Looking for assistance with lamb cuts?

Jeannine Schweihofer<grobbelj@msu.edu>, Michigan State University Extension -

There are resources available to help you select and prepare the perfect lamb dinner.

Are you planning a special meal that includes lamb at the center of the plate? Is there confusion on how much to purchase or how many servings per pound is realistic? Michigan State University Extension has a Michigan Fresh bulletin on Handling, Using, and Storing Lamb. The bulletin lists lamb cuts, servings per pound and preferred preparation/cookery methods.

American Lamb has many delicious recipe ideas available for lamb. The recipe search tool has several options for searching by lamb cut, type of cooking method, or type of food item (appetizer, entrée, sandwiches or burgers, and soups and stews). The University of Delaware Cooperative Extension has several herbs and spices that are recommended with various foods. For lamb, they recommend “basil, cardamom, curry, dill, mace, marjoram, mint, oregano, paprika, rosemary and turmeric.” Mint is one pairing with lamb that is very popular.

After the appropriate cut is selected and matched with the ideal method of cooking, one should understand the cooking process, which is similar to cooking beef. Michigan State University Extension recommends using a food thermometer to determine endpoint degree of doneness and cooking ground lamb to at least 160 degrees Fahrenheit. Lamb can be a delicious center of the plate option or used in unique appetizers as well.  

This article was published by Michigan State University Extension. For more information, visit https://extension.msu.edu. To have a digest of information delivered straight to your email inbox, visit https://extension.msu.edu/newsletters. To contact an expert in your area, visit https://extension.msu.edu/experts, or call 888-MSUE4MI (888-678-3464).

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