Beach + Lamb = Good Time For All

In the middle of the week we start planning for the weekend, if not sooner. This weekend is especially important because it incorporates two of the most important facets of summer, the beach and a leg of lamb.
Lamb, the least popular among its contemporary red-meat competitors, actually has had a resurgence in the United States. Gradually people are overlooking their horrified memories of grandmothers over-cooked lamb they were used to being served. Currently there are some who have taken the time to understand the complex and tender nature of the lamb and want to glorify its delicious taste and texture, and those that are willing to experiment and learn this dynamic. Giving lamb a second go at moving up in the rank of red-meat lovers.

I butterflied the leg of lamb and split it down the middle. I remembered doing this only once before, but oh the joy of being able to butcher this size of meat again. I often find that we aren't required to do this type of butchering anymore. In an era of pre-packaged food we often don't even know what certain sections of meat look like, let alone how to attack butchering it. There's something about it though, the smell of the raw meat, feeling the texture in your hand, and manipulating it to your liking that really erks me.

One portion each was given to the gourmands/chefs for the occasion. Each portion was left to marinate in a concotion, one residing as a more traditional mix of herbs du provence, mint, etc... , and the other in a mix of red miso paste, anise, cloves. Each prepared on the grill to a medium temperature. My favorite ended up being a piece of the loin that had been wrapped around pieces of ginger and slowly grilled to perfection.

Had I been one of the ones preparing a section of the lamb I would have chosen the red miso marinade and added a ton of grated ginger and mint. I feel that this would have given the lamb a good kick in the ass and left a tingling sensation on the tongue. I was not chosen for this show-down, so alas we will have to wait for the next session where I'll ride in like a real Butch Cassidy.