Question for Jenise and others re substitution for lamb

[Fred Sipe]

Hey Jenise... last year I made one of your creations and I thought it was great.

Don't remember what it was called, but basically you browned cubed lamb and combined with sauteed onions then layered with shredded cabbage in a tall casserole. Topped with sliced tomatoes and drizzled with olive oil, it was baked low and slow. Tasty!

An excellent dish but I'm the only lamb lover in the house. What do you think about pork instead? And which cut would you choose? Any other tweaks?

I'm going to do it again this Saturday. May be the last chance for "real" tomatoes until next year.

[Jenise]

Oooh, I remember that now. Forgot all about it which is stupid, because it was so delicious! Must look that up. But without doing so, can easily reccomend tenderloin or sirloin. Both are lower in fat than some other cuts, and both would be more tender than a straight loin (that which becomes pork chops).

[Jeff Grossman/NYC]

Jenise, wouldn't pork really lack flavor compared to lamb? Sight unseen, I'd find a cut of beef to use or, at the least, alter (increase) the seasoning.

[Jenise]

It's certainly going to be a lot milder than lamb, but not tasteless because the dish is about the harmonious blend of meat and vegetables during long-cooking.

[Mark Lipton]

Jenise, wouldn't pork really lack flavor compared to lamb? Sight unseen, I'd find a cut of beef to use or, at the least, alter (increase) the seasoning.

I'm with you, Jeff. I'd go for dry-aged beef with some fat in it.

Mark Lipton

[Fred Sipe]

Ok... I was thinking pork shoulder but now maybe I'll cut up a 7 bone beef roast!

[Fred Sipe]

And here's Jenise's recipe as I had it saved:

Lamb and Cabbage Casserole

2 lbs lamb, cubed
1 large onion, sliced
1 green cabbage, shredded (this presumes a dense fall cabbage, if using a lightweight spring cabbage, consider using two)
4 cloves garlic, sliced
4 tomatoes, sliced
1 tsp good paprika
salt, white pepper and black pepper

Brown the lamb in a bit of olive oil, then add the onions to just soften.

In a large, deep cassserole dish layer cabbage, meat and onions, then repeat until all the lamb's used up. Season each set of layers with garlic slices, salt, pepper and paprika. End with a layer of cabbage, then top with tomato slices. Drizzle a little olive oil over the tomatoes, then bake at 300F (yes, slow on purpose for richer flavor) for about three hours.

[GeoCWeyer]

It would be good with venison from an older deer, waterfowl legs and dynamite with bear.

[Jenise]

It would be good with venison from an older deer, waterfowl legs and dynamite with bear.

[Fred Sipe]

It would be good with venison from an older deer, waterfowl legs and dynamite with bear.

No doubt it would... but I wouldn't have a clue about the bear! I ended up with beef shoulder under blade roast and all the veggies fresh from local farm market.

2 hours with lid on, 1 with lid ajar. Turned out better than I remembered and I remembered it as really good. Be sure to have some great bread!

It started out filled to the brim...

Cabbage&BeefCasserole.jpg (66.3 KiB) Viewed 806 times

[GeoCWeyer]

I have beat loin set aside for the dish.

[Carl Eppig]

Looks great Fred. Fortunately we both love lamb and we're grilling two steaks tonight that have been marinated in our mint, lemon, and OO marinade.