All About Lamb

While both American lamb and that imported from New Zealand and Australia are high-quality products, we tend to prefer domestic lamb in our recipes. Domestic lamb is distinguished by its larger size and milder flavor, while lamb imported from Australia or New Zealand features a far gamier taste. The reason for this difference in taste boils down to diet and the chemistry of lamb fat. Imported lamb is pasture-fed on mixed grasses, while lamb raised in the United States begins on a diet of grass but finishes with grain, ultimately leading to sweeter-tasting meat.

Sometimes, but not always. In general loin chops and rib chops like to be cooked to the same temperature and will both cook at the same rate, so are fairly interchangeable in recipes. The exception is shoulder chops, which have more connective tissue than the other cuts mentioned here and need to be treated differently. They’re great grilled, but our favorite way to cook them is braising. Check out the recipe lesson for Braised Lamb Shoulder Chops with Tomatoes and Red Wine in this class.

Frenching refers to a process that involves cutting away the sinew, fat, and small bits of meat that cover the bones of a rack of lamb. It can be tedious work, but happily, butchers often take care of this so it’s easy to find a roast that is just about oven-ready. It doesn’t affect the way the meat cooks, but makes for a better presentation.

Then it’s time to test your knife skills and bone your own leg of lamb! This may sound intimidating, but luckily we have a video lesson that you can follow along with. As long as you have a sharp boning knife and a bit of patience we promise you’ll be able to master this technique.