If there’s anything better than baby lamb chops hot off the grill, I have a hard time imagining it…

On those rare occasions that I can stop myself from just eating them out of hand, directly from the platter, happily risking singed fingertips, I like to toss together this quick couscous side to go with.

Recipe: Grains: Couscous with Pine nuts & Currants
Serves 4

2 cups couscous
2 cups chicken stock
1/4 teaspoon cumin
1 large garlic clove, chopped (or more to taste)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 green onion (green part only), chopped
4 tablespoons dried currants, soaked in hot water and drained
3 tablespoons pine nuts, toasted
1 roasted red bell pepper, chopped
1/2 teaspoon dried mint
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

Bring chicken stock, cumin, garlic, and salt to a boil in a medium saucepan. Remove from heat, stir in couscous. Cover and let stand for 5-8 minutes (check couscous package for cooking time).

Fluff couscous with a fork, then stir in green onion, currants, pine nuts, roasted pepper, dried mint and olive oil. Toss well to combine. Reheat gently if necessary.

Wine Pairing:I recently paired this combo with some delicious Corbieres… Corbieres is a wine-producing region in France’s Languedoc that can offer some nice values on dense, herbal, spicy red wines. These days, Corbieres typically is a blend of grapes, including Syrah, Grenache, Mourvedre and others.

The tricky thing, though, is that Carignan is still the dominant grape in the region, which all too often can mean green, bitter, tannic, unappealing wines. The challenge is to get your hands on wines that are either heavy on the Syrah/Grenache/etc. and light on the Carignan, or that are the (rare) exceptional and delicious old vine Carignan-based wines.

In most cases, the labels won’t tell you any of this information, so my advice is to go on recommendations. Buying Corbieres “blind” can be an exercise in frustration.

In that spirit, here are two I recommend!

Domaines Barons de Rothschild (Lafite) 2006 Chateau d’Aussieres ($19). Quite pretty for a Corbieres, actually, with fresh red fruit aromas and flavors — cherry, raspberry — laced with peppery spice, slight earthy accents, and a light touch of dark chocolate on the moderate finish. Ready to drink now and over the next couple of years. Locate this wine online or in your area.

Domaines Barons de Rothschild (Lafite) 2005 Corbieres Blason d’Aussieres ($19). Boldly flavored, with black plum, cherry, earth and herbal notes, and a spicy, slightly smoky finish. Ready to drink now and over the next couple of years. Locate this wine online or in your area.