Lamb: the name of the parts of the carcass and their application

Lamb is an integral and even the main type of meat for cuisines of different nations of the world, however, for many of our compatriots, it remains a relative wonder.You can try lamb in different places in a ready-made form, but for the majority of people who did not grow up somewhere in the Caucasus to prepare it on their own, there simply isn’t enough knowledge. At the same time, the product is certainly worthy to eat more often, so you should learn more about it.

Just as pork and chicken, the most popular in our country, are different, lamb is different from both of them, and an experienced gourmet will easily find the difference. This species includes the meat of adult rams and sheep, while the meat of young animals is often separated into a separate category - lamb. The latter option is somewhat more valuable, because such a product is much softer and juicier, whereas old animals are almost impossible, therefore, usually one-year-old animals are slaughtered.

In most regions of our country, lamb is today considered a somewhat unusual delicacy, but its popularity is growing, since such meat is rightly considered one of the most useful. According to the content of micronutrients necessary for good health, this sort of meat is three times as high as the same chicken meat, and in terms of fat content and bad cholesterol content, it is three times less than pork and beef.

Lamb is probably the least fatty meat. Here there is only a small fatty net, while pieces of pure fat, like that of the same pork, are not found here. In addition, ram meat also has a low percentage of cholesterol, which is very harmful for people with a tendency to gain weight. These facts make many people think that meat is dietary and allowed to be consumed by everyone, and even in practically unlimited quantities.

The last statement, of course, is fundamentally wrong, since meat of any kind contains a significant percentage of calories. So, even in raw meat contains 150-200 kcal per 100 grams of product, in cooked form, this figure may increase another 1.5-2 times. On average, 100 grams of mutton contains about 17 grams of fat (in lambs their number is slightly higher). All these figures allow us to understand that lamb is a rather dietary product.

If any schoolchild distinguishes mutton from pork or poultry meat, then an inexperienced consumer can easily get caught on goat meat. Animals are fairly close relatives, however, goat meat is less useful and not so tasty that it provokes unscrupulous sellers. If you are not at all ready to look for differences, it is better to find the seller who in your presence cuts a piece of meat from the whole carcass, but it’s better to know the characteristic differences between the two varieties so as not to buy lower-quality goods. So, remember the following points:

• lamb is characterized by a fatty net in the form of small layers of fat between the muscles, whereas in goat meat there are practically no such inclusions;
• if you have ever seen raw lamb and are sure that it was she, remember the shade: goat meat is much darker;
• fresh goat meat has a characteristic unpleasant smell, such a product must be soaked before cooking, but the lamb "smell" should not;
• the body of the ram is much wider than that of the goat and has a rounded, oval shape in the section, whereas the goat carcass in cross section has clearly visible corners at the point of transition of the ribs to the chest;
• in the region of the knee, the rams have much more meat than goats.

It is much more difficult to confuse with mutton beef, if only because the difference in the size of parts of the carcass is striking, and the substitution on the part of the seller looks somewhat illogical here, since demand for both types of meat is consistently high. Nevertheless, there are situations when even these two types need to be distinguished. Here it should be remembered that beef is usually dark red, while lamb is rather light red, often its shade is also described as brick. Fibers in beef meat are noticeably longer than in mutton.

When choosing portions of lamb carcass from inexperienced consumers who had not previously dealt with such meat, certain difficulties may arise. First, the cutting scheme is somewhat different, and therefore completely unfamiliar names may occur. Secondly, the scope of application of each individual piece may differ, given the specificity of lamb.

The lamb's head is used completely separately and outside the regions of the traditional use of lamb to buy it is almost impossible, and the rest of the carcass is divided into seven main parts.

• Neck part it is easy to determine, but, unlike the same pork, it is not considered particularly valuable: it is attributed only to the third grade of mutton. The relatively low quality of the product involves its careful processing - most often, cutlets are made from the neck. However, it can also be stewed or boiled; it is part of the pilaf, as well as various soups and stews.
• Following the neck goes top partlocated around the shoulder blade, this meat already belongs to a higher second grade. If it is a lamb, then it is allowed to cook kebab, azu or roast, in older sheep, this part is more suitable not for frying, but for stewing and boiling.

• Lower blade, as well as the front leg in general and its knuckle in particular, are considered the third sort of mutton simply because there is not so much meat here. Besides soups and jellies, it is difficult to find really good use of these parts.
• Brisket (saddle) It looks like first-class meat and that’s what it is. From here you can cut large pieces, so this part is very often used for cooking lamb kebabs, roasts and cutlets (not from minced meat, but a whole piece of meat). If desired, such meat can also be used for stuffing manti or as an additive to other dishes, mainly of non-meat origin.
• Breast or flank - This is the entire abdominal part of the carcass, located directly under the saddle, if the animal is standing on its feet. This also includes lamb side. It is recommended to fry this part only if it is obtained from a young lamb. In all other cases, it is more suitable for boiling and stewing, referring to the second class.
• Mutton ham - This is the uppermost part of the leg, directly adjacent to the tail and even the saddle. This part, like the saddle, is the most fleshy in this animal, therefore it belongs to the first grade and is used for all the same most exquisite meat dishes.
• On the shin, beginning where the leg is clearly separated from the body, the meat is already much less, so it is attributed to the third grade. This is probably the only raw material of this class, which is still appropriate to use in the process of preparing pilaf. In all other respects, this is a typical, relatively unsuitable part of the lamb; on its basis, liquid dishes are most often prepared.

The brightness and positiveness of impressions from dishes based on lamb meat strongly depend on the ability to choose the main raw materials correctly, which inexperienced consumers, naturally, do not own. Let us open for our readers a few secrets of how this is done.

• The “right” meat of a ram is distinguished by a certain springiness and malleability, and fatty blotches must of course be white: if they are yellow and crumbly, then the animal will be slaughtered at a serious age, therefore the meat will be tough. The smell of lamb may seem somewhat unpleasant to unaccustomed people, but there surely should not be any hints of rot or charms in it, this is already a sign of prolonged and not too proper storage.
• Traditionally, lamb is considered more tender than the meat of adult animals, so the raw materials are also chosen by the age of the slaughtered lamb. Young sheep meat is much lighter and only with age it darkens, the same applies to fat, and even the old age of the raw material gives an abundance of lived. The ideal choice is considered to be a milk lamb, slaughtered at the age of no more than two months, but keep in mind that the tenderest lamb can be obtained only in spring, preferably in its first half, since young offspring appears and begins to grow in this particular period.

• Frozen mutton needs to be thawed properly (it is unacceptable to use warm water for this), and repeated freezing is completely unacceptable, it is detrimental both for taste and for the usefulness of meat. It is quite easy to identify raw materials frozen more than once: not only does it turn bright red, it also does not show the usual elasticity when pressed with a finger, without filling the hole or doing it too "reluctantly".
• Separately, it should be said about the fat-tailed fat, which in the kitchens of many Asian people who actively use lamb, is an indispensable complement to mutton meat dishes. Fat-tail deposits are located in a specific part of the ram - fat tail, located in the tail area and divided into two halves. This anatomical part is not in all sheep, but only in certain breeds; it is similar in purpose to the humps of camels.

Regarding mutton, one can come across radically opposite opinions: some say that it is amazingly tasty, others do not like the smell of it even in the store. Such disagreements are caused by the fact that this product requires a very delicate treatment, and many of our compatriots are not even aware of this. We already mentioned above how to cook different parts of the carcass, but there were only general directions, without specific recommendations. That is why we have collected some common tips that will help bring the product to an optimal condition.

• In the structure of lamb, not everything is edible, for example, the film and tendons are inedible and make the dish more rigid, so they are removed at the cutting stage. If there is quite a lot of fat outside, it is removed, but without fanaticism, otherwise the meat will dry out too quickly and become inedible.
• Like it or not, there is a special smell of lamb, and it is noticeable. To hide it, it is enough to soak raw meat in any marinade that can kill the unpleasant aroma. Popular solutions, for example, are apple and garlic, yogurt and olive oil, red wine and lemon, soy sauce and cardamom. It is possible to combine these and some other seasonings even to your own taste, although in most recipes recommendations are made regarding marinade.

• In some cases, pickling is possible in just an hour, but most recipes require long-term exposure of the main ingredient: the product can lie in brine for 10-12 hours or more. In practice, the older the slaughtered animal is, the longer it will take to pickle the meat, otherwise it will not get rid of the unpleasant smell and excessive hardness.
• Despite the fact that lamb is suitable for almost all types of cooking, baking usually gives the most exquisite result. If the product was previously wrapped in foil or cooking sleeve, this allows you to keep all the juices and make the dish truly tender.
• Because of the relatively low fat content, lamb meat on the fire quickly becomes dry, so they never fry it much and try to remove it from the stove immediately after the fact of readiness.
• Mutton is probably the best meat in terms of seasoning. Virtually no such fragrant herbs that do not suit him, and given its peculiar smell, most cooks advise not to spare the seasonings, because they not only mask the flaws, but also help to reveal the best features of the product.

• For frying, choose those pieces of lamb, on which on one side there is fat. That he should be down to the result was close to the ideal.
• Frozen mutton fat usually spoils the taste of dishes, so this meat is rarely eaten cold. Prepare it directly for a feast and serve it right there.
• Despite the fact that lamb before heat treatment is almost always soaked in marinade, richly flavored with spices, when served, it is usually smeared with spices again, this guarantees the absence of unpleasant impressions and reveals all notes of taste better. Greens also go well with lamb meat.

• If the meat of the lamb is considered rather fastidious in terms of cooking, then the liver does correspond to such a description even more. When you decide to cook such a dish for the first time, strictly follow all the recommendations from the recipe, especially those related to soaking.

To learn how to cook a marinade for lamb skewers, see the next video.