Grilled Lamb Chops With Creamy Cucumber Sauce

In this warm weather meal, grilled lamb chops are adorned with an uncooked sauce that's fresh from the garden. Cucumbers are blended with red onion, garlic, mint, and yogurt for an Indian-style raita.

The cucumbers are "cooked" by tossing them with salt, which draws out excess water from the vegetable that would otherwise thin the sauce as it sits. Don't worry about the amount of salt.

Most of it will be purged along with the draining cucumber slices. Accompany this lamb with a bulgur salad or fresh sliced tomatoes, speckled with basil and beads of olive oil. A basket of warm Indian flat bread (naan) would be perfect to sop up the extra sauce.

Cut the cucumbers in half lengthwise. Scoop out the seeds with a spoon and cut each cucumber half in small dice. Toss with the onion and the kosher salt. Set aside.

Mix 2 T. of the oil with the garlic, mint, lime juice, sugar, chili powder, hot pepper sauce, and yogurt.

Put the cucumber and onion into a clean towel and squeeze out as much liquid as possible.

Combine with the yogurt mixture.

Season the lamb chops with salt and pepper and rub with the remaining olive oil.

Grill 4 inches from a hot fire for 3 to 4 minutes per side for medium rare, 5 to 6 minutes per side for medium.

Divide the sauce among four plates and place 2 lamb chops in the pool of sauce on each plat