Been eating a lot of mutton lately, having finally found a local source.
(Not so common the the US, alas.) Cooking it several ways, I've noticed
that a lot of fat renders out very quickly on mild cooking; the rest
stays on much longer. I'm not sure, but it seems that the fat dispersed
throughout muscle melts quickly; the large lumps are more persistent. Is
this correct, or is something else going on?

I ask partly because I like to remove as much fat as possible from stews
to save calories. Another reason, though, is that I don't like to lose
flavors from vegetables, spices, etc. in stew or other preparations;
some of these are much more soluble in fat than in water. So I've been
cooking the meat alone until the first rendering is done, pouring off
fat, then adding everything else. Does this make sense to more
experienced cooks here?

Thanks-

Theo

(Still trying to find a way to cook rib roasts that leaves them tender...)

On Dec 21, 5:55*pm, Theo > wrote:
> Been eating a lot of mutton lately, having finally found a local source.
> (Not so common the the US, alas.) Cooking it several ways, I've noticed
> that a lot of fat renders out very quickly on mild cooking; the rest
> stays on much longer. I'm not sure, but it seems that the fat dispersed
> throughout muscle melts quickly; the large lumps are more persistent. Is
> this correct, or is something else going on?
>
> I ask partly because I like to remove as much fat as possible from stews
> to save calories. Another reason, though, is that I don't like to lose
> flavors from vegetables, spices, etc. in stew or other preparations;
> some of these are much more soluble in fat than in water. So I've been
> cooking the meat alone until the first rendering is done, pouring off
> fat, then adding everything else. Does this make sense to more
> experienced cooks here?
>
> Thanks-
>
> Theo
>
> (Still trying to find a way to cook rib roasts that leaves them tender...)

==============================================
The only thing I know about mutton is that there is a hard fat called
"tallow" this is the equivalent of suet in beef, I believe. I think
this fat is not very tasty but more "gamy". I also know that you are
supposed to always heat the plates when you serve lamb because lamb
fat congeals faster and at room temperature. Anybody else know more
about mutton? You Aussies out there?

Lynn in Fargo

In article
>,
Theo > wrote:

> Been eating a lot of mutton lately, having finally found a local source.
> (Not so common the the US, alas.) Cooking it several ways, I've noticed
> that a lot of fat renders out very quickly on mild cooking; the rest
> stays on much longer. I'm not sure, but it seems that the fat dispersed
> throughout muscle melts quickly; the large lumps are more persistent. Is
> this correct, or is something else going on?
>
> I ask partly because I like to remove as much fat as possible from stews
> to save calories. Another reason, though, is that I don't like to lose
> flavors from vegetables, spices, etc. in stew or other preparations;
> some of these are much more soluble in fat than in water. So I've been
> cooking the meat alone until the first rendering is done, pouring off
> fat, then adding everything else. Does this make sense to more
> experienced cooks here?
>
> Thanks-
>
> Theo
>
> (Still trying to find a way to cook rib roasts that leaves them tender...)

We don't eat a lot of sheep, but mom would always pre-roast fatty cuts
of lamb prior to stewing them to render out most of the fat. The cut
that she did that with for stewing was lamb breast.

I imagine that'd work well with mutton?
--
Peace! Om

"Love and compassion are necessities, not luxuries. Without them humanity cannot survive." -- Dalai Lama

Lynn from Fargo > wrote in news:64187b94-d61d-4487-b4de-
:

> (Still trying to find a way to cook rib roasts that leaves them tender...
>

so at what temp is the oven and do you believe in marinating?

I soak my beef in a red wine, garlic, onion and seasonings marinade for a
couple hours and cook it at 325 F for a longish while; comes out well done
and tender. I prefer my beef rare but to get a rib roast tender and tasty
I'll braise. I also add some of the marinade to the pot I roast the beef
in. Examine beef braising recipes for better ideas.

My mother used to just add a little water and cover the rib roast and roast
it at 325F.

--

The beet goes on -Alan

"hahabogus" > ha scritto nel messaggio
> I soak my beef in a red wine, garlic, onion and seasonings marinade for a
> > couple hours and cook it at 325 F for a longish while; comes out well
> done
> and tender. I prefer my beef rare but to get a rib roast tender and tasty
> > I'll braise. I also add some of the marinade to the pot I roast the beef
> > in. Examine beef braising recipes for better ideas.
>
> My mother used to just add a little water and cover the rib roast and
> roast
> it at 325F.

My God, it runs in the family. Where do you buy rib roasts that it must be
braised to be tender? I would stop going there.

Rub it with some spicy salt, run it into a high temp oven for 15 minutes
then reduce the heat and cook to an internal temp of 130-135. Remove and
allow to rest.

Giusi wrote:
>... Where do you buy rib roasts that it must be
> braised to be tender? I would stop going there.

I'd be surprised (and pleased) to find range-fed sheep 5-7 years old,
like those I've bought so far, that cook like supermarket beef. Even the
marinating and braising that works for me on short ribs hasn't
tenderized this mutton; it seems to take around 6 hours of slow cooking
to be edible. The flavor makes it worth it, but I've been getting most
of the meat ground. (Just made a wonderful scrapple or polenta-type dish
with ground mutton, fried onions, cornmeal, garlic and fresh rosemary
for dinner. Not as good as the pistachio-and-dried-cranberry
muttonburgers I made the first time out!)

I used to slow-roast beef at 225F for 8-12 hours, and it was phenomenal
- tender, juicy, perfect. That's what I'll try next on an old mutton rib
roast, or perhaps a boned leg with bacon barding or larding.

Thanks for other comments here.

-Theo

"Theo" ha scritto nel messaggio > Giusi wrote:
>>... Where do you buy rib roasts that it must be>> braised to be tender?
>>I would stop going there.
>
> I'd be surprised (and pleased) to find range-fed sheep 5-7 years old, >
> like those I've bought so far, that cook like supermarket beef.

Ho, Theo, I missed that you were talking about mutton. Wipe efverything I
said. I never ever thought of rib roast as being mutton, my bad. I've no
experience with that. The only mutton I can buy are chops or skewered
strips and are not tough, but are quite flavorful.

Giusi wrote:
> .. I missed that you were talking about mutton.

No issues!
> The only mutton I can buy are chops or skewered
> strips and are not tough, but are quite flavorful.

I'm betting that it was either younger, or perhaps hung for a while. I
asked if they could hang my mutton carcass for two or three weeks before
cutting and freezing, but that farm's butcher doesn't hang meat.
Bummer. Instead, I'm trying LONG (3 days or more) marination and very
slow cooking. Hope I don't get food poisoning from the long marinations,
but I usually have enough vinegar in the marinade that the meat should
be safe.

Still, ground mutton is so much easier. Next bit of fun will be to try
cutting a frozen boned leg into thin shavings and stir-frying those.
It's fun to have 60 pounds of flavorful (and cheap) meat to play with!

-Theo

On Wed, 24 Dec 2008 00:24:00 GMT, Theo wrote:

> Giusi wrote:
>> .. I missed that you were talking about mutton.
>
> No issues!
>> The only mutton I can buy are chops or skewered
>> strips and are not tough, but are quite flavorful.
>
> I'm betting that it was either younger, or perhaps hung for a while. I
> asked if they could hang my mutton carcass for two or three weeks before
> cutting and freezing, but that farm's butcher doesn't hang meat.
> Bummer. Instead, I'm trying LONG (3 days or more) marination and very
> slow cooking. Hope I don't get food poisoning from the long marinations,
> but I usually have enough vinegar in the marinade that the meat should
> be safe.
>
> Still, ground mutton is so much easier. Next bit of fun will be to try
> cutting a frozen boned leg into thin shavings and stir-frying those.
> It's fun to have 60 pounds of flavorful (and cheap) meat to play with!
>
> -Theo

if you google [szechuan lamb recipes] (no quotes), you get 19,000 hits.
that could keep you busy a while.

your pal,
blake