Ground Lamb Recipes

Staff Picks

Cottage Pie

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A traditional cottage pie is made with ground beef and topped with mashed potatoes. We used potato slices, which saves time and looks good, too. For a shepherd's pie, use lamb. Or, try a turkey twist: Add 2 cups finely minced turkey meat along with the peas.

Colcannon Shepherd's Pie

There's a delicious twist on this take on shepherd's pie and it's guaranteed to delight. The usual flavorful ground lamb filling dotted with peas and speckled with parsley is topped with a mashed potato mixture spiked with thinly sliced Savoy cabbage. The mash is better known as Colcannon, a classic Irish side dish made of mashed potatoes and cabbage (sometimes kale is also used). The simple topping takes this comfort food favorite to new heights.

Quick Moussaka

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Our take on this classic Greek casserole uses a mixture of ricotta and feta cheeses instead of the conventional white sauce, which is made from butter, flour, and milk.

Grilled Lamb Burgers with Yogurt-Feta Sauce

Parsley can be so much more than a garnish! Here, it adds fresh flavor to each component of these Greek-inspired lamb burgers: the patties, the yogurt-feta sauce, and the chopped tomato salad.

Lamb Meatballs with Cucumbers and Herbs

Flecked with coriander, cinnamon, and cumin, lamb meatballs rest on a bed of dill, parsley, and mint in this composed salad that takes cues from Middle Eastern cuisine. Serve them with a swipe of labneh and quick-pickled red onions and golden raisins—and enjoy the culinary journey. This recipe is featured in the cookbook Salad Freak: Recipes to Feed a Healthy Obsession ($26.99, amazon.com).

Shepherd's Pies

These pies, filled with ground lamb and topped with potato, are hearty comfort food for the fall weather.

Shepherd's Pie with Ground Lamb

Zucchini, Tomato, and Lamb Lasagna

Using zucchini instead of lasagna noodles helps lighten the dish -- and also makes it gluten-free.

Lamb and Bulgur Stew with White Beans

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Northern Indian Lamb Meatballs

Simmered in a silky tomato-based sauce, these delicate lamb meatballs have sweet prune centers. Indian flatbread and pickled carrots are, respectively, mild and mouthpuckering foils for the curry.

Eggplant and Lamb al Forno

This Mediterranean dish, layering eggplant and lamb, is a baked feast for cooler weather days.

Stuffed-Pepper Bites

Make the most of the bags of mini bell peppers cropping up at markets everywhere. Food director Lucinda Scala Quinn came up with this quick appetizer.

Inspiration and Ideas

Dolmades (Stuffed Grape Leaves)

These rice-and-meat-stuffed bundles are a traditional Greek appetizer.

Grilled Kofta Kebabs

If using wooden skewers, soak them in water for 30 minutes before grilling. To make lamb and turkey koftas at the same time, combine all the ingredients except the meat first, then transfer half the mixture to another bowl and add one pound of each meat to each bowl.

Bobotie

Mini Greek Lamb Burgers

These lamb sliders are topped with cool and creamy tzatziki for a Greek twist on a classic.

All Ground Lamb Recipes

Flatbread Topped with Mint, Feta, and Lamb

Drawing on mint's eastern Mediterranean roots, this appetizer softens the sharpness of mint, lamb, and feta with gently cooked leeks and scallions. The flavors meld nicely on a superbly thin, crisp crust.

Lamb Burger with Yogurt Sauce

This is a savory burger that has a Greek sauce to give it a Mediterranean flavor.

Rigatoni with Spiced Meat Sauce

Cinnamon and cayenne pepper add spice and heat to this Rigatoni with Spiced Meat Sauce pasta dish.

Lamb Burgers

These spiced lamb burgers, topped with eggplant and feta, bring a bit of the Mediterranean to your backyard grilling.

Lamb Kebabs with Yogurt-Cilantro Sauce

Finely ground lamb is pressed flat onto skewers, grilled, and served with a tangy, herb-packed yogurt sauce in Martha's version of the Saudi Arabian dish mabshur.

Eggplants Stuffed with Lamb, Rice, and Currants

A small amount of ground lamb adds a lot of flavor to this dish, which is further enhanced by the meatiness of the eggplant.

Mild Curried Lamb Casserole with Almonds

Commonly referred to as bobotie in its native South Africa, this everyday dish is typically served over rice, with assorted accompaniments.

Lamb Koftas with Cucumber Raita

Soothing cucumber and mint raita complements ground-lamb koftas with Indianspices.

Rosemary, Fennel, and Garlic Lamb-Sausage Rounds

Date-Stuffed Baby Eggplants

Eggplant does double duty in this hearty dish -- baby eggplants are stuffed with a sweet-and-savory lamb filling, and Italian eggplant is paired with roasted red peppers for a bright, smoky relish.

Lamb Dumplings

Martha's fried version of mantou, a Saudi meat-filled dumpling, pairs spiced lamb with sweet golden raisins and buttery pine nuts.

Grilled Lamb Meatballs with Salsa Verde

Soak bamboo skewers in water first for about 30 minutes, to prevent them from scorching on the grill.

Classic Pastitsio

A perfect serving of this baked-pasta dish needs to have the right ratio of bechamel topping to lamb-and-pasta filling.

Manti

Each of these tiny dumplings is about the size of your fingertip, so you can easily serve 20 to 25 to each person. It's traditional to invite two or three friends to help fill and seal the manti; after all, many hands make light work.