Cooking The Animal

Lamb and I have not had the best of friendships. Especially since, I was a veggie for nearly 6 years and not so kean on meat as a whole nearly my whole childhood. And if I was going to eat it a meat, it definatly couldn't have a bone or really look as though it belonged to an animal. Americans don't really care for lamb all that much. We are chicken, beef than pork consumers.

After living in Africa and becoming muslim, I had to give up my veggie ways, for meat becomes a major focus of community life. In Africa you can't attend a wedding, visit someone's home, go to an Aqeekah or enjoy a meal with anyone without eating meat. In philly, amongst the African American converts, it wasn't so much lamb, but party wings (wangs) or fried chicken this was the usual iftar and halaqah fare. In the DC metro, the influx of Indopak/Morrocan, Egyptian, Somalies brings back the love of the BAAAAAA in all social life. So we eat lamb. Not just at home, the masjid or at a friends house, but we actually order it at restaurants. So, I have had lamb burgers, lamb cheese steaks, lamb kababs and lamb curries.

But me preparing lamb, well that is a whole 'nother story. Bringing the meat into the house, separating it into bags and cleaning up after is like, major for me. All my senses are clued into the fact that only a day ago was this mass once alive, eating, pooping and wallowing in muddy hay. I am not one of those people who hug trees or nor am I trying to save any whales, but I simply am not a meat person. I hate the way it feels, smells and all the steps it takes to make it food. For example with lamb, it has all these slimy impossible membranes of fat and tissue that have to be snipped and removed. Surgery. If I get lazy, the dish ends up with all these chewy bits that make me gag. Lamb for some reason is extra bloody, so I have to wash it like a zillion times, with vinegar and salt.

Now cooking . . . ummm, ahhhh, yikes! My husband hates tough meat. If it's chicken, it has to be coming off the bone and lamb has to be juicy and basically melt in your mouth. A bit tough to live up too. For 5 years, I have agonized over how to cook lamb, good enough that he actually will eat it. Finally, I have figured it out.:

The Marinate: I blend garlic, adobo, cilantro, lemon juice, some Shan seasoning, Chipotle pepers in adobo sauce, olive oil, honey and salt in the blennder. I let the lamb marinate for at least 1 hr in the fridge.

Cooking: I throw the lamb and as much juice in my RICE COOKER, yes I said rice cooker for 1 hr. Viola, I get super tender lamb. Once it's cooked, I can then add it to a curry, bake it with more sauce or eat it as is with veggies and rice.

pheeew!