Thanks For Mutton

Lamb Stew. I think this may become a Thanksgiving tradition in our house. Start with some bread dough and cut it into softball-sized chunks and let it rise. While it is rising get to work on the stew. Chunk up a pound of bacon and brown it to a crisp. Then flour and season with salt and pepper the stew-meat and toss into a pan to brown it. From there it is not a whole lot different than any other stew. Potatoes, carrots, onions, garlic, thyme, bay leaf, and some white wine. We added some beef stock to get the consistency we wanted.

Throw meat, garlic and broth together with the onion and cook for an hour and a half. Then throw the carrots and potatoes in and cook for another 30 minutes. There you have it....

Throw the balls-o-bread into oven and bake. Cut the center out of the bread to make bowls and throw the soup in.

You will feel like you are in an Irish pub. Turn on a soccer game for added authenticity....

Decided to slow roast on the grill some lamb last night. I set up the grill for "indirect heat" with a drip pan and a water pan to make sure nothing dried out.

I threw together some balsamic vinegar, honey, fresh garlic, rosemary, salt a pepper for a marinade. Brought it to a boil and simmered it for a few minutes and then let it cool for a bit.

The lamb shoulder and a rolled breast was chosen for the meal. I marinated the meat for around 2 hours before I fired up the grill.

I tried to keep the heat in the grill around 350 to 400 degrees for around 2.5 hours. I also took the marinade into the house and returned it back to a boil and used it as a basting sauce during the grilling process.

When the lamb hit 150 degrees against the bone I took it off. The breast was a bit higher since it was a boneless cut. Overall I think as long as the meat is not ground 140 degrees is sufficient for lamb. the kiddos just don't like blood in their plate so I go a bit higher....

As you can see it was beautiful. I will say that the breast was not all that impressive. This is the area of the lamb below the ribs and often times is included in a "rack of lamb" or in elongated "barnsley chops". I elected to cut it off, debone it, and roll it to as some of your English butchers often do. It was a bit tough and very fatty. I will likely trim more fat from it next time or perhaps do a very slow smoking where the fat will melt away a bit more effectively.

The shoulder however was amazing. Very tender and even with the fairly short cooking time (2.5 hours) it was tender. I was a bit afraid that I would need to cook it for 6 or 7 hours to get it tender. Keep in mind, this was not the "shoulder roast" or "shoulder chops"....that came off and was deboned for an even more tender cut that still sits in the freezer. What you see here is the joint at the shoulder blade on down to the ankle on the front leg of the lamb (or course the rear leg is the legendary "leg of lamb").

That's all for now. I will post some time later the "chump roast" we made last week. I have been busy and have not kept up on the culinary posts. We have 5 new lambs in the barn and we still have 5 more ewes that are about to birth sometime this week. I will throw some pics of that out soon as well.

Until next time.....

I embarked on a first-time adventure today. I decided to butcher a lamb on my own. While I won't win any awards for the results, take a look at the pic.

First off, this lamb weighed in at the 125lbs range. (probably closer to 120lbs had I been able to shear her first).

The carcass---pre butcher--came in at just over 60lbs.

The final yield of meat was just over 50 lbs. This can vary as I decided to spend the time to de-bone my shoulder chops (roast style), leg of lamb, and also the breast of lamb.

With some market analysis, I provided some prices that you will likely find at a butcher or lamb farm in the area. If you add all of the cuts you see in the photo up, you will be at $504.00 before taxes.

Lets do the math with purchasing this lamb from us shall we: 120lbs X $3/lb =$360. Add in the $50 processing fee (Orange County Processing) and you come to a total of $410.00 That's nearly $100 cheaper! For local, humanely raised lambs!!

Give us a call. 812-583-3097 or message us. We still have a few of these guys available. Otherwise you will have to wait until spring when the new lamb flock matures in the Spring.

We have a final shipment heading to Orange County Processing on 10-December Give us a call or message us!!!!!

812-583-3097

Give us a call! These lambs are ready to go! I am going to butcher a couple myself for our own use so I can share recipes, preparation tips, and all kinds of goodies!

Lamb is an expensive meat and sometimes intimidating to purchase. We are here to help you get the highest quality meat for cheaper than what you can at the butcher. Plus help you through the process of getting it to your tummy in the best way possible!!!!

http://bloomington.craigslist.org/grd/5299363777.html

Market Weight Lambs Market weight lambs. Smallest around 120lbs and largest at 140lbs. Grass fed with supplemental grain for the perfect fattening! Shoulder chops, loin chops, leg of lamb, shoulder roast, rack-of-lamb,...

Lamb loin chops with smashed bacon potatoes and grilled French-baguette bread. Only thing missing was some asparagus....

....we can do it cheaper!

Lambs going on 25 weeks. Getting close to the perfect weight at just over 100lbs. Their paddock is 1.5 acres with a mix of clovers, fescue, orchard grass, and the occasional oak leaf! To get the tenderness and fattening up to perfection we supplement grain every evening with a helping of a local grain supplier's (http://umbargerandsons.com) top finish mix.

Meet the ewes. And the ram is in the frame as well. Typically during the summer they get a steady diet of pasture and nothing else. While gestating they get to munch daily on some grain in the evening too. Sometimes, as the orange nose of " #3" shows, they find persimmon pulp scraps too!

http://bloomington.craigslist.org/grd/5215926178.html

Lambs For Sale-23 weeks old Spring lambs raised on pasture with supplemental grain ration daily for proper nutrition and tenderness! Approximately 100lbs apiece; just right for a fall lamb roast or traditional Rosh Hashanah...