Prince Charles is behind the UK’s “Mutton Renaissance.”
So it’s probably available over there–at the more trendy butchers. And–over there & over here–perhaps at the more ethnic places.
And I suppose you might ask, once it becomes trendy in Britain, how long before it shows up on plates here? Chefs are always desperate to offer the next fashionable thing. What an irony it will be if that turns out to be mutton!
There is a Chinese woman at work by the surname of Lam. She’s in her mid-50s, but dresses much younger (and the result isn’t good). We call her…
“Mutton dressed as Lam”. 
Sorry.
Hello,
Warning… real farm scenarios- not for the “baby lamb” lovers…
I keep sheep mostly to train my sheepdogs with but on occasion sell freezer lamb. A friend of mine recently went out of the sheep business and asked me to help sell her flock which consisted of several ewes well over 10 years old and a bunch of baby lambs. I thought I was going to get stuck with a bunch of elderly sheep that I couldn’t work dogs with so I priced six of the oldest ewes at about $40 each. I was on the fence about keeping some of the baby lambs, they were just barely old enough to wean. I had a Mexican show up and on the spot he bought every adult ewe and wanted as many baby lambs as I would spare. Thinking he would be keeping baby lambs for awhile for them to grow into suitable portions- I made a (poor taste, sorry,I’m jaded) joke about the noise factor when he killed all the mamas. He shook his head and said “oh no, they won’t be crying for long”. I asked him what he did to make the mutton edible (I’ve never eaten it myself, but I imagine 12 year old plus sheep has to be nasty) and he said he would cut the carcasses in four thin cuts (not sure what parts), use a 13 spice rub and then wrap the baby lamb cut inside the mutton cut and barbeque. He made it sound so good and obviously he was very excited about it as he bought about $600 worth of lamb and ewes. Next time I have a deal like that I will ask him to bring me some and give him a break off the price so I can try it.
I did keep a couple of younger ewes and one baby lamb, who I named “Lucky” :).
I’ve never had it, but everybody I’ve talked to who has says that it’s really greasy.
:eek: I’m too fond of lamb to be sentimental, but, jeez, that’s like seething a kid in its mother’s own milk, or something.
I think that mutton or a combination of ground mutton and lamb is occasionally used in the very popular Doner Kebabs that are ubiquitous street fair in Germany and pretty much all of Europe. Doner Kebabs are very much like the American Gyro, except that the meat isn’t quite as processed as its American cousin.
Here are some very good Turkish Mutton recipes.
So, just in case I ever find any, what is the best sauce for mutton?
Oh, God, don’t believe everything that twit’s press office would have you believe! There’s been a general rise in the popularity of local, rare-breed and traditional meats for a lot longer than that, and he just has the benefit of a prominent position from which to promote himself, errr, I mean his causes.
Why would the Prince of Wales have any need to promote himself?
He’s a shrewd businessman, who has acquired the ability to judge when to use his own image to further his own business interests. Along with his already very privileged position, automatically giving him access to publicity which other businesses lack. (According to Wikipedia, the 2004 profit for the Duchy of Cornwall was £13m.)
Good thread, but it needs more ewe-and-shepherd jokes.
Another data point for you: The only time I’ve had mutton (knowingly) was at a Tibetan restaurant in lower Manhattan. The dish was quite tasty, but it was a sort of stew-ish thing, so I’m not sure if the flavor of the mutton necessarily came through.
I would say that ewe might want to use sharp sauces or accompaniements to Mutton. Instead of Mint, I might use a Mint and Ginger chutney. Maybe a Rosemary gravy, but entirely drained of the Mutton drippings (fat). Maybe even a beef OXO base.
Here in NE, lamb is hard to find-I’ve never seen mutton. It seems to me that outside of the ethic market (Greeks, Armenians, Italians) there is very little demand for lamb. I would guess that local sheep farmers sell to ethnic butchers, and very little mutton reaches the mass market. Which is a shame-we love lamb. For me, it is easierto go to a Greek restaurant, than to cook it at home.
I’m reading Dickens’ Barnaby Rudge: A Tale of the Riots of 'Eighty (the Gordon Riots of 1780, that is), and I just came across the following passage, from Chapter XIX, set in the Maypole inn in Chigwell east of London:
:eek: Lamb chops breaded?! With ketchup?!
Well, “lamb chops (breaded)” doesn’t sound weird to me, just unexpected. If it’s OK to do it to veal or cod, why not lamb? And to quote from Wikipedia: “Ketchup started out as a general term for sauce, typically made of mushrooms or fish brine with herbs and spices.” Mushrooms and herbs will go a lot better with lamb than the garish sugary tomato gloop we take ketchup to mean!
Neutered male cattle are steers; neutered male pigs are barrows. This is done to make the meat the most palatable available. Is there not an equivalent in the ovine world? Is all mutton the same?
Traditional American/Kentucky Mutton BBQ uses an old time sauce that is very reminiscent of early English Ketchups with an allspice piquant.
It is a very distinctive Black Barbecue Sauce that is used for Kentucky Mutton BBQ, and as I understand it, it is quite underwhelming as a standalone or with other types of meat but when served with BBQ Mutton and used as a mop it enhances and tames the Muttons distinction.
Personally, I believe that this is also the most interesting of Regional American BBQ sauces. I think it is the “missing link” that ties Ketchup in as the original BBQ sauce of the Americas, because really all BBQ sauces are just Ketchups in the original sense of the word. Really, Kentucky Black Barbecue sauce is most accurately called an Old English Ketchup in the true sense.
Here are some recipes for Kentucky Black-
Moonlite-Bar-B-Q Inn Mutton Dip (Original Recipe, No Longer in Use)
Dip for chopped mutton & sliced mutton
Ingredients
1 gallon water
1 2/3 cup Worcestershire
2 1/2 tablespoons black pepper
1/3 cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon MSG
1 teaspoon allspice
1 teaspoon onion salt
1 teaspoon garlic
2 tablespoons salt
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 2/3 cup vinegar
Directions: Mix all ingredients. Bring to boil.
KENTUCKY BLACK BARBEQUE SAUCE
Source: Paul Kirk’s Championship Barbeque Sauces, Harvard Common Press, 1997
Yield: 3/4 cup
2 Tbs. vegetable oil
1/4 cup minced or grated onion
1/3 cup white vinegar
1/3 cup Worcestershire sauce
3 Tbs. light brown sugar
2 Tbs. instant coffee
1 Tbs.lemon juice
1 tsp. Louisiana hot sauce
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. black pepper
1/4 tsp. ground clove
1/8 tsp. ground nutmeg
In medium saucepan, heat the vegetable oil over med-high heat. Saute the onion until golden brown. Add the remaining ingredients and simmer uncovered until the sauce thickens slightly, about 20 minutes.
NOTE: “Once the brew goes in, the rather thin sauce turns absolutely black; but don’t be alarmed- ribs or chicken brushed with this sauce will taste better than all right.”
Owensboro Mutton Barbecue Sauce
From Derrick Riches
4 cups water
1/3 cup worcestershire sauce
1/3 cup vinegar
1 tablespoons black pepper
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1/2 tablespoons lemon juice
1/2 tablespoons salt
1/4 teaspoon allspice
1/4 teaspoon onion salt
1/4 teaspoon garlic
PREPARATION:
Mix all ingredients together in a large saucepan over a low heat. Simmer for about 20 minutes. Serve on the table as a dipping sauce. You can also use this sauce as a baste on smoked lamb.