Lamb
Technically this tender meat comes from a sheep less than 1 year old. Baby lamb is 6-8 weeks and Spring lamb is 3-5 months, but both are milk fed. Yearling lamb is between 1-2 years, while anything over 2 years is mutton, which has a much stonger flavor and texture.
Plural
Lamb
Season
available year-round
How to select
Can be purchased ground or in steaks, chops or roasts. Look for the lightest color to find the youngest, most tender meat. (Older meat is darker.)
How to store
Will keep for 3 days in the refrigerator (roasts as long as 5 days) or frozen for 3 months.
How to prepare
bake, braise, broil, grill, roast
Matches well with
almonds, anchovies, aniseed, apples, apricots, bacon, basil, bay leaves, beans, blueberries, bread crumbs, capers, cardamom, cayenne, cheese, cherries, chiles, chives, cilantro, cinnamon, cloves, couscous, cream, cumin, currants, curry, dill, eggplant, endive, fennel, garlic, grapefruit, hazelnuts, honey, lemon, Madeira, mint, mushrooms, mustard, olive oil, olives, onions, oranges, oregano, parsley, pecans, pepper, pineapple, pine nuts, plums, pomegranates, prunes, red peppers, red wine, rhubarb, rice, rosemary, rum, sage, star anise, tamarind, tarragon, thyme, tomatoes, vinegar, walnuts, yogurt, zucchini