed garlic cloves to the pot, and sprinkle with the Herbes de Provence and ½ teaspoon of fine sea salt. Sauté, occasionally stirring and scraping the bottom of the pot with a flat-edged wooden spoon, until the onions soften, about 5 minutes. Pour in the wine, bring to a simmer, and simmer for 1 minute to boil off some of the alcohol. While the wine is simmering, scrape the bottom of the pot one last time to make sure nothing is sticking.

Add the liquid, browned lamb, and carrots to the pot

Stir the chicken broth, ½ teaspoon of fine sea salt (if using homemade broth), and can of diced tomatoes into the pot. Stack the lamb chops in the pot in a loose pile, then scatter the carrots on top of the chops.

Pressure cook for 15 minutes with a Natural Pressure Release

Lock the lid. Set the pot to high pressure and the cooking time to 15 minutes in an Instant Pot or other electric PC. (Use “Manual” or “Pressure Cook” mode in an Instant Pot.) Or, pressure cook on high pressure for 12 minutes in a stovetop PC. Let the pressure come down naturally for about 20 more minutes. If you get impatient, you can quick release the remaining pressure after 15 minutes of natural release.

Transfer to a platter, defat the sauce, and serve

Unlock the pressure cooker lid, tilting it away from you to avoid the hot steam. Gently scoop out the lamb chops and carrots - they will be fall-apart tender - and transfer to a serving platter. Scoop out the tomatoes and onions with a slotted spoon and add them to the tomatoes. Pour the liquid in the pot into a fat separator, let it settle, then pour a little of the defatted sauce over the platter of lamb chops. Serve, passing the remaining sauce at the table. Enjoy!

Substitutions

• Lamb shoulder chops come in two types - blade chops and arm chops. Both work in this recipe. If you’re desperate, you can substitute lamb leg chops or sirloin chops, and they’ll be fine, but shoulder chops work better in the pressure cooker. Please don’t cook lamb loin chops or rack of lamb in a pressure cooker; it will come out overcooked and sad.
• If you don’t eat lamb, but like the rest of the recipe, substitute beef chuck steaks, cut ½-inch to ¾-inch thick, for the lamb.
• I’m going for a South of France flavor here, so my aromatics are onion, garlic, and a big hit of Herbes de Provence, the French dried herb blend. You can substitute fresh herbs, like thyme and minced fresh rosemary for the Herbes if you want.
• My wine preference for this recipe is a Cote-Du-Rhone blend, a fruity, peppery mix of grapes from the southeast of France. But, any dry red wine will do, so use what you have on hand (or what you want to drink with dinner).

🛠 Equipment

A 6-quart pressure cooker.

📏Scaling

This recipe can be scaled up or down, but don’t change the amount of cooking liquid. You need 1 ½ cups of liquid in the pot, no matter how many chops you want to cook. To scale the recipe down, halve all the ingredients except for the beer and chicken broth, and it will fit into a 3-quart pressure cooker. You can double the recipe in an 8-quart pressure cooker.

How long to cook lamb shoulder chops in Instant Pot?

Pressure cook ¾-inch thick lamb shoulder chops for 15 minutes at High Pressure with a Natural Release in an Instant Pot or other electric pressure cooker. If you get thinner chops, go for 12 minutes at High Pressure. If you get 1-inch thick, pressure cook for 20 minutes, and 2-inch thick will take 30 minutes.

💡Tips and Tricks

• Why do I brown the meat on only one side? Browning adds a lot of flavor to the recipe. Browning the meat itself adds flavor to the chops, and the layer of caramelized brown bits left in the pot (“fond” in French) dissolve into the liquid, adding depth and body. That said, I only brown the lamb on one side, unlike traditional recipes. It takes too long to brown the meat on all sides - I do not have the patience, and it the browned bits start to burn after the second or third batch. Browning one side gives me the best balance of flavor and speed.
• Can I skip the browning step? Well, yes, you can, but as I said above, you’re going to lose some of the flavor. I consider it an essential step, but if it’s the difference between making the recipe and not having time to make the recipe, go ahead and skip it.
• Cut of lamb: This recipe works best with lamb shoulder chops. A lamb loin chop is too lean to stand up to the high heat of a pressure cooker; a shoulder chop wants that extra cooking time.

Storage

These chops can be made a day ahead, refrigerated, and reheated. If anything, this recipe tastes better the second day, thanks to a day of letting the flavors mingle. It also lets the fat float to the top and solidify, so you can scrape it off with a spoon.
To store for later, portion into 2-cup containers and add the sauce. Stored in an airtight container, this lamb will last up to 3 days in the refrigerator or 6 months in the freezer.

What to serve with Instant Pot Lamb Chops

I love lamb and potatoes, either Instant Pot Fingerling Potatoes or Instant Pot Mashed Potatoes. A loaf of bread to soak up the sauce is also great. I like to serve these with a green side dish, like my Instant Pot Braised Kale or Instant Pot Green Beans, and a salad.

Print

☃️ Storage

These chops can be made a day ahead, refrigerated, and reheated - if anything, it tastes better this way, thanks to a day of letting the flavors mingle. It also lets the fat float to the top and solidify, so you can scrape it off with a spoon.

To store for later, portion into 2-cup containers, add the sauce, and refrigerate for up to 3 days, or freeze for up to 6 months. (This recipe freezes beautifully.)

🤝 Related Posts

Instant Pot Chuck Steak with Beer and Onions
Instant Pot Pork Shoulder Chops with Apples and Onions
Instant Pot Jalapeño Smothered Pork Chops
Instant Pot Lamb Stew Recipe
Instant Pot Boneless Leg of Lamb
Instant Pot Moroccan Lamb Shanks
My other Instant Pot and Pressure Cooker Recipes

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