Beef is one of the most commonly eaten meats in the United States. The highest amount of beef consumed per capita in the US was 88.8 pounds (40.28 kg) in 1976. The lowest was 32 pounds (14.51 kg) in 1932 and that was during the great depression. As of 2011, Americans were consuming an average of 54.5 pounds (24.72 kg) of beef per person annually.
Beef is regarded as a good source of animal protein, but lamb may be a better alternative source of animal protein. Lamb is not usually prepared at home, so many have not had it. For this reason, you might be hesitant to try. When it comes to what we can or cannot eat, there is a lot that we have to discover.
What does lamb taste like? If you really want to experience the taste of lamb, ask for a medium well-done kind. When you take a bite of lamb, you will find that the texture is firmer than that of chicken. However, it is not as chewy as beef. Lamb has a softer texture when compared to the other types of meat that we have, it has a gamey taste that is quite similar to deer meat. When compared to beef, the flavor of lamb is more intense.
Medium cooked lamb allows you to taste all the juices from the meat, it is not too dry or overcooked. The taste and flavor of lamb are dependent on how the animal has been raised.
Nutritional Benefits of Lamb
Lamb is healthier than beef or pork. It has a lower level of fat and cholesterol when it is compared with these two. The benefits of lamb meat are plentiful and quite surprising. One of the surprising health benefits of lamb is that it can prevent the growth and spread of cancer cells.
Lamb plays host to selenium, iron, Choline, and vitamin B. The combination of these micronutrients is the magic ingredient that keeps cancer cells from growing in our bodies. For people with cancer, eating lamb meat can help the cancer cells from spreading to other tissues and organs in the body.
Like we mentioned above, lamb contains a lot of iron. For people that have anemia, eating liver meat is a good way of getting iron into their system. Since lamb is a very good source of iron, lamb can help with anemia. If you are not keen on eating liver, lamb meat is a great alternative. Lamb also plays an important role when it comes to bone health. Eating lamb can help increase bone density and strengthen them in various ways.
Lamb contains something known as conjugated linoleic acid. Doctors use this type of acid as a remedy for patients struggling with obesity. Because of the presence of this acid in lamb, it can help you lose body fat and build muscles in its place. It can also help to reduce excessive inflammation in the body that can lead to a host of degenerative diseases. Lamb also contains a good amount of potassium. Potassium plays an important role in the body, it helps to keep the flow of blood at a reasonable level and promotes heart health.
Culinary Uses of Lamb
All cuts of lamb cannot taste the same way. This applies to how you prepare them too, not all cuts of lamb can be prepared in the same manner. Each piece of lamb has to be prepared in a particular manner because of the differences in each piece.
Lamb cuts are divided into the shoulder, legs, ribs, and hips. Lamb’s shoulder is ideal as a roast and its texture is chewier than beef or pork. Lamb legs, on the other hand, are rich and very appetizing. You have more meat in that region and it is more compact, so they can be cut and enjoyed as thin fillets.
Lamb can be enjoyed in many ways. It can be cut into skewers and combined with vegetables. Eating it like this can change your experience. Lamb can also be cut flat and grilled like a regular cut of meat. Lamb has a very intense flavor that some are too keen to keep in their food. So, lamb is usually cooked with different types of spices and sauces so that the flavor can be toned down. If you are the adventurous kind in the kitchen, you can pair lamb with different kinds of spices and see what works best for you.
My favorite way to enjoy lamb is cooking some delicious lamb chops!
What is the Origin of Lamb? How to Procure It?
Lamb refers to “baby sheep”. When a baby sheep is born, it is regarded as a lamb until it is 12 months old. There are different categories of lamb. The suckling lamb is a lamb that is slaughtered at approximately 25 days of age. At this point, the diet of that lamb is just breast milk. The flavor and taste are different from any older lamb. It is characterized by a pale pink color when it is cooked.
The paschal lamb is not slaughtered until it has passed the age of 4 months. This is a more common type of lamb that many people encounter. The meat is characterized by a more intense flavor and darker color. In countries like Australia, lamb has been contributing to the economy. Australia stands as the main lamb exporter for the past couple of years.
Lamb is not hard to procure, you can ask for it at the butcher’s store, or check the frozen department of some specialty stores.
What is the Difference Between Liver and Lamb Meat?
Lamb meat is different from liver. The liver is an organ in the body of animals and tastes the same pretty much everywhere. The liver from beef tastes the same as the one from chicken or pork. Lamb meat has a peculiar taste and it’s only similarity with Liver is its iron content.
Facts You Don’t Know About Lamb
- In Australia, breeders feed their lambs with corn a few weeks before they are slaughtered. This helps to fatten up the lambs and make their meat marbled.
- In Australia, lamb carries the same economic importance as gold.