Meals to mark National Lamb Day

National Lamb Day is celebrated on 24 May 2023, commemorating the day in 1882 when the first shipment of frozen sheep meat from New Zealand arrived in the UK aboard the ship Dunedin

Organised by two entrepreneurs, the shipment left New Zealand on 15 February 1882 from Port Chalmers, Otago. That historic sea journey of around 5,000 carcasses was the beginning of what is now a multi-billion-dollar export industry. That success continues today, with more meat now going overseas unfrozen and in higher value cuts. Lamb Day is worth celebrating with a lamb dinner from a well-tried or new recipe. My grandmother Henderson’s old NZ Women’s Institute soft-covered cookbook is tucked in my library alongside more recent shiny-leafed volumes. Printed in 1939, the introduction by Dominion president, Amy G Kane, states that “all recipes have been provided by good cooks and are well tried and proved, so should be useful to others”.

Here are two “useful” recipes from my much-valued book, no photos of course, and very basic instructions. Using meat “nose to tail” is becoming increasingly popular to reduce waste, but cooks a hundred years ago were well-practiced in the art of making the most of every cut.

Mutton Deliciosa

Trim fat and bone from two large loin chops and put into jar or steamer with two teaspoons uncooked rice, one cup cold water, a little chopped onion and celery, salt, and pepper. Cover jar or steamer, stand in saucepan of water and bring to boil. Steam two hours. Serve with mashed potatoes and greens.

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Slice a lamb’s liver, pour boiling water over. Soak some stale bread, add onion, pepper, and salt. Spread a layer of this in a pie dish on top of liver, then a layer of finely chopped apple and a layer of par-boiled potatoes. Repeat as before until pie dish is nearly full. Pour over soup stock or hot water and bake one-and-a-half hours in a moderate oven.