Properly cooked lamb is not only tasty, but also healthy. Lamb fat is perfectly absorbed by our stomach, without creating unnecessary stress on it. This meat is simply irreplaceable in dietary nutrition; the lecithin it contains has the ability to normalize cholesterol metabolism in the body.
Lamb in the oven - food preparation
The key to a delicious dish is the right choice of lamb. The best option would be young lamb meat, soft and without a pronounced “odor.” The younger the animal, the lighter its meat, the more elastic its fat and the more porous its bones. Old lamb is dark red in color, tough and stringy.
You need to cut off the films from the meat and cut out the tendons. Leave very little fat.
Lamb in the oven - preparing dishes
Any large baking tray will do. Some recipes may also require a Dutch oven and foil for this purpose.
Lamb in the oven - the best recipes
Recipe 1: Lamb in the oven in Slovakian style
The beauty of the dish is that all the ingredients are hardly mixed and are served whole.
Ingredients
Garlic – 1 head;
vinegar 3% - 1 table. false;
fat (if lean meat) – 1 table. false;
potatoes - 5-6 tubers;
broccoli – 500 g;
fresh tomatoes and cucumbers;
dill and parsley;
thyme (thyme) and salt - to taste;
lamb – 1 kg.
Cooking method
Disassemble the broccoli into florets, rinse well and drain. Boil water in a saucepan, place the cabbage there and boil it for 10 minutes with the lid closed. Next, place the broccoli in a colander so that the broth can drain back into the saucepan.
Rub the meat with salt, garlic and place on a baking sheet, previously greased. Place in the oven and cook at medium temperature until the lamb is browned. Next, you need to reduce the heat and periodically pour the released juice over the meat. If it is not enough, then you need to add a little water to the pan, which will stimulate juice secretion.
By piercing the lamb with a toothpick, you can determine the degree of its readiness.
Cut the finished meat into small pieces, place beautifully on a dish, pour meat juice on top and sprinkle with thyme or thyme. Cover the lamb with boiled broccoli, tomatoes, cucumbers and garnish with herbs. Instead of cabbage, you can serve it with fried potatoes.
Recipe 2: Lamb loin in the oven
The loin is cut with the bone into portions, rolled with Worcestershire sauce in egg and breadcrumbs.
Ingredients
Lamb loin with bone – 12 pieces;
eggs – 3 pcs.;
Worcestershire sauce - 3 teaspoons. false;
breadcrumbs - 1 cup.
Cooking method
Preheat the oven to 190°C. In a bowl, mix Worcestershire sauce with eggs. Dip each piece of loin into this mixture and lightly roll in breadcrumbs. Place on a baking sheet greased with any fat and bake for 20 minutes, then turn the meat over to the other side and bake for another 20 minutes.
Recipe 3: Leg of lamb in the oven
The leg of lamb is marinated overnight in a mixture of garlic, rosemary, mustard, lemon zest and honey, and then baked in the oven.
Ingredients
Honey – 4 tbsp. false;
fresh rosemary - 2 tablespoons. false;
ready-made mustard (not spicy) - 2 tablespoons. false;
lemon zest, ground black pepper and coarse sea salt - 1 teaspoon each. false;
chopped garlic – 3 cloves;
leg of lamb (2-2.5 kg).
Cooking method
Mix mustard, honey, lemon zest, garlic, chopped rosemary and ground black pepper. Rub the mixture over the lamb, which is then placed in the refrigerator overnight in a sealed container.
Preheat the oven to 230°C. Salt the lamb and place it on a roasting pan, that is, on a wire rack from which the fat will drain onto a baking sheet. Bake for 20 minutes, then turn down the heat to 200°C and keep in the oven at this temperature for about another hour. If the meat starts to burn on top, you need to cover it with foil on top. It should remain pinkish on the inside.
Before slicing, let the leg sit for about 10 minutes. Serve with gravy, which is prepared as follows: place a baking sheet with the juices remaining after baking the meat on the stove, add half a glass of water and try to scrape as many charred particles from the bottom as possible. Pour in half a glass of red wine and thicken the gravy with some starch diluted in water. Heat on the stove, stirring continuously.
Recipe 4: Lamb in the oven with vegetables in Georgian style
The meat prepared according to this recipe is very spicy. Vegetables are baked in its juice and served as a side dish.
Ingredients
Eggplant – 1 pc.;
potatoes – 700 g;
garlic – 3 coarsely chopped cloves;
onion, sliced into thin rings – 1 pc.;
chopped tomatoes – 500 g;
white wine – 3 tables. false;
finely chopped oregano - 1 table. false;
pepper;
salt;
leg of lamb – 2.5 kg.
Cooking method
Bake the leg in the oven until the meat is pink (approximately 2 hours). Meanwhile, you need to chop the eggplant, salt it so that it releases the juice, and dry it with a paper towel.
Stuff the leg of lamb with garlic, rub with pepper and salt. Place in an oven preheated to 220°C. Approximately 1 hour before the end of baking the meat, you need to drain the fat from the baking sheet and put the vegetables in it. Pour wine, sprinkle with oregano, pepper and salt. Cover the leg with vegetables and bake, remembering to stir the vegetables to better soak them in juice.
After prolonged heat treatment, lamb becomes dry, so you should not overdo it with the cooking time.
Lamb ranks fourth in calorie content among meat varieties. Lamb fat is easily digested by the stomach without creating any stress. Young lamb or milk lamb meat is indispensable in dietary nutrition, as it contains lecithin in sufficient quantities, which normalizes cholesterol metabolism in the body. Properly cooked lamb in the oven has excellent taste and health benefits.
Lamb is chosen to be light red in color, with white and elastic fat; it is not cooked for a long time, so it loses its incredible aroma and becomes tough and dry. Recipes depend on culinary traditions. In the East they cook with dates or apricots; Mediterranean dishes contain olive oil, tomatoes, garlic, and wine. In the northern regions, they prefer lamb with potatoes, flavored with thyme or marjoram. The taste of fat is reduced with mint sauce and vinegar. For alcoholic drinks, red wine is suitable.
How to determine the quality of meat
The first thing to pay attention to is color and intermuscular fat. The lighter the piece (light red or pinkish), the younger and fresher the meat. A burgundy-brown color indicates that the meat is an old animal and is unlikely to make a tender and tasty dish. White fat layers indicate freshness. If the fat is yellowish and loose, it is better not to buy such meat.
High quality lamb is firm to the touch and elastic. If you sniff, there should be no mustiness or rottenness. The denser the structure, the older the animal. If you are purchasing a suckling lamb (up to 8 weeks) or young lamb (up to 3 months), keep in mind that lambs are usually born between January and March.
Sometimes stores sell thawed lamb, which they pass off as fresh. Such meat can be easily identified by checking for elasticity by pressing on a piece. If the dimple has not leveled out and the surface has become bright red, it is defrosted. Secondary freezing and improper defrosting leads to loss of taste and nutritional qualities.
Country lamb in Slovakian style
The beauty of country lamb is that the products are practically not mixed and are served whole.
Ingredients:
- 1 kg lamb;
- 1 head of garlic;
- 1 tbsp. l. vinegar (3%);
- 1 tbsp. l. fat (if the meat is lean);
- 6 pieces of potatoes;
- 500 g broccoli;
- salt, seasoning, herbs - to taste;
- fresh tomatoes and cucumbers.
Video recipe
Baking loin recipe
The loin is cut into portions, rolled in sauce and baked.
Ingredients:
- lamb loin with bone;
- 3 pcs. eggs;
- 1 cup breadcrumbs;
- 3 tsp. Worcestershire sauce.
Preparation:
- Cut the loin into equal pieces. In a bowl, mix Worcestershire sauce with eggs, dip each piece into the resulting mixture and roll in breadcrumbs.
- Grease a baking tray and place the pieces. Preheat the oven to 190 degrees, bake for 20 minutes on each side. Serve with fresh vegetables.
It is generally possible to prepare Worcestershire sauce (the favorite sauce of the British) at home, although it will not be possible to achieve the same identity. It's better to look for ready-made ones in stores.
Delicious Georgian recipe with vegetables
Lamb prepared according to this recipe is spicy, and vegetables are baked in juice and served as a side dish.
Ingredients:
- leg of lamb - about 2.5 kg;
- 1 eggplant;
- 700 g potatoes;
- 3 large cloves of garlic (coarsely chopped);
- 1 large onion – cut into thin rings;
- 0.5 kg tomato;
- 1 tbsp. l. finely chopped greens;
- salt, pepper, spices - to taste;
- ½ glass of red wine.
Preparation:
- Stuff the leg with garlic, rub with salt and pepper, place in an oven preheated to 220 degrees, leave for an hour.
- At this time, cut the eggplant into pieces and add salt to release the juice, then dry with a paper towel and cut the potatoes.
- About an hour after baking, pour the fat into a baking tray, put vegetables there, salt and pepper, add oregano, add wine.
- Cover the leg of lamb with vegetables and bake for about another hour, stirring the vegetables periodically so that they are well saturated with juice.
Serve with chopped tomatoes or pasta.
Roasting with Garlic and Rosemary
The perfect recipe for the holidays. The dish on the table looks festive and appetizing. The treat is an excellent candidate for the New Year's menu.
Ingredients:
- leg of lamb - about 2 kg;
- 1 lemon;
- 2 tsp. dry mustard;
- 2 tsp. chopped rosemary;
- 10 cloves of garlic;
- salt, pepper - to taste.
Preparation:
- Rinse the leg of lamb under running water, make cuts with a knife, and stuff it with garlic. It is advisable to distribute the garlic evenly so that the meat is well saturated with aroma and taste.
- Squeeze lemon juice, mix with salt, pepper, rosemary, mustard. Rub the mixture onto your leg, wrap it in cling film, and leave it in the refrigerator overnight. If you don't have time, two hours is enough.
- Place the marinated lamb in greased baking foil.
- Bake in several stages: first at a temperature of 205 degrees for 20 minutes, then reduce to 180 degrees and bake for 70 minutes.
- Remove the finished meat from the oven, cover with foil, wait 15 minutes, then cut into small slices and serve. You can top the meat with fresh tomatoes and sweet peppers.
How to cook rack
Benefits for the body
Today, lamb is used to prepare rich broths and soups, stews and fried dishes. This meat is especially appreciated by residents of the Caucasus and the Middle East. Manti, beshbarmak, shurpa, shish kebab and pilaf - the list goes on for a long time. New recipes appear every year.
In the Roman Empire, lamb was prepared using a special technology. The carcass was first fried, ground into mince, mixed with other ingredients (spices, bone marrow and egg yolk) and made into delicious meatballs.
Now a few words about the composition and beneficial properties. Lamb contains easily digestible proteins, as well as micro- and macroelements. And in terms of the amount of minerals and vitamins, it is on the same level as pork and beef. Meat from young lambs must be included in children's diets. After all, it contains fluoride, which protects baby teeth from caries.
Lamb has many beneficial properties, but there are also contraindications. People suffering from intestinal and stomach disorders should avoid using it.
First you need to choose the meat. It is advisable to give preference to the carcasses of young lambs (no older than 3 years). Their meat has a light red tint. If you find dark-colored beef in the store, then you know: this is an old animal. The same can be said if there is yellow fat on the carcass, which emits an unpleasant aroma.
We’ll tell you later how to cook delicious, odorless lamb. In the meantime, let's talk about the features of cooking. The best parts of lamb are: neck, brisket and shoulder. Before cooking, wash the meat well and remove the fat. The cooking time for the above parts of the carcass is 1.5-2 hours.
Product set:
1. Wash the meat and place it on a paper napkin. Cut into pieces and place in a frying pan, where we fry in oil. This process will take 15 minutes. At the very end, add salt and pepper.
2. We need to cook lamb in a frying pan with the addition of vegetables. Remove the husks from the bulbs. Chop the pulp and fry with the meat for 10 minutes.
3. Cut the pepper into half rings and place in a frying pan. Fry with lamb and onions for another 10 minutes.
4. Wash the mushrooms in running water, peel and chop. Fry separately and then add to the meat, peppers and onions.
5. Let's start peeling the potatoes. Chop it and put it in the pan with the other ingredients. Pour in enough cold water. Add spices and thyme. Cover the pan with a lid and set aside for 40 minutes. Divide the finished dish among plates and garnish with chopped herbs and garlic. We wish you bon appetit!
Lamb soup recipe
Ingredients:
1. First you need to rinse the meat, put it in a pan and add water. The broth preparation time is 1.5-2 hours (over low heat).
2. After the specified time has passed, add potatoes cut into large pieces into the pan. Salt.
3. 20 minutes after adding the potatoes, add chopped vegetables (carrots and onions). When they are cooked, you can add coarsely chopped peppers and your favorite spices to the soup.
4. After 5 minutes, add garlic and bay leaves. Remove them when the soup is ready. Before serving, the first dish must be steeped. At least 20 minutes.
Hiking option
Don’t know how to cook tasty (odorless) lamb in the field? We offer you an excellent recipe.
Grocery list:
You can do this in the following way:
1. Peel the onion and rinse with water. Cut the pulp into half rings.
2. Take a cauldron designed for 8-12 liters. Add oil. Fry the onion until golden brown. This process takes 15-20 minutes.
3. Let's start processing the carrots. We wash it, peel it and cut it into cubes. Add to the onion. Simmer for 15-20 minutes. The fire should be medium.
4. Now we prepare the meat: remove excess fat, cut into cubes and place in a cauldron. When the lamb sticks a little, you can salt it. After 10 minutes, add spices. Simmer for another 10-15 minutes.
5. The next ingredient is zucchini. We wash them, peel them and chop them (preferably into cubes). Add to the lamb, add salt and mix well. We time it for 15 minutes.
6. Now we need to wash the eggplants and cut them into cubes. Before sending them to the cauldron, soak them in salted water for 15 minutes and then drain them in a colander. Place in a cauldron and stir. It remains to simmer all the ingredients for 20 minutes. At the very end, you need to add peeled heads of garlic, chopped herbs and spices (including cumin).
Multicooker recipe
Do you want to cook delicious and aromatic food with a minimal amount of time and ingredients? Then this recipe is perfect for you.
Ingredients:
How to cook lamb quickly and tasty in a slow cooker:
1. Take a piece of meat with streaks of fat. Cut it into pieces (about 25-30 g).
2. Turn on the multicooker. Add some oil. Lay out the meat pieces. Start the “Frying” mode. We do not close the lid.
3. Wash and peel the carrots, then cut into strips. Add to the bowl with the lamb.
4. Let's move on to processing the onions. It must be peeled, cut into strips and sent to other ingredients.
5. Close the lid. Fry vegetables and meat for 3-5 minutes. Next, add salt, barberry and spices. Mix well.
6. Pour the rice into the multicooker bowl. Pour in water so that it is 2 cm above the zirvak. Insert a whole head of garlic into the middle. Close the lid again. Switch the device to “Rice” mode. After half an hour, you can open the lid and try the pilaf, determining the degree of its readiness. Use a special spatula to check the indentations. If all the liquid has been absorbed into the rice, then immediately turn off the multicooker. In this case, you do not need to wait for the selected program to finish.
Roast in pots
List of products (based on 3-4 servings):
Practical part:
Step No. 1 - peel the carrots, zucchini and onions. Now let's grind them. Cut the carrots into rings, the zucchini into cubes, and the onion into half rings. Place the vegetables in the pots, distributing them evenly.
Step No. 2 - wash the lamb, cut into cubes and add to the vegetables. Add 2-3 tbsp to each clay pot. l. washed buckwheat. Fill the contents with boiling water. The water should completely cover the meat and vegetables. Salt and pepper.
Step No. 3 - cover the pots with a layer of foil or lids. Place them in a preheated oven. We time it to 60 minutes. This is how long it takes for the roast to fully cook.
Step No. 4 - the dish is served to the table directly in the pots. Add a little olive oil to each of them. You can decorate the roast with dill sprigs.
What to serve with lamb dishes
Do you want to please your household with a delicious lunch or dinner? Then prepare some lamb for them. It can be hearty pilaf, aromatic soup or manti. Lamb goes well with hot and sour sauces. Suitable side dishes include: fresh vegetables, buckwheat, legumes, mashed potatoes, boiled pasta and vegetable stew.
Wine is the best drink. You don't have to spend a lot of money to buy it. Any red wine can highlight the incomparable taste and aroma of lamb dishes.
Afterword
Now you know how to cook tasty, odorless lamb using a slow cooker, a cauldron and a regular frying pan. The recipes contained in the article are perfect for both experienced housewives and those who have just begun to comprehend the culinary art. All products are affordable and sold in any supermarket.
Lamb in the European part of Russia is not as popular as pork or beef, and it’s completely in vain. Lamb meat is a very healthy product that contains protein, iron and B vitamins. Also, lamb meat is a good dietary component. Due to the minimal amount of fat in lamb, you can eat it without worrying about your figure.
Young lamb meat is ideal for cooking. Meat is tasty and very healthy, especially if you choose the right cooking method. Experienced chefs advise baking lamb in the oven, then, firstly, it will retain more nutrients, and secondly, it will remain juicy. Below is a selection of the most delicious recipes.
Lamb in the oven in foil - step by step recipe with photos
To cook lamb deliciously, you don’t need to worry too much; you can simply bake it in foil. The meat will come out of the oven looking beautiful and have a fantastic aroma. This is the kind of lamb that will become the signature dish on the holiday table.
Cooking time: 3 hours 0 minutes
Quantity: 6 servings
Ingredients
- Lamb: 1.5 kg
- Dry spices: 20 g
- Salt: 10 g
- Soy sauce: 50 g
- Garlic: 1/2 large head
- Fresh tomatoes: 50 g
- Mustard: 10 g
- Lemon juice: 2 tsp.
Cooking instructions
How to cook lamb in the oven in the sleeve
The modern housewife is happy that she has thousands of kitchen assistants to help her cook quickly. One of them is a baking sleeve, which simultaneously makes the meat tender and juicy, and leaves the baking sheet clean. For baking, you can take a leg of lamb or a clean fillet, as you like.
Products:
- Lamb – 1.5-2 kg.
- Coarse salt – 1 tbsp. l.
- Dijon mustard (beans) – 2 tsp.
- Herbs de Provence spices – 1/2 tsp.
Technology:
- Remove excess fat from the meat, cut off the membranes, wash, and pat dry with a paper towel.
- Grind the spices into powder (or take ready-made ground ones), mix with salt.
- Rub the resulting aromatic mixture onto the lamb on all sides. Now carefully coat with mustard. Leave to marinate for 3-4 hours in a cool place.
- Hide the meat in a sleeve, place on a baking sheet, and put in the oven. Bake at maximum temperature (220°C) for 40 minutes.
- Then lower the temperature and continue baking for half an hour. You can carefully cut the sleeve so that a golden brown crust appears.
Place the finished baked lamb on a beautiful dish, pour over the juice remaining in the sleeve, and garnish with herbs. The dish of the day is ready!
Delicious oven-baked lamb in pots
Once upon a time, grandmothers cooked in pots in the oven, and they were amazing dishes. Unfortunately, we can’t turn back time, but using pots to prepare modern dishes is quite possible. Below is a recipe for lamb prepared this way.
Products:
- Lamb (lean fillet) – 800 gr.
- Onions – 1-2 pcs.
- Potatoes – 12-15 pcs.
- Garlic – 1 head.
- Carrots – 2 pcs.
- Vegetable oil – 100 ml.
- Butter – 50 gr.
- Cheese – 100 gr.
- Spices (to the hostess’s taste), salt.
- Water.
Technology:
- You need to start with lamb, ideally it should be chilled, but you can also use frozen. Rinse the meat, dry with paper towels, cut into cubes.
- Peel, wash, cut vegetables in a convenient way (for example, potatoes into slices, onions into half rings, carrots into thin slices).
- Heat a frying pan with vegetable oil, put the meat cubes in it, and fry until half cooked. Experienced chefs advise lightly sautéing carrots and onions in another frying pan.
- Now it's time to put all the ingredients in the pots. Rinse the containers, pour a little vegetable oil down. Place in layers - lamb, carrots, onions, finely chopped garlic, potato wedges.
- Add salt, add spices, add a cube of butter. Add heated water, close the lids and place in the oven.
- Cooking time is about 40 minutes at 180°C. Five minutes before the end of the process, grate hard cheese and sprinkle.
The family will be very happy with the unusually served dish, and will definitely ask for a repeat!
Recipe for lamb in the oven with potatoes
Lamb is considered a fairly fatty meat, so it is best cooked with potatoes, which will absorb excess fat. In addition, when baked, a golden brown crust is formed, making the dish very appetizing.
Products:
- Lamb – 1.5 kg.
- Potatoes – 7-10 pcs.
- Garlic – 4 cloves.
- Olive oil (can be replaced with vegetable oil).
- Rosemary and thyme, salt
- Dry white wine – 100 ml.
Technology:
- Prepare the ingredients. Peel the potatoes, rinse them under water, and chop them quite coarsely, since baking lamb is a lengthy process. Salt, sprinkle with spices and rosemary, chopped garlic (2 cloves).
- Clean the meat from films and excess fat, rinse, and make deep cuts.
- Pass the garlic through a press, add herbs, oil, salt, grind thoroughly. Rub the lamb well with the aromatic marinade.
- Pour a little oil into the bottom of a baking dish, place the potatoes, top with the meat, pour wine over it. Cover with a sheet of food foil and place in the oven.
- Bake for 40 minutes at 200°C. From time to time, pour the resulting “juice” over the meat and potatoes.
If the baking container is beautiful, then you can serve the dish directly in it. Or transfer the meat to a beautiful plate and distribute the potatoes around. Sprinkle generously with herbs and invite guests!
Lamb in the oven with vegetables
The ideal “comrade” of lamb is potatoes, but the company can also be accompanied by other vegetables currently available in the refrigerator. It is worth trying to cook meat according to the following recipe.
Products:
- Lamb – 500 gr.
- Potatoes – 6-7 pcs.
- Carrots – 2-3 pcs.
- Onions – 2-4 pcs.
- Tomatoes – 3-4 pcs.
- Eggplant – 1 pc.
- Vegetable oil.
- Salt and spices, including hot and allspice, thyme, rosemary.
- Water – ½ tbsp.
Technology:
- Prepare the lamb: remove films and excess fat, rinse, dry, salt, sprinkle with spices, leave for marinating.
- During this time, prepare the vegetables. Peel and wash. Cut the eggplant into circles, add salt, press, drain the resulting juice.
- Cut the potatoes into slices, carrots and tomatoes into circles, onions into rings. Place the vegetables in one container, also add salt and sprinkle with seasonings.
- The baking dish should have a high side. Pour oil and water into it, lay out the meat, and vegetables around it.
- Bake for 1-1.5 hours at 200°C, be sure to cover with a sheet of foil.
The ideal marinade for roasting lamb in the oven
For the query “ideal marinade for lamb meat,” the Internet produces thousands of recipes, but every housewife considers hers to be the best. Therefore, only experimentally can one obtain the ideal composition. You can use this recipe as a basis.
Products:
- Onions – 1 pc.
- Garlic – 1 head.
- Chili pepper – 2 small pods.
- Zira – 1 tsp.
- Thyme, rosemary - ½ tsp each.
- Olive oil.
- Soy sauce.
Technology:
- Peel the onion and garlic, rinse, cut the first into small cubes, and pass the second through a press. Cut the chili into small pieces.
- Mix with salt, spices, olive oil and soy sauce.
- Soak the lamb in this marinade for several hours before putting it in the oven.
Herbs and spices will help cope with the smell of lamb, which not everyone likes. The oil will help keep the meat juices inside during baking. If desired, you can chop 2-3 tomatoes into the marinade.
It just so happens that from time immemorial, humanity has been eating meat: pork, beef, chicken, horse meat - not to mention more exotic types of product. Articles and entire books have been written about the benefits of moderate consumption of meat. But if pork, for example, is considered a heavy and fatty food (probably it is not for nothing that Muslims and Jews have a ban on the consumption of this type of meat), then lamb is an easily digestible and fairly lean delicacy. Therefore, the question of how to properly cook lamb is on our agenda today.
Benefit
There are legends about the benefits of young lamb meat (especially in the East). One condition: the source of meat must not be older than 18 months, must be castrated (or it can be a sheep of the same age). There is almost three times less fat in such meat than in pork, and four times less cholesterol. But, for example, there is as much as thirty percent more iron (which is very useful, for example, for people suffering from anemia). Lamb contains a large set of microelements and vitamins that are so necessary for the health of the human body. Its calorie content is relatively low, so lamb is also used for dietary nutrition. It directly affects the production of hemoglobin, restoring normal blood composition. This meat also contains lecithin, which helps regulate cholesterol levels in the blood.
Harm
But as they say, without harm there is no benefit. Still, lamb has some harmful qualities. In older people, for example, it can cause arthritis. Therefore, grandparents should not overuse lamb cutlets or kebabs prepared at their own dacha.
How to choose?
Before you can cook lamb deliciously, you still need to choose it correctly! Many people rush to complain about the specific smell and therefore refuse to cook with it. Before cooking lamb, choose the meat based on color and smell. The darker it is, the older the animal was. The lamb should be light red, the smell should be moderate (feel free to smell it right at the counter when purchasing). Be aware that it tends to strengthen when cooked. If it is too strong, look for meat in another store or market. For pilaf or stew, they usually take a shoulder or brisket, for roast - the kidney or neck part, for stewing, frying - the back leg, for cooking - the neck, shoulder, brisket, for lamb cutlets - the neck or shoulder.
What can you cook from lamb? Recipes
There are a great variety of dishes using lamb meat. Especially in the East, where the tradition of eating lamb goes back thousands of years. Conventionally, recipes can be divided into several groups: first courses - soups and broths, second courses, appetizers. Speaking about how to cook lamb, let’s take a closer look at each.
Lamb soups
Due to cultural and food traditions, such soups are mainly oriental dishes. Shurpa, kharcho, chanakhi, besh-barmak, bozbash, piti... Well, not the names, but just some kind of magic! The first courses are thick, with a very rich taste, and extremely nutritious. They are always served with a lot of greens: cilantro, parsley, onions. Oriental spices add a special piquancy to the dishes. Let's try to prepare such a first course.
Shurpa
Its variations depend on the region, but basically it is a fatty lamb soup with a lot of spices. We will need: lamb (breast, neck, shank) - 1 kilogram, internal lamb fat - 100 grams, half a kilo of red onion, 200 grams of white onion, carrots - 300 grams, tomatoes - 2-3 pieces, capsicum - 2-3 pieces , spices (basil, savory, cumin, coriander - to taste), salt; parsley and cilantro - a good bunch each, green onions - 100 grams. Some also add potatoes, but the classic recipe for making shurpa does not require this.
Place the meat in a large cauldron and pour in cold water to cover the lamb. We put it on fire. Let's boil and add salt. We make the fire weak. Collecting foam. Add red onion, cut into half rings, into the cauldron and cook for half an hour. Add finely chopped fat, carrots (in large pieces), red pepper, coriander, cumin. Cook the soup for another hour. Add tomatoes (small ones, even whole ones). At this stage - for fans of potatoes in all forms - add them to the cauldron (coarsely chopped or whole). Then - thinly sliced sweet onions and spices. Cook until all ingredients are ready. Please note that everything should be cut coarsely. Before serving, place the meat and vegetables in a separate container, and pour the broth into bowls and sprinkle with chopped parsley and cilantro. Eat hot!
Kharcho
Another way to cook lamb is the famous kharcho soup. Some, however, prefer to make it from beef. You need to take: lamb - 500 grams, rice - two tablespoons, onions - 200 grams, tomato paste - 100 grams, dried plums (or tkemali sauce) - 300 grams, pepper - to taste, herbs.
Cut the washed meat into pieces, add water and cook for one hour (removing the foam). Then you need to put rice, finely chopped onion, salt and cook until the rice is ready. After this, add tomato paste, lightly fried in a frying pan, plums or tkemali sauce, and pepper into the soup. Cook for another 10 minutes. Turn off the heat and let it brew for half an hour. Serve sprinkled with finely chopped herbs - lots of them!
Second courses. How to cook lamb in the oven?
This meat will turn out tasty and tender if done correctly! And the new potatoes as a side dish are just to die for! We will need (for six large servings): 1 kilogram of lamb, onions - 300 grams, lamb fat - 100 grams, new potatoes - 1 kilogram, vegetable oil - two to three tablespoons, spices and salt - to taste.
Melt the fat in a saucepan, add the diced meat, and lightly fry. Add the onion, cut into half rings, to the meat and fry for another five minutes. Salt, pepper, pour a glass of water. Simmer over low heat for about an hour (until it becomes soft enough). We take out the meat and place it on a baking tray. Then wash the potatoes, do not peel them, do not cut them, but place them entirely around the meat. We also pour the sauce from cooking the meat onto a baking sheet. As a result, there should be at least a glass of liquid there. Bake the lamb in the oven at 180 degrees for about twenty minutes. Serve on the table, sprinkled with herbs.
Pilaf
If you are thinking about how to cook lamb in a slow cooker, then I must say that pilaf will turn out very well in it. Take half a kilo of lamb, 200 grams of rice, 100 grams of onions, pepper and spices for pilaf to taste, 100 grams of carrots, one head of garlic, a couple of tablespoons of vegetable oil.
Pour oil into the multicooker bowl. Pour in the rice. Cut the meat into small pieces. Cut the carrots into cubes, onions - add everything to the slow cooker. Season with spices for pilaf, put whole garlic in the middle. Pour three glasses of water into it. We set the “Normal” mode and wait for our pilaf. Serve with herbs and fresh salads.
These are just a few recipes on how to cook lamb. And there are so many more! You can't count. There are modern ones, and there are also ones that reveal the secrets of centuries. So go ahead, experiment in your kitchens, use classic recipes and come up with your own. Bon appetit everyone!