Jim Alfredson Posted December 17, 2006 Report Share Posted December 17, 2006 Hey y'all, My family has always done basically the same dinner that we do for Thanksgiving for Christmas. You know, turkey, stuffing, mashed taters, green bean caserole, etc. Its getting a little old. Since Alison and I are hosting Christmas dinner this year for the Alfredson clan (and there's a bunch of us... I have 6 siblings, 3 sibling-in-laws, my dad and my step-mother, 1 significant other of my sis, and one neice, plus some of Alison's family will be attending) we're trying to change things up a bit. I've been thinking about lamb. I've never cooked it, but I love the taste of it. We'll probably do a small turkey as well, just so there isn't a mutiny. I found the following recipe on the web: http://www.trefethen.com/recipes/lamb_cs_2.html Anyone have experience with cooking lamb? What side dishes go best? Any tips, secrets? How expensive is it compared to the bird? Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brownie Posted December 17, 2006 Report Share Posted December 17, 2006 Jim, lamb is a much more interesting dish than turkey. Your recipe looks fine. Other suggestions for side dishes would be mushrooms and onions. Make sure you keep the meat for two days at the most in the coldest section of the fridge. Not in a closed box.And don't wrap it in aluminium paper! Bon appetit! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Free For All Posted December 17, 2006 Report Share Posted December 17, 2006 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nate Dorward Posted December 17, 2006 Report Share Posted December 17, 2006 My main suggestion is: make sure the plates are warmed. Otherwise when your nice slice of rare leg of lamb hits the plate it instantly goes cold...! The recipe looks fine, fairly close to the one I use. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JSngry Posted December 17, 2006 Report Share Posted December 17, 2006 Side dish? Those who know suggest... Seriously, I like lamb quite a bit, but have not eaten much of it outside of restaurants. Let us know how your recipie goes, ok? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J Larsen Posted December 17, 2006 Report Share Posted December 17, 2006 Jim, I actually don't care for turkey at all and had stewed leg of lamb for Thanksgiving. A friend came over to cook it; I'll ask exactly what she did, but it looked like she just threw it in a dutch oven with some potatoes and it took care of itself. Lamb chops are my favorite, but they are deceptively difficult to cook. That's one I leave for the restaurants. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan Gould Posted December 17, 2006 Report Share Posted December 17, 2006 Serve what you'd like, but I'm going to register an objection to "it gets old". No it doesn't. It never will. Christmas is all about tradition, from when you open presents to what you eat to humoring your sister so that Mom won't get upset that everything turns into an argument. Unless lamb is a Christmas staple, you should stick with the tried and true. Your mileage, and the value you place on tradition, may vary. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
catesta Posted December 17, 2006 Report Share Posted December 17, 2006 Bastard! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
catesta Posted December 17, 2006 Report Share Posted December 17, 2006 I'm not a huge fan of lamb, but I'd probably still pick it over turkey for Christmas. On Christmas Eve my family always does the traditional seafood meal followed by the traditional pasta and meat fest on Christmas day. My mother at times throws in a little lamb with fennel amongst the veal, meatballs, and sausage. The recipe you posted looks pretty good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Man with the Golden Arm Posted December 17, 2006 Report Share Posted December 17, 2006 Bastard! First and only time we ever cooked leg o lamb my wife (pre-wife) decided to make it for Easter. We went up to a butchery on Federal Hill in Providence where the owner proceeded to fill our order by hoisting a naked lamb onto a long cutting block and with one swift cleaver twack beheaded the thing and flipped it's bean ala Bitsuteki meets Lupo the Butcher meets Jerry West into a trash barrel across the shop. The looks on our faces were no doubt priceless. ...Chris just made me real hungry! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Magnificent Goldberg Posted December 17, 2006 Report Share Posted December 17, 2006 Lamb is my favourite meat. We don't have it nearly as much as I'd like. Christmas, we nowadays go to our daughter's. My wife cooks a huge gammon ham the day before and we take that. And Tash does roast beef, or rarely a bird of some kind. We're having extra-special Christmas Crackers with real prizes inside this year, Tash tells me. Where she gets the money from I don't know (or rather, I do, but don't know how she pays off the credit card). Lamb sounds great to me. Yesterday, I suggested we have lamb Bobotie for Boxing Day lunch. No response. MG Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Son-of-a-Weizen Posted December 17, 2006 Report Share Posted December 17, 2006 Don't know if you're wedded to the leg of lamb idea, but have you thought about rack of lamb that you put on the grill? Looks to me like you're looking at pretty big crowd and will have to make that recipe twice over...... alot of prep time and cooking time. You can get beautiful racks of New Zealand lamb at Costco for about $11 each. Unless it's a heavy eating crowd, you'd probably need 9 or 10 racks total (4 at a time on a large grill). I've used this recipe several times and it's good. You can do half of 'em with the marinade and the other half lightly coated with olive oil and rubbed with a mixture of herbs. Just ignore all the 'butcher/frenching' biz if you get the vacuum sealed racks. Serve up some nice thick asparagus (always peel it) w/butter, mint jelly and rice pilaf and you're golden. http://whatscookingamerica.net/LambRackPinot.htm ......and a good, affordable, widely available, higher octane Zinfandel to serve with lamb: http://www.seghesio.com/seghesio/catalog/v...07&cat_id=1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jazzypaul Posted December 17, 2006 Report Share Posted December 17, 2006 Well, I'm allergic to poultry, so turkey's never been part of my holiday traditions. My dad's side of the family does pied-noir cuisine (lamb stew over cous cous, rabbit and other things that I can't spell). That's fun because not only do we get the best Christmas meal in the state, but we also get the most unique one. My mom's side of the family is far more traditional, but luckily for me (I guess), nobody likes turkey, so ham is the order of the day. Jim, as for the lamb recipie you've got there, it looks damn good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Alfredson Posted December 17, 2006 Author Report Share Posted December 17, 2006 Dan, tradition is great and all, but why have the exact same thing for Christmas that you had for Thanksgiving just a month ago? Besides, we're hosting so we get to choose. I remember one Christmas as a young man when my dad decided to have a Chinese Christmas and made a whole bunch of Chinese food (he got pretty good at making Chinese from scratch). That was great, because it was different. I should also add that my family always has basically the same meal for Easter, too. I think its just a lack of really knowing what else to cook. Hopefully we can start a new tradition. I love ham, too but my wife doesn't, so that's out. The lamb just sounds so tasty. As far as rack of lamb is concerned, I don't have a grill, so there goes that option. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BruceH Posted December 17, 2006 Report Share Posted December 17, 2006 I heard somewhere that someday the lion will lie down with it. (Not that I'm saying you should have a side dish of lion...) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
catesta Posted December 17, 2006 Report Share Posted December 17, 2006 As far as rack of lamb is concerned, I don't have a grill, so there goes that option. No grill? BLASPHEMER!!!! It's never too late to change that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Alfredson Posted December 17, 2006 Author Report Share Posted December 17, 2006 My old (read ancient) grill got left behind when we moved. I haven't bought another yet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jazzmoose Posted December 17, 2006 Report Share Posted December 17, 2006 Lamb chops are my favorite, but they are deceptively difficult to cook. That's one I leave for the restaurants. Same here; love 'em, but I've tried and tried, and I just can't cook 'em. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chuck Nessa Posted December 18, 2006 Report Share Posted December 18, 2006 Screw the lamb (take that as you will). Nothing beats a great sausage sandwich for the holidays. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Alfredson Posted December 18, 2006 Author Report Share Posted December 18, 2006 Is that the "Diarrhea Special"? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chuck Nessa Posted December 18, 2006 Report Share Posted December 18, 2006 Hey y'all, Since Alison and I are hosting Christmas dinner this year for the Alfredson clan (and there's a bunch of us... I have 6 siblings, 3 sibling-in-laws, my dad and my step-mother, 1 significant other of my sis, and one neice, plus some of Alison's family will be attending) we're trying to change things up a bit. I've been thinking about lamb. Thanks! Sounds like a 4 lamb dinner to me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aggie87 Posted December 18, 2006 Report Share Posted December 18, 2006 I'd go for a nice dinner of couscous if I were considering lamb. Algerians and Morrocans make a wonderful lamb stew that is ladled on top of a bed of couscous (the whole dish is called couscous according to my Algerian friend, not just the grain). Here's a version with squash vice lamb, but you get the idea: ....I like lamb, but then I've always been a mutton for punishment. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Free For All Posted December 18, 2006 Report Share Posted December 18, 2006 Sounds like a 4 lamb dinner to me. "Say WHAT?" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Free For All Posted December 18, 2006 Report Share Posted December 18, 2006 ....I like lamb, but then I've always been a mutton for punishment. Ewe ought to be ashamed of yourself. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soulstation1 Posted December 18, 2006 Report Share Posted December 18, 2006 BBQ some ribs....... i've never tried lamb Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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