Mutton Chops

Two terse entries that lean entirely on the beefsteak method earlier in the book. What survives here is the useful distinction: chops carry a bone, so they cannot be flattened, and they are served with nothing more elaborate than the fat and juices they release.

• What "broil" meansIn cookery books of this period broiling is cooking over an open fire or on a gridiron — the nearest modern equivalents being a grill, an overhead broiler, or a ridged pan over high heat. It is not oven roasting.
• Heat and timingA loin or rib chop about 1 inch thick wants fierce heat, roughly 3 to 4 minutes a side for pink at the bone. Thicker double chops benefit from a hot sear then a few minutes in a 400F oven.
• Why no beatingThe recipe implies steaks were beaten to loosen the fibres before frying. A chop is anchored to its bone, and the book says only that chops "will not bear beating" on that account.
• The fatMutton chops come with a thick fat edge. Stand them on that edge in the pan for a minute first so it renders and colours; otherwise it stays flabby while the meat overcooks.
• "Their own sauce"Most likely the rendered fat and pan juices poured over, without thickening or stock. The recipe also allows the alternative of "the appropriate sauce (see Sauces)," so plain juices are one option rather than the only one.
• Mutton versus lambMutton is sheep over about two years old: darker, firmer, considerably stronger in flavour. Most butchers now sell lamb, which cooks faster and needs a shorter hand; true mutton chops usually want a couple of extra minutes and a longer rest.
• RestingA few minutes off the heat before serving is modern practice. The book says nothing about it either way.
• YieldOne large loin chop or two smaller cutlets per person is the usual reckoning.