For the peanut sauce:

1/2 cup crunchy peanut butter

2 tablespoons dark soy sauce

2 medium cloves garlic, minced

1/4 cup chicken stock

2 tablespoons honey

1 tablespoon hot pepper oil or1 teaspoon srichacca sauce, or to taste

1 tablespoon finely chopped cilantro

2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice

1. Prepare marinade by combining all ingredients in medium bowl, and whisk to combine.

2. Put racks of lamb in shallow nonaluminum dish, and pour the marinade over the lamb. Refrigerate 4 to 8 hours; turn meat several times to evenly distribute marinade.

3. Combine all the peanut sauce ingredients in small bowl. Whisk together until blended. Set aside.

4. Preheat oven to 400 F. Remove racks from marinade, and place lamb racks in roasting pan. Cover exposed bones with foil to avoid burning them. Roast the meat for about 30 minutes or until pink. Roasting time depends on thickness of meat. If you are using a meat thermometer, insert the thermometer into the center of the meat. Medium rare is 125 F, and medium is 130 F.

5. Preheat broiler if necessary. Place lamb under broiler for 3 minutes to brown the top of the rack. Let lamb rest for 10 minutes to distribute the juices. Serve 1/2 rack per person. (You can also carve the rack and serve the lamb chops overlapping one another.) Whisk peanut sauce, and pass it separately.

Advance preparation: This dish may be prepared up to 8 hours ahead through Step 3 and kept in refrigerator.

(Diane Rossen Worthington is an authority on new American cooking. She is the author of 18 cookbooks, including "Seriously Simple Parties," and a James Beard Award-winning radio show host. You can contact her at www.seriouslysimple.com.)