Charcoal Lamb Rack with Homemade Chimichurri

Some cooks just hit different.

This charcoal lamb rack with homemade chimichurri was honestly one of my favourite cooks ever. It looks like something you’d serve up at a fancy restaurant, but it’s still very much backyard BBQ at heart.

A bit of charcoal, a good rub, a quick sear, some patience, and a fresh homemade chimichurri over the top — that’s the whole game.

This wasn’t a low-and-slow cook like brisket or pork belly. I cooked this on the Napoleon Kettle with charcoal at around 150°C, and the whole thing took about 90 minutes.

The lamb was rubbed with Smokin Beards Cowboy Crack BBQ Rub, seared over direct heat, moved to the outside of the kettle to finish, basted with homemade chilli oil using a rosemary sprig as a brush, then pulled at 68°C internal for a medium finish.

Then came the chimichurri.

Fresh parsley, garlic, chilli, olive oil, red wine vinegar, lemon juice, salt and pepper. Simple, punchy, zesty, and exactly what rich lamb needs.

The result was bloody beautiful — smoky lamb, fresh Chimi, big colour, and the kind of plate that makes you look like you know exactly what you’re doing.

WATCH THE COOK HERE

Even if you’re mostly winging it like the rest of us.

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Quick Cook Info

Ingredients

For the Lamb Rack

• Lamb rack
• Olive oil
• Smokin Beards Cowboy Crack BBQ Rub
• Foil, optional, for covering the bones

Optional Baste

• Homemade chilli oil
• Rosemary sprig, used as a brush

You can skip the chilli oil if you want. A spritz will also do the job. The chilli oil and rosemary brush just make it feel a bit extra — in a good way.

Homemade Chimichurri

• 1 bunch parsley, finely diced
• 4 cloves garlic, finely diced
• 1 chilli, finely diced
• ½ cup olive oil
• 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
• Juice of 1 whole lemon
• Salt, to season
• Pepper, to season

For less heat, remove the chilli seeds before chopping.

Method

1. Prep the Lamb Rack

Start by scoring the skin/fat on the lamb rack.

You don’t need to go too deep. Just enough to help the rub get in there and give the fat a bit more chance to render while it cooks.

Then coat the lamb with a light layer of olive oil.

This helps the rub stick and gives everything a nice base to work from.

2. Season with Cowboy Crack

Sprinkle the lamb rack generously with Smokin Beards Cowboy Crack BBQ Rub.

Don’t absolutely bury it, because lamb has a beautiful flavour of its own, but give it enough seasoning to build a good crust and carry the smoke and charcoal flavour.

Make sure you get the rub over the scored fat and around the edges.

This is one of those cuts where it doesn’t take much to make it look impressive. A clean lamb rack, nice scoring, good rub coverage — already looks like you know what you’re doing.

3. Cover the Bones with Foil

This step is optional, but I like doing it.

Wrap the exposed bones in foil to help stop them from burning or blackening too much.

Does it change the flavour much? Not really.

Does it make the final plate look cleaner and more polished? Absolutely.

If you’re cooking for guests and want it to look a bit fancy, foil the bones. If you’re just cooking for yourself and don’t care, don’t stress it.

4. Set Up the Kettle

Heat a full basket of Heat Beads in the centre of the Napoleon Kettle.

You’re aiming for around 150°C cooking temp.

The setup is pretty simple:

• Heat in the centre
• Lamb racks start over the direct heat for a sear
• Then they move out to the side to finish cooking more gently

This gives you that nice, seared outside without smashing the lamb with direct heat the whole time.

5. Sear the Lamb

Place the lamb racks in the centre of the kettle over direct heat just to sear.

You’re not trying to cook them all the way through here. You’re just building colour and flavour on the outside.

A quick sear over charcoal gives the lamb that proper BBQ edge — a bit of smoke, a bit of char, and that crust starting to form.

Once you’ve got some nice colour, move the racks to the outside of the kettle.

6. Move to Indirect Heat and Keep Cooking

After the sear, move the lamb racks away from the direct heat so they can finish cooking more gently.

Keep the kettle sitting around 150°C and let the lamb come up slowly to temp.

This is where you want to keep an eye on it. Lamb rack isn’t cheap, and it’s not something you want to accidentally blast into boot leather.

For this cook, I pulled it at 68°C internal, which gave me a medium finish.

7. Baste with Chilli Oil

While the lamb was cooking, I basted it with homemade chilli oil using a rosemary sprig as the brush.

Is that necessary?

No.

Is it a cool little BBQ move that adds flavour and makes the whole thing feel a bit special?

Definitely.

The rosemary sprig gives you a bit of aroma, the chilli oil adds richness and a little kick, and the whole thing just feels very backyard chef without being too over the top.

If you don’t want to baste, you can spritz instead.

A simple spritz will help keep the surface from drying out and still do the job.

8. Make the Chimichurri

While the lamb is cooking, make the chimichurri.

Finely dice:

• 1 bunch parsley
• 4 cloves garlic
• 1 Chilli

Add them to a bowl, then mix in:

• ½ cup olive oil
• 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
• Juice of 1 whole lemon
• Salt
• Pepper

Give it a good mix and taste it.

This is where you can adjust it to your liking.

Want more punch? Add a little more vinegar or lemon.

Want more heat? Leave the Chilli seeds in.

Want it a bit softer? Add a little more olive oil.

Chimichurri is one of those sauces that doesn’t need to be overthought. It should be fresh, zesty, a little sharp, a little herby, and just bold enough to cut through the richness of the lamb.

And the colour is unreal. That bright green Chimi over sliced lamb makes the whole plate pop.

9. Pull and Rest

Once the lamb hits 68°C internal, pull it off the kettle.

Rest for around 15 minutes.

Don’t skip the rest.

The lamb needs time to settle before slicing. If you cut straight into it, you’ll lose more juice on the board, and after putting in the effort, that’s just rude to yourself.

Give it the 15 minutes. Have a beer. Clean up a bit. Pretend you’re organized.

10. Slice and Serve

After resting, slice the lamb rack between the bones.

Serve with chimichurri on the side, drizzled over the top, or both.

Personally, I’d do both.

A bit drizzled over the lamb for the look, then extra on the side so people can go as hard as they want.

This is the sort of feed that will stun guests without you needing to do anything too wild. It looks beautiful, tastes fresh and smoky, and feels a bit special while still being a proper backyard BBQ cook.

Sarge’s Tips

Don’t overcomplicate this one.

Lamb rack already has great flavour, so you’re really just trying to build on that. Good rub, charcoal heat, a little sear, and a fresh sauce at the end.

The foil on the bones isn’t essential, but it does make the final presentation look cleaner. If you’re cooking for mates, family, or trying to impress someone, it’s worth doing.

The chimichurri is what makes this cook pop. Lamb is rich, and that fresh hit of parsley, garlic, lemon, vinegar and chilli cuts through it beautifully.

Also, use a thermometer. Don’t guess lamb rack. It cooks quicker than you think, and the difference between beautiful and overdone can sneak up on you.

What I’d Serve It With

This lamb rack would go perfectly with:

• Roasted potatoes
• Charred corn
• Greek salad
• Flatbread
• Grilled veg
• Simple slaw
• Cold beer

You don’t need to make the sides too heavy. The lamb is rich, and the chimichurri is fresh, so keep the rest simple.

Final Thoughts

This was easily one of my favourite cooks.

It’s pretty easy, it looks bloody impressive, and the chimichurri gives it that zesty, fresh pop that makes the whole dish feel alive.

The colours alone make it worth doing — the crusted lamb, the clean bones, the bright green sauce, the charcoal finish. It’s the kind of plate that makes people stop and go, “Alright, what have you done here?”

And the best part is, it’s not that complicated.

Charcoal lamb rack. Cowboy Crack rub. Homemade chimichurri. Cooked to medium, rested properly, sliced and served like a king.

This one’s a keeper.

-Sarge 

Bearded Mafia

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