Snack sticks for mutton

[bocephus]

marzig20 I bet they are all baaaaad.

[marzig20]

bocephus noooo

[marzig20]

Benjamminn my mom always complained about the smell of any sheep being cooked and it probably was not lamb.

[craigrice]

I am not a fan of lamb but I think the willies would be a good place to start with the meat prepped properly

[Benjamminn]

craigrice yeah we had it processed by local butcher for cuts; the fat is gone lol. Guess I’ll have to play around with it, might try the mixing with pork idea.

[craigrice]

I would do some small batches to try different ways i.e. encapsulated citric acid or not ,it gives a tang ,smoked meat stabilizer will allow you to smoke the same day with out citric acid

[RON PARRISH]

bocephus I can’t believe it took 4 replies before that came up! LOL

[HerbcoFood]

Don’t forget your rubber boots.

[mrobisr]

Benjamminn I’ll have you a couple when I get home to get to the recipes.

[marzig20]

HerbcoFood said in Snack sticks for mutton:

Don’t forget your rubber boots.

Where ya from stranger? Montanaaaa. Where ya headin? Baaaack.

[marzig20]

Seriously though, I’m kidding… After watching the “Dirty Jobs” segment that Mike Rowe did on sheep, I was seriously impressed with the work that these ranchers do with very little praise for their efforts.

[processhead]

For all the bad press that mutton gets, I am a big fan of lamb.
Almost as if they are two different species in terms of flavor.

[mrobisr]

Benjamminn you want to use cilantro, cumin, coriander, oregano, garlic, paprika, mint, and smoke to complement the flavor of lamb. We often eat lamb in our home and we use the same spices and herbs we just add them to chops or burger instead of stuffing in casings. If you like Pico De Gallo then you can take and grind some of that lamb into burger and make gyros or just put it on your plate and add the Pico. Pico and lamb are soul mates in my opinion one makes the other twice as good.

We eat this all the time.
Gyros
Pita or flat bread
1lb ground lamb, cubed lamb also works
1/4 cup onion
2 or more cloves garlic
2tsp salt
1tsp blk pepper
1 1/2tsp cumin
1/4tsp nutmeg
1tsp dried oregano
2tsp fresh lemon juice
You could stuff this and it would be wonderful that is my plan in the near future.
Tzatziki sauce
1 cup greek yogurt or plain if you cannot get the greek
2 cloves garlic
1/2 lemon juiced
2tsp finely chopped mint or dry if that is what you have
1/2 cup finely chopped cucumber
salt to taste
lettuce and tomato if you desire
Put cooked lamb on pita bread then drizzle with sauce and enjoy.

I have not made this recipe below yet, but from the ingredients I know it will be good.

Merguez
Ingredients
• 2268 g lamb shoulder 70/30 (or you can do a 50/50 lamb and beef mixture with 30% fat)
• 36.29 g kosher salt
• 6.8 g black pepper
• 4.54 g cumin seed
• 4.54 g coriander powder
• 9.07 g smoked paprika
• 6.8 g cayenne powder
• 2.27 g all spice
• 11.34 g minced garlic
• 68.04 ml harissa sauce
• 136.08 ml water
• 45.36 g Non Fat Dry Milk/or your favorite binder optional for better bind and moisture retention
• sheep casings 18-24mm
Harissa Sauce
• 34.02 dried chiles de árbol
• 4.54 dried guajillo chiles
• 2.27 dried ancho chile
• 2.27 tbsp cumin seeds
• 3.4 tsp coriander seeds
• 6.8 each garlic cloves crushed
• 68.04 ml fresh lemon juice
• 34.02 ml white wine vinegar
• 2.27 tbsp tomato paste
• 3.4 tsp Hot smoked Spanish paprika
• 2.27 tsp kosher salt
• 272.16 ml olive oil added to the blender
• 136.08 ml olive oil added after the sauce is made
Instructions

1. For the harissa sauce
2. Place árbol, guajillo, and ancho chiles in a large heatproof measuring glass. Pour boiling water over to submerge, cover with plastic wrap, and let sit until chiles are very pliable and cool enough to handle, 15–20 minutes. Drain; remove stems and seeds and discard (wear gloves for this part if you have them).
3. Toast the cumin seeds and coriander seeds in a dry small skillet over medium-low heat till fragrant. 2-3 minutes tossing constantly. Transfer to a blender.
4. In the blender add the garlic and the rehydrated chilies. Blend on high till a paste is formed. Next add the lemon juice, vinegar, tomato paste, paprika, and salt and process until the mixture is 75% smooth. With the blender on a medium speed, drizzle in the olive oil (blender). Continue to blend till the olive oil is incorporated.
5. transfer the harissa sauce to a bowl and stir in the remaining olive oil.
6. This can be made ahead and refrigerated.
   For the Merguez Sausage
7. Clean the meat from any sinew, arteries, and veins. Cut the meat and fat into small pieces and place in the freezer to chill. You want the temperature to be below 34f.
8. Grind the chilled meat/fat on a 6mm plate. Add all of the spices to the meat and rechill. For a finer texture regrind partially frozen mince meat on a 4.5mm plate (optional)
9. Mix the chilled meat/fat (under 34f) with the harissa sauce, and water. Once the texture begins to get tacky and can stick toy your hand once it’s turned upside down you can stop mixing.
10. Stuff into sheep casings, link, prick out any air pockets, and refrigerate overnight.
11. The next day cook and enjoy!

There is a fermented version in “The Art of Making Fermented Sausages” page 193.

You can also adapt a lot of Italian sausage recipes because of the spices used and you can mix 50/50 pork or beef to tone it down even more.

[mrobisr]

Benjamminn again I have not made this and the orange zest has me a little concerned, but here it is anyway.

Greek sausage

Ingredients
1 1/2 pounds lamb or venison trimmings
2 1/2 pounds pork
1 pound pork fat
Or 50/50 lamb/pork
40 grams kosher salt
5.67 grams Instacure No. 1, (optional)
25 grams sugar,
5 tablespoons minced fresh garlic
1 tablespoon ground coriander seed
1 tablespoon cracked black pepper
2 tablespoons fennel seeds
1 tablespoon crushed dried oregano
2 teaspoons dried thyme
3 tablespoons grated fresh orange zest
1/2 cup white or red wine
Hog casings

Make sausage as you normally do.

[bocephus]

processhead I used to go to the state fair and get a lamb burger, I thought it was very good.

[mrobisr]

processhead I have hair sheep and I think the lanolin taste is even less pronounced than the wool type, but I have never did a blind taste test either.

[mrobisr]

marzig20 sheep are challenging at times, but they are very interesting creatures. Right now I have about 120, but within the next 45 days my herd will grow to 200-225 with all the lambs being born.

[marzig20]

mrobisr when I got done cutting up lamb I would always take a chunk of kidney fat and rub it into my hands.

[mrobisr]

marzig20 excellent lubricant and if you reload I have a recipe for case lubricant using 99% rubbing alcohol and lanolin and you will never have another stuck case, ever!

[marzig20]

The only trouble I had reloading on my Dillon 1050 was with new Starline brass. I always used Dillon’s casing lube.