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View Full Version : Roast Lamb....what do you have with it?



HUGH
11-21-2010, 03:08 PM
My information is that many of you folks don't get to taste good sheep meat very often but for those who do, what kind of sauce would you expect to have with prime roast lamb?



There seems to be a sort of brain-washing in the UK which dictates that you MUST have mint sauce or mint jelly with your roast lamb or you will die. We live in an area which is reputed to have the best sheep meat in the world (maybe, maybe not) but for the last 12 years or so we have found locally reared lamb which has never been frozen has such a good taste it would be criminal to adulterate it like that, like today for example. Accompanied by roast potatoes and some of our home-grown vegetables it was perfect. The gravy was made with meat juice and some of the vegetable water. I particularly like the taste of the crispy skin and, in spite of the fat contained therein, I haven't managed to gain any weight for years.

If we do have any roast sheep meat which has perhaps been frozen and lost some taste, a little redcurrant jelly usually suffices and, anyway, a Merlot or Cabernat Sauvignon is consumed to wash it all down with.

(My assumption that sheep-meat is not easy to find in the USA was reinforced when I collected a Californian colleague from Heathrow Airport and we had to find overnight accomodation prior to working on a project the next day. On the hotel menu was "Crown of Lamb" and he practically bit my arm off in his haste to order it. Not the cut I would have chosen and it wasn't very good when it arrived but he greedily eyed up my plate until I'd finished.)

There's the other thing in some parts of the USA which can also be prevalent in French cuisine also about having to have elaborate sauces with everything. During stay in a Holiday Inn in Michigan I couldn't even have my breakfast cornflakes without being interrogated as to why I didn't want at least two kinds of fruit with them. At least the bacon and "easy-over" eggs were offered without embelishments......

NQ6U
11-21-2010, 03:20 PM
I think you've got it right--keep it as simple as possible and just enjoy the flavor of the meat. Mint jelly is an abomination.

WØTKX
11-21-2010, 03:26 PM
A little rosemary and garlic is perfect, don't overdo it. I like the "arm blade chops", because they are cheap. Enjoy lamb more than beef, mutton in a stew is good too. Maybe I should find some goat for Thanksgiving... but I'll probably do a crab stuffed fish.

For some silly reason, lamb is not as readily available in Denver as it was in Minneapolis.

KG4CGC
11-21-2010, 04:14 PM
I have not seen lamb (leg of or otherwise) available since the early 90s but veal is pushed like it was a gift from the gods. Some of the specialty shops might have. As for mutton, never seen it.

kc7jty
11-21-2010, 05:21 PM
Young Lamb is wonderful. Must be very rare/raw. Roger on the fresh rosemary & garlic, and forget Merlot. A big, dry, tannic, aged Cabernet is a must. The new taters sound good too.
Lamb can be purchased here but it must be sought out, and is usually quite expensive. A good 20% higher than the best beef steaks minus tenderloin.

I would venture it's unpopularity in the USA has something to do with it's full flavor characteristic.

Local term for sheep:
Montana mountain maggots.

No sauce with lamb for me. For some reason I'm thinking a few drops of balsamic vinegar into the drippings but am not sure why.

The Outback restaurants here serve lamb which can often be not bad.

EDIT: EV olive oil with the garlic & rosemary.

KG4CGC
11-21-2010, 05:46 PM
OK, I did see it a bistro resturante'.

WØTKX
11-21-2010, 05:56 PM
The blade chops are frequently $2.99/lb. here. That's pretty cheap.

W3MIV
11-21-2010, 06:23 PM
I can still hear them screaming...

NQ6U
11-21-2010, 06:42 PM
I can still hear them screaming...

Don't forget the Chianti and fava beans, Hannibal.

kc7jty
11-21-2010, 07:54 PM
http://www.rowthree.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/05/hanniballecter.jpg
"When your daughter is on the slab what part of you will tingle then mom?"
"Love your suit"

NQ6U
11-21-2010, 08:01 PM
Local term for sheep:
Montana mountain maggots..

Of course, in Idaho, sheep have certain...other uses besides meat or a source of wool.

KJ3N
11-21-2010, 08:03 PM
I can still hear them screaming...

"Are those Girl Scout cookies made from real Girl Scouts?"

http://news.usversusthem.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/10/wednesday1.gif

:rofl:

KJ3N
11-21-2010, 08:07 PM
Of course, in Idaho, sheep have certain...other uses besides meat or a source of wool.

"How was it for you, my dear?"

"Not baa-aaa-aaa-aadd."

:rofl: :rofl:

kc7jty
11-21-2010, 08:21 PM
Of course, in Idaho, sheep have certain...other uses besides meat or a source of wool.

Q) Why is it always best to get a sheep between yourself and the edge of a cliff?
A) That's the only way you can be sure it'll push back.

KG4CGC
11-21-2010, 08:28 PM
I suppose sheep smooshing jokes are inevitable and to be expected.
"I used to love her,
but I had to kill her."

kc7jty
11-21-2010, 08:59 PM
ah yes....a very bloody affair but that was the most fun part. Dyed in the wool?

kc7jty
11-24-2010, 01:41 AM
http://img84.imageshack.us/img84/7966/lambp.png
http://www.diamondvalleylamb.com/

Have to see how big one will be. Don't like "imported", maybe frozen?

Take the fresh slit garlic and insert in into slits in the meat.

n6hcm
11-24-2010, 04:47 AM
Of course, in Idaho, sheep have certain...other uses besides meat or a source of wool.

birth control?!?

kc7jty
11-24-2010, 05:04 AM
http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_0DaX0hi214k/RgiVmXXsnhI/AAAAAAAAACQ/UagEQBhKa-A/s400/sheep+man.gifhttp://t3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ZKuT7FtmzR9gPM:http://pix.motivatedphotos.com/2009/3/13/633725614892000768-newzealand.jpg&t=1

Sheeple

W3MIV
11-24-2010, 08:42 AM
I do not like the taste of lamb.
I do not like it, Sam I Am.
I would not eat it in a boat;
I would not eat it with a goat.
I do not like the taste of lamb.
I will not eat it, Sam I Am.