How to Cook Lamb

Lamb is the prime meat of the lands Down Under, holds a special place in Jewish festivals and is more versatile and easier to cook than practically any other type of meat except chicken.

This growing collection of recipes is intended to help you enjoy Aussie lamb more and take you through some of the many variations on preparing and cooking both lamb and hoggett, which is what the meat is called in Oz at the halfway stage between being lamb or mutton. Since few butchers, and even fewer supermarkets, make a distinction these days, I've just called it 'lamb' throughout.

The key to a tender, tasty dish is never to overcook the meat. Lamb should still be pink on the inside when it's served, and this is particularly true of the more tender cuts such as fillet and loin chops. Treat them in much the same way as you would prime cuts of beef.

Just as with beef, use the right cut for the right dish. Don't ask your guests to wrestle with grilled chump chops, for example, when they could enjoy them much more easily in a casserole. And consider roasting a rack of lamb rather than grilling the individual cutlets. You will get a far more juicy and succulent result.

Above all be bold. As you follow the recipes here I hope you will come to realise that just about anything is possible and there is no reason not to experiment to your heart's content. With lamb, as with chicken, just about anything goes.