Meat 
Lamb Types and Cooking Basics Lamb is a not-so-common type of meat that's often
avoided by the everyday cook. Many
folks never try lamb during their entire lifetime, or are hesitant about trying
lamb recipes. Despite its rarity in
the mainstream world of cooking, lamb is a versatile meat and makes delicious
stew, roasts, saute dishes and grilled entrees. Lamb comes from sheep that are either imported or
raised locally. You can buy lamb in
the grocery stores or specialty meat markets. The most tender lamb meat is from a
young lamb, and the meat is finely grained with a pale-to-dark pinkish
color. You can also purchase lamb
meat direct from a butcher to get the best cuts. Types of Lamb Cuts There are five basic lamb cuts in the retail
market. These are rack, loin,
shoulder, leg and shank/breast. The
"rack" cut is another word for luxury cut, which is similar to prime
rib in the beef world. Lamb rack
cuts are usually roasted in single or double rib chops or as a whole. As an unsplit ribal cut of the lamb's carcass, the rib bones on a rack
cut have been scraped clean. It is
often called hotel rack. Lamb shoulder cuts come in several forms: square cut whole, blade chops, arm chops
and neck slices. The shoulder
square cut whole contains the blade, arm and rib bones. The blade chops contain a portion of the
blade bone and backbone. Arm chops contain the rib bones and cross sections of
the round arm bone. Neck slices are
cut from the neck and contain the small round bone, with lean meat and connective tissue. Lamb breast is cut from the forequarter and contains
ribs with layers of lean and fat meat.
Breast riblets have ribs with layers of fat
and meat. The shank comes from the
arm of shoulder and has part of the round shoulder bone and a leg bone. It has a thin layer of fell and
fat. Lamb leg can be cut as sirloin
chops or a whole leg. There's also
a leg shank half, which contains the round leg and lower half of leg (sirloin
half removed). Lamb loin chops include a portion of the backbone, with the eye
of the loin and flank. These have
kidney fat on top of the tenderloin with fat covering the outer surface. Loin double chops are made of tenderloin
and top loin, with the flank removed.
The reason they are called "double chops" is because the meat
is cut across both sides of the carcass. There's also ground lamb, which has trimmings from
various lamb parts. It is generally
lean meat either formed in patties or sold in bulk for grilling and other forms
of cooking. Interesting Facts about Lamb Lamb is referred to as a red meat because of the amount
of myoglobin present in the lamb's muscles. The meat has a red color after oxygen
has been delivered to the muscles by red blood cells. Lamb has more myoglobin than fish or
chicken. Fresh lamb cannot contain
additives. Processed lamb may
contain additives such as sodium erythorbate, MSG or
salt, but these must be listed on the packaging labels. Some lamb is aged to develop flavor and
tenderness. Normally, the only
types of lamb that are aged are loins and ribs used in restaurants. Aging is achieved through commercial
means in a controlled environment and should not be attempted at home. The fell on lamb is a very thin outer covering over the
fat. It should be left on lamb
roast and leg to increase juiciness.
The fell is often removed before packaging on lamb chops and other
smaller cuts. When shopping for
lamb, look for meat that is firm with a fine texture and pink in color. There should be white pieces of fat
within the muscle. Cooking Lamb Lamb can be cooked using many methods: pan-broiling, broiling, grilling,
braising, roasting, baking or pan-frying.
You can prepare lamb steaks, chops or roasts in marinade sauces, and
marinate in the refrigerator up to five days. Marinate stew lamb or cubes up to two
days. Boil the marinade if using as
a sauce on the cooked meat. You can
use online resources such as the USDA's website for appropriate cooking times
and temperatures. Times and
temperatures will vary depending on the type and weight of the lamb. Lamb Recipes Don't shy away from lamb until you've experimented with
several lamb recipes. Here are a
couple of recipes to try...
MARINATED LAMB
·
4 lamb leg steaks, 1/2 inch thick (1 to 1
1/2 lbs.) ·
2/3 c. cooking oil ·
1/2 c. chopped onion ·
1/4 c. apple cider vinegar ·
1/4 c. red wine ·
1 clove garlic, minced ·
1 tsp. salt ·
1/2 tsp. dried rosemary, crushed ·
1/2 tsp. dried thyme, crushed ·
Dash of pepper ·
1/2 c. mint jelly, melted Slash far edges of lamb steaks in several places to
keep steaks flat while broiling. To marinate, place steaks in a plastic bag;
set in a deep bowl. Combine oil, onion, vinegar, wine, garlic, salt, rosemary,
thyme and pepper. Pour herb mixture over steaks, close bag. Marinate in the refrigerator for 6
hours, turning occasionally. Place steaks on an unheated rack in a broiler pan
reserving 3 tablespoons of marinade.
Broil 3 inches from heat for 5 to 7 minutes. Turn and continue to broil
5 to 7 minutes more to desired doneness. Combine mint
jelly and marinade. Serve warm with lamb steaks. Makes 4 servings.
LAMB STEW ·
4 tbsp. flour ·
3 to 4 tbsp. Madras curry ·
1 tsp. salt ·
1/2 tsp. ground black pepper ·
3 tbsp. oil ·
1 1/2 lb. stewing lamb, cubed ·
1 lg. Spanish onion, sliced ·
1 1/2 c. water ·
1 1/2 c. white wine ·
1/2 c. raisins ·
1 tbsp. lemon juice ·
2 tart apples, sliced In a shallow bowl, blend the flour, curry, salt and
pepper. Roll the lamb in the flour mixture. In a casserole dish heat the oil.
Brown the lamb; remove and keep warm. Saute the onion
until just tender. Return the lamb to the casserole and sprinkle with any
remaining flour mixture. Pour the liquids over the meat and stir to mix well.
Add the raisins, lemon juice and apples and cook, partially covered, until the
meat is tender, about 1 1/2 hours. Serve with rice, chutney and yogurt-cucumber
salad. Copyright
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