# Lamb for Australia Day



## moikel (Jan 19, 2016)

Its got several very prominent Aussies in it,newsreaders,sports figures,football commentators.

This has stirred up some people for making fun of vegans,over 300 of them wrote complaints(probably on paper they made themselves with carbon free pencils)They were particularly upset about the flamethrower being used on the hipster vegans kale.

We do eat a lot of lamb here & its a must have for summer char grilling.

I will do something & post it shortly.


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## chef jimmyj (Jan 19, 2016)

Fun video...Silly Vegans...JJ


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## moikel (Jan 19, 2016)

Yes Chef JJ they are a humourless bunch of Gen Y  whiners bit like this tantrum thrower.



Our lamb adds run as a series & are loved by my generation.


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## chef jimmyj (Jan 19, 2016)

My Wife did the same thing this morning when I grabbed the last slice of BACON!
	

	
	
		
		



		
		
	


	





I and my family, growing up, loved Lamb. Loin Chops were my Birthday Supper. My wife's father spent a few years in the South Pacific during WWII. For long stretches, Mutton was served 3 meals a day. Needless to say, he wasn't a fan after '45 and my wife, and her family, never developed a taste for Lamb...JJ


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## SmokinAl (Jan 19, 2016)

I love lamb chops, and like JJ I grew up eating it all the time. I just wish it wasn't so darn expensive.

Al


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## moikel (Jan 19, 2016)

Chef JimmyJ said:


> My Wife did the same thing this morning when I grabbed the last slice of BACON!
> 
> 
> 
> ...


My father was fed mutton right through WW2 as well ,he was a kid but it was food rationing. Claimed he could still remember the smell 60 years later.

There is a cut off point age wise between lamb,hogget & mutton. My Dad liked hoggett  so thats what we killed for the table same as a lot of farmers.Our industry has shifted towards bigger meatier breeds of fat lamb now,great product.


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## moikel (Jan 19, 2016)

SmokinAl said:


> I love lamb chops, and like JJ I grew up eating it all the time. I just wish it wasn't so darn expensive.
> 
> Al


Price pretty strong here but with our dollar only buying 69 cents US  you could eat pretty well.
	

	
	
		
		



		
		
	


	





Loin $18 a kg,chump which is the thick end of leg same, shoulder chops,called bachelor  chops when I was a kid,cheap & chewy about $12. Whole leg about $13 a kg.


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## moikel (Jan 19, 2016)

Stinking hot day here so where are going Burmese,makes sense?
	

	
	
		
		



		
		
	


	





It won't be smoked but I am converting a Burmese pork curry to lamb shoulder.

I will do the shoulder whole ,low & slow. Its Thai /Burma border country food.If they had sheep they would cook it this way,I am sure.


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## daveomak (Jan 19, 2016)

Great video Mick....  

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__ daveomak
__ Jan 19, 2016


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## moikel (Jan 19, 2016)

There is a whole series of adds all featuring the same former footballer come media guy Sam Kekovitch.

Every year they poke fun at vegans & food fads & urge people to stick with lamb eating tradition.

Every year the same people complain & every year our Advertising Standards Committee tell them to get a sense of humour .


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## moikel (Jan 19, 2016)

OK while I have the time I will set out whats going to happen.

Curry paste first 2 tsp coriander seed & cumin seed, 1 inch stick of cassia bark,3 x dried red long chilli,rehydrated ,copped. or what you have, bit of ginger the size of your thumb, 1x lemon grass stalk ,white bit only, 1x red shallot, 2x garlic cove,3 x cilantro roots washed,11/2 tsp turmeric, 2 fat tsp shrimp paste, 

dry roast spices then process the lot in your device of choice with 1 tab water& 1/2 tsp sea salt.

In a pan goes peanut oil 4 x garlic cloves chopped,4 x red shallots chopped,thumb sized bit of ginger shredded. ,cook until fragrant about 2 min.

Add curry paste, cook 2 min ,DONT LET IT BURN.

Add lamb shoulder plus water 0r chicken stock about enough to almost cover.

Bring to boil then cook over low heat until tender,maybe an hour.

Then add 2 waxy potatoes chopped,1/3 cup roasted peanuts coarsely chopped, 1/3 cup tamarind pulp. Cook 30 to 40 minutes.

Add 2 x tabs fish sauce,same of palm sugar,check for balance.

Serve with a sprinkle of crispy shallots,cilantro .

Unlike a lot of Thai curry,no lime,coconut milk.

Its a lighter style mine is a fusion of a couple of recipes, if you were making a pork curry it would be 2 pounds of belly cut into cubes.


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## daveomak (Jan 19, 2016)

I watched them all.....   He doesn't leave any group "untouched" with his "barbs"...  Funny...


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## moikel (Jan 19, 2016)

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__ Jan 19, 2016






Curry paste made,I gave it a little bit of fenugreek & some black pepper otherwise as per.

On simmer now. Made tamarind water from pulp.


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## moikel (Jan 19, 2016)

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__ moikel
__ Jan 19, 2016






1  hour from here for potato,tamarind water etc.


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## dirtsailor2003 (Jan 19, 2016)

I want lamb!!! Great video! 

Looks like even better food brewing on your stove!

I'll be looking for the finale Mick!


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## moikel (Jan 20, 2016)

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__ moikel
__ Jan 20, 2016






Just added the peanuts late,raw quickly toasted in a hot pan bashed up in mortar & pestle.

Will just let it sit for about 30 minutes skim the fat. White rice,some green thing
	

	
	
		
		



		
		
	


	





  on the side.

Tamarind made it darker ,lovely sour note balanced up by the palm sugar.

I have ordered this in a few places that do sort of pan Asian,some Thai,Malaysian,Viet. Its on a lot of menu's ,I can see why. Its a dish that is distinctive,its fragrant,spicy but lighter in the broth.

Original recipe called for 2 pound of pork belly cut in 1 x1 cubes or so.


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## moikel (Jan 20, 2016)

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__ moikel
__ Jan 20, 2016


















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__ moikel
__ Jan 20, 2016






Really nice. It more or less pulled with a pair of tongs.I cooked it for about 3 hours but very low.

I don't know much about Burmese food but I do see this dish a lot around town,pork version.

Peanuts a nice touch. I like the sour note of tamarind,could have bumped the chilli a little.

I could see this as convertible to a wet rub for say a bit of pork belly into the smoker.

Lamb made sense .

I will do something on the Weber for Australia day ,public holiday Tuesday.


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## moikel (Jan 20, 2016)

dirtsailor2003 said:


> I want lamb!!! Great video!
> 
> Looks like even better food brewing on your stove!
> 
> I'll be looking for the finale Mick!


I think all these ingredients should be available in your 'hood. You can use light brown sugar instead of palm ,if there is an Indian store they have jaggery sugar,near enough to the same thing. It has to have tamarind otherwise its not the same deal. The liquid product in the jar is fine but I had a block of pulp soaked a bit about the size a deck of cards in hot water ,left it then squeezed & strained gave up about a solid cup full,maybe 350ml.


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## bluewhisper (Jan 20, 2016)

Add my late mother and her parents to the list of those who hated mutton during the war. It was the only meat not rationed, except for whale. They tried that *once*.

I've moved to another part of town and now I'm near a different halal meat market. At my previous store, the availability of lamb was hit or miss. But they had a band saw so you could get a cut not found in the mainstream markets, and at better prices. I need to see what's available at this store.


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## dirtsailor2003 (Jan 20, 2016)

Moikel said:


> I think all these ingredients should be available in your 'hood. You can use light brown sugar instead of palm ,if there is an Indian store they have jaggery sugar,near enough to the same thing. It has to have tamarind otherwise its not the same deal. The liquid product in the jar is fine but I had a block of pulp soaked a bit about the size a deck of cards in hot water ,left it then squeezed & strained gave up about a solid cup full,maybe 350ml.



I can get palm sugar and tamarind here. The only thing on the list that I haven't been able to find is shrimp paste. One store does carry anchovies paste.


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## bluewhisper (Jan 20, 2016)

For shrimp paste, try Asian markets.


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## chef jimmyj (Jan 20, 2016)

I think Lamb is a great choice for that flavor profile. Nice job Mick...JJ


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## moikel (Jan 20, 2016)

BlueWhisper said:


> For shrimp paste, try Asian markets.


Way back in the day it came in blocks called bechan or similar ,you cut a bit off the put it in al foil & roasted it for a bit.The smell was frightful. Thai people here do it outside over gas grill not allowed in the house
	

	
	
		
		



		
			






Way better now in jars ,indispensable in that regions food. I even put it in dressings for larbs or som tams apparently thats a more Loa thing, who knew


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## dirtsailor2003 (Jan 20, 2016)

No Asian market where I live! Closest one is 180 miles away.


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## chef jimmyj (Jan 20, 2016)

Tra Chang is a good brand and at $6 thru Amazon for 3.1 oz, it's probably more than you would need in a year...JJ


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## moikel (Jan 20, 2016)

BlueWhisper said:


> Add my late mother and her parents to the list of those who hated mutton during the war. It was the only meat not rationed, except for whale. They tried that *once*.
> 
> I've moved to another part of town and now I'm near a different halal meat market. At my previous store, the availability of lamb was hit or miss. But they had a band saw so you could get a cut not found in the mainstream markets, and at better prices. I need to see what's available at this store.


Back in the day you would kill a lamb,hang it up over night,then break it up the next day.Cleaver,hand saw, boning knife. Taught by fathers to sons . It was kept simple,rear leg whole, chump,loin,cutlet as chops the shoulder was trimmed up whole unless you were posh & had a bandsaw. Neck was cut into stewing chops,shanks left as is dogs got all the bits & bobs. On those bigger sheep properties where shearer teams lived on site they  ate a lot of lamb/hoggett & mutton if the farmer was a cheap bastard! Might be 6 shearers,2 roustabouts ,wool classer,wool presser, & head contractor.And most critically the cook! Loin chops ,eggs,bacon & tomato for breakfast, cold roast lamb sandwiches for lunch or grilled chops, leg of lamb for dinner. Cake & scones for morning & afternoon "smoko". Never saw many fat shearers, now about $3.25 a sheep, or close.Everybody else on wages. Hard work for hard men.


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