No. 1645

Saddle of Mutton, German Style

Selle de Mouton a l'Allemande

Braise a saddle exactly as explained for the saddle with glazed roots (No. 1649). Half an hour before serving, drain and cover the surface with a lamb forcemeat (No. 92), and raw fine herbs that have been mingled with some allemande sauce (No. 407). Finish cooking in a moderate oven and when done, glaze and dress the meat on an oval dish, garnishing around with carrots and green peas sauted together.

← No. 1644 Saddle of Mutton, Duchess Style Mutton No. 1646 Saddle of Mutton. Piedmontese Style →

For the Modern Kitchen

Ranhofer writes for a brigade that already knows the base preparations, so this entry is really the last twenty minutes of a much longer job. Read it alongside the cross-referenced numbers before starting.

The hinge: the forcemeat coatThe saddle is braised almost to doneness, then masked with forcemeat and returned to the oven so the coating sets into a firm crust rather than sliding off. Drain and blot the surface dry first; a wet, gelatinous braising film will not hold the farce.
"Moderate oven"Roughly 325-350F by modern reckoning. It needs to be hot enough to set the forcemeat and colour it lightly in about thirty minutes, but not so hot that the already-cooked meat beneath dries out.
The cross-referencesNo. 1649 supplies the braise itself, No. 92 a lamb forcemeat, No. 407 the allemande, a velouté finished with egg yolk and cream. Look up all three before starting; the coating depends on the allemande's body.
Fine herbs, rawFines herbes here means chervil, tarragon, chives and parsley, chopped fine and added uncooked so they keep colour and perfume through the short second cooking. Dried herbs will not do the same work.
Buying a saddleA saddle is the unsplit loin section, both sides on the bone, a large joint worth ordering ahead. True mutton, from a sheep over a year old (often over two), has a strong flavour and needs the long braise; a lamb saddle will be tender in far less time and can overcook while you are still building the coating.
GlazingGlazing means brushing with reduced braising liquor cooked down to a syrupy glace, applied in thin coats near the end. It is not a sugar glaze.
The garnishCarrots and peas sauteed together means both cooked first, then finished in butter together so they gloss. Cook them separately to start; carrots want several minutes more than peas.
YieldA saddle of this size will serve a large table, and is customarily carved in long strips parallel to the backbone.

A Little History

Charles Ranhofer ran the kitchen at Delmonico's in New York and published The Epicurean in 1894 as a record of that restaurant's repertoire, several thousand numbered entries built to be read as a system of cross-references rather than as standalone recipes. The "German style" label in nineteenth-century French kitchen usage often points to the allemande sauce rather than to any German dish; allemande was counted among the grandes sauces in Careme's scheme, a veloute enriched with egg yolks, and dishes named a l'allemande frequently involve it. Saddle of mutton was a set piece of the grand service, an expensive joint carved at the table, and mutton was far more common eating in America in the 1890s than it is now; the near-disappearance of mature sheep from butchers' counters is a large part of why this recipe now reads as exotic.