A tale of two joints

A title which goes nicely with that of the previous post. Plates of meat rather than smoke from more than one country.

The first plate concerned a neck of lamb. I had gone to the butcher for a breast of chicken to add to the chicken soup - our chicken having run, unusually, to three meals of meat, but with their being no meat left on the carcase to add to the soup. As it happened, using some fresh chicken, as it were, made a pleasant change to the soup.

It also happened that there was a neck on lamb on display, which I bought on the spot. Home, it weighed in at 4lbs 8oz. Which I took down to 3lbs, popping the balance of three pieces into the freezer for another occasion.

On the previous occasion the form had been start frying at 10:50, start simmering at 11:30 and forks down at 14:00. I thought a little less time time around so started frying at 10:50, started simmering at 11:30, potatoes in at 12:15 and forks down at 13:00, an hour earlier. Including 2oz of lentils, omitted on the last occasion. Served with two sorts of cabbage.

Not bad at all, but it might have been better with the potatoes getting 15 minutes less cooking and the meat 30 minutes less. But hard to be sure with potatoes, which seem to vary quite a lot. I like them to be cooked, but still firm.

Enough left for a spot of broth for lunch the following day, the day of our platinum street party.

Given the three pieces in the freezer, say three main meals and two soups, say four main meal equivalents. So at £25 for the neck, at £6 a pop, a reasonably dear meal, but one which we enjoy. A meal which FIL, despite his 90 years used to enjoy too, while telling us all about the various parts of necks and their bones.

Not suitable for those who prefer not to know where their meat comes from.

The second plate concerned a piece of rolled shoulder of pork, just about half the roll, weighing in at 4lbs 12.5 ounces.

Rubbed salt into the skin. Into the preheated oven at 160°C at 14:40. Stopped a bit before the planned three hours, say 17:20, having done the skewer test. Turned the oven off and left it in for a bit longer before taking it out to cool.

Broached on the evening of the aforementioned street party, having taken the precaution of getting a large white bloomer from the branch of Craddocks the baker, in South Street. Speaking for myself, I prefer cold roast pork sandwiches on white to barbecue. The pork was good, as was the white, this last being much better than I expected, something like the white bread I remembered of old. It also did well for fried egg sandwiches for a couple of days following. None of this exotic roll nonsense, as noticed at reference 4.

The pork did maybe four meals for two, say eight meals, altogether. A cheaper option than neck of lamb, which would have been a nonsense in the olden days.

References

Reference 1: https://psmv5.blogspot.com/2022/03/neck-of-lamb.html. Seemingly, the last occasion for neck of lamb.

Reference 2: https://psmv5.blogspot.com/2022/05/pork.html. Seemingly, the last occasion for roast shoulder of pork.

Reference 3: https://www.craddocksbakery.com/. The baker.

Reference 4: https://psmv5.blogspot.com/2022/06/cheese-bacon-and-egg.html. The roll.