Neck of Mutton - Best Recipe Please

[Chantenay]

I got two thick hunks of mutton neck at the farmers market yesterday - the lady selling it was very excited as it was only the second time she had brought mutton, and it was selling rapidly - she thought no-one wanted it any more.
I haven't had proper mutton since I was a bairn, so recipe suggestions will be very welcome please.

[Chantenay]

[tim]

You can't really beat the old way?

[sarah2210]

How about this Irish stew from the BBC? Sounds yummy  ;D

http://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/database/irishstew_7484.shtml

I have a recipe somewhere for a leg of mutton with a caper sauce if you're thinking of buying other bits of mutton, let me know if you'd like a copy, can't lay my hands on it right now!  :D

Sarah

[tim]

All much the same in the end?

[sarah2210]

All much the same in the end?

Too true Tim, can you tell I don't do the cooking in our house?  ;)

Anyway, found the leg of mutton recipe, it really is gorgeous!

http://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/database/boiledmuttonwithcape_7485.shtml

Sarah

[tim]

And if going the Caper route, don't be hidebound to the often boring salted things. Do try the Berries? Great as snacks, too!

http://www.uni-graz.at/~katzer/engl/Capp_spi.html

[Chantenay]

Thanks both. With your help I have produced a decent stew which I will complete tomorrow - I always reckon casseroles taste better the next day. And I shall follow up the caper idea next time - thanks.

[Curryandchips]

When faced with a question like this, I fall back on one of my trusty old reliables - Elizabeth David's French Provincial Cooking. There are a couple of delicious recipes - carre d'agneau aux haricots, and carre d'agneau lorrain. The first being neck with haricot beans, the second with carrots, leeks and tomatoes. Sadly I dont have access to scanner facilities, so would have to extract the whole recipes, which being from Elizabeth David, are very wordy, but so evocative as a result. A pm to me should jar me into action, in case I don't notice further posts ...

Derek :)

[tim]

Oh, YES, Derek - Carré = "The lamb of the Pyrenees is appreciated by all the gastronomes: between tendreté of the sucking lamb and more marked savour of the grazing calf which remained in grazing ground, each taste is respected."

And Cassoulet if you want Heaven too - & have a week to spare!!

I love a good STEW!!

[Curryandchips]

Thank for replying while I was still reviewing posts ... I realised I had forgotten to comment - The irish input, and lancashire hotpot ... mmm does this take us back to a wonderful thread sometime previous on lob scouse ... ?

And yes, I agree, stews and slow cooked foods do taste better on a reheating ...

Derek :)

[tim]

Glad to find that the old chap is still with us!!

[grawrc]

I have to confess that I have never eaten mutton but was interested in this thread because our local farm sells it along with lamb, beef etc.

I've been wondering why I should get some so this has spurred me on to try. I imagine being older meat it will be stronger tasting and need slower, longer cooking.... Mmmm my tastebuds are beginning to wake up! ;)

Thank you for that. :)

[tim]

Not a recipe but useful background?

http://www.articleclick.com/do-you-know-how-to-cook-mutton.html

[Chantenay]

I didn't even consider Elizabeth David, what a berk! ::) - thanks, I've got the books and that's more recipes for another time. I've had a nibble of the stew - just checking it's OK for my lovely husband to eat this evening, and the meat is nowhere near as strongly flavoured as I expected. Definitely a more complex flavour, but in a nice way. Thanks again for the help with this.