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Meats

Sheep can be purchased as young lamb, lamb, hogget or mutton. Lamb is the meat from the ovine
(sheep) that is less than one year old. Young lamb is aged up to five months old, while lamb is up to
12 months old. It has a mild flavour and is low in internal and external fat. It requires short cooking
times. The flesh will be a light red colour, the fat should be white and firm and the meat should have
a fine grain.

Hogget is the meat from the ovine that is one to two years old. It has a more intense flavour than
lamb, and is low to medium in internal and external fat. It requires longer cooking times than lamb
and is suited to roasting, stewing and braising.

Mutton is the meat from the ovine that is more than two years old. It has a very strong flavour, is
high in internal and external fat. It requires extended cooking times and is more suited to curing,
second-class roasting (slow and low heat), stewing and braising. These cooking methods will render
the excess fat and ensure the meat is tender. Both hogget and mutton have a stronger flavour than
lamb and the meats have a darker colour.

Dressed sheep meat can be purchased as:
• carcase (whole dressed sheep or lamb)

• side (whole carcase split along the length of the spinal column)
• hindquarter

• forequarter
• individual cuts

The primal cut from the forequarter is the loin and from the hindquarter it is the long leg.
Secondary cuts include:

• neck, square cut shoulder shank (from the forequarter)
• midloin/ shortloin, ribloin/ rack and fillet/ tenderloin (from the loin)

• short leg (leg chump off) and chump (from the long leg)
Restaurant cuts might include:

• cutlets, double cutlets and rack (from the ribloin)
• rosettes and noisettes (from the midloin)

• mignon (from the fillet)
• chump chops (from the chump)

Other cuts include the baron, crown roast, guard of honour and saddle, which are suitable for
roasting.