If you have never eaten it, we are pretty sure that you have at least heard of mutton. Perhaps it was from the 114th episode of the hit tv show Seinfeld where Jerry didn’t want to eat mutton and instead stuffed it in his pockets only to have hungry dogs find the stash later at an inopportune time.
If your reference was not due to the 1990’s tv show then there is a high likelihood that you heard the word mutton in a negative connotation. Although mutton was quite popular in America 100 years ago and into World War II (WWII), the meat has come out of favor since. Some contribute the lack of popularity to cultural issues while others state that it was simply overeaten. It’s been said that Allied troops were rationed out cans of mutton (from Australia) as their main protein during the war. Although the meat helped sustain them on the battlefield by the time peace arrived and the troops returned home they wanted nothing to do with mutton. Perhaps it was the memories of the war that were brought back at the taste of mutton that made them want to disassociate with it. In any case, it is not easy to find mutton these days in the United States.
As we referenced though, that wasn’t always the case. We bet you didn’t know that mutton was actually served on the Titanic…for 1st class passengers nonetheless! At the time, the Titanic was the most luxurious ship on the seas and aside from the many amenities it offered its passengers, the high quality food helped set it apart. So 1st class passengers were served mutton, guess what 2nd class passengers were fed? If you guessed spring lamb you would be correct! My how the times have changed.
Although you don’t see it often now, sometimes mutton does turn up and when it does it is often by mistake. When someone bites into a piece of mutton thinking that they are eating succulent lamb they can be in for a big surprise. The surprise involves a much more robust flavor and probably much more chewing.
The difference between mutton and lamb meat is the age. Lamb meat derives from a younger animal (typically around 12 months in the U.S.) whereas mutton is meat of an older animal (usually around three years old but definitely older than two years).
Because the mutton meat is older than lamb, different cooking methods must be used. Mutton must be cooked for a much longer period so keeping lower heat over an extended amount of time is the best way. With people not having as much free time as they used to, getting most to not eat fast food or preprocessed meals is difficult enough let alone spending additional time to prepare dinner when they do actually cook is probably not an option. This change in culture could be another big reason why mutton has fallen out of flavor.
For all of the different adjectives attributed to mutton, one for sure should not be any association with lamb meat. Sure, the two meats we just mentioned both come from the same animal (sheep) but the major difference between the two is the age of the animal when it is harvested. We’ve heard numerous stories where someone has purchased what they thought to be lamb meat at a local grocery only to find out after their guests have arrived and dinner was served that what they actually purchased was mutton. That issue shouldn’t be too common due to labeling and inspections but it never hurts to know what to look for. Mutton meat has much more fat than lamb meat and the meat has a deep red color to it. A general rule of thumb to follow with lamb meat is the darker the color, the older the animal.
Although you will probably not find mutton or have it be sold to you in error it is always good to know what you are looking for. We highly prefer American lamb meat. If you are shopping around and need to know the difference or want specifics as to what to look for regarding the quality of meat then you can follow our tips above or you could ask the person at the grocery store. Who knows what they will tell you though. If you want to know for sure what you are buying then we recommend you talk to your local rancher. They will set you straight. And in the meantime we’ll stick with American lamb and just like those passengers on the Titanic, we’ll be 2nd class in that regard. It’s kind of where we like to be anyway.