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Mutton, Shoulder of, Broiled
Half roast, or stew, or parboil, a joint of six pounds, then cut it once or twice on both sides to the bone, season the cuts and outside with cayenne, and finish dressing on a gridiron over a brisk fire; take the gravy, not the fat, add to it some pickled mushrooms, large and small, and strew over, and garnish the broil when served. It is needless to remind the reader that dishes and plates should all be made very hot, especially for mutton. Time to parboil, one hour; to grill, twenty minutes. Average cost, 10 1/2d. per pound. Sufficient for five or six persons.
A two-stage method: the shoulder is brought most of the way to done by roasting, stewing or boiling, then scored and finished over fire so the cut surfaces char and take on seasoning. The scoring is the point of the dish, not decoration.
- Score to the boneThe cuts through to the bone are what let heat and cayenne reach the interior in twenty minutes on the grid. Cut generously on both sides, and rub the seasoning into the cuts rather than only over the surface.
- Mutton and lambMutton means sheep over two years old, with a stronger flavour and firmer fat than lamb. A 6 lb bone-in lamb shoulder behaves similarly here; if you can find hogget or mutton from a halal butcher or direct from a farm, it is closer to the intent.
- GridironA gridiron is a rack set over a bed of coals. A charcoal or gas grill is the direct equivalent; a broiler element about four inches away is the indoor substitute. "Brisk fire" means genuinely hot, enough to colour the cut edges quickly.
- ParboilingOne hour of simmering for a 6 lb shoulder leaves it part-cooked, which is intended, since the grill finishes it (the recipe's own word is 'half roast'). If judging by internal temperature rather than the clock, pulling it around 120-130F and grilling until it reads 145F or higher at the thickest part will bring it to a modern safe temperature.
- The gravy, not the fatLet the cooking liquid settle and skim, or chill it briefly so the fat lifts off in a cap. Mutton fat sets hard and tastes waxy at plate temperature, which is likely what lies behind the instruction.
- Pickled mushroomsVictorian pickled mushrooms were buttons or larger flaps in spiced vinegar, sharp rather than sweet; this recipe asks for both large and small. Jarred marinated mushrooms in vinegar work; drain them and warm them in the skimmed gravy rather than boiling them.
- Very hot platesNot a flourish. Mutton fat congeals fast on a cold plate, which is why the recipe singles out mutton. Heat plates and the serving dish in a low oven.
- Yield and costFive or six people, as stated. The price of 10½d per pound belongs to the late nineteenth-century British market and is of historical interest only.
The recipe demonstrates a technique rather than a regional dish: recooking a large joint over fire to get crust and seasoning into meat that has already been part-cooked by wetter means. The approach is close to what Victorian cookery called a "broil" or "devil" -- scored, heavily peppered, browned hard. Shoulder was the cheaper end of the sheep, fattier and more awkward to carve than the leg, and the instructions about skimming the gravy and heating the plates are emphatic. Mutton was the everyday roasting meat of nineteenth-century Britain in a way it has not been since; the near-disappearance of older sheep from British and American butchers' counters over the twentieth century is the main reason this recipe now reads as unfamiliar.