Lamb recipe

[FaustianBargain]

Lamb can be marinaded with black coffee. True? Doesnt a marinade have to be acidic in nature? Any recipes out there?

[Gifted Gourmet]

have made this and enjoyed it

other recipes I plan to try

a coffee-based marinade

The acidic item acts to tenderize, I would think ...

Edited July 21, 2004 by Gifted Gourmet (log)

[Wolfert]

Is this a Swedish recipe? I think I read that the coffee is used in the sauce to conceal the smell and taste of lamb fat.

[Carrot Top]

I remember a recipe for butterflied roast lamb that was wonderful. Although I do not have the specifics it used a butterflied leg of lamb that was marinated overnight in black coffee with a non-committal sort of oil like canola (nothing with too much taste of its own), molasses, a touch of cider vinegar and some herbs and spices that may have been chopped scallions, cumin, cinnamon, bayleaf and black pepper.

The meat was to be grilled, preferably, to create some nice charred parts with a medium-rare center. We used to do it, lacking a good grill, by draining the marinade, browning the surfaces over a high heat on the stove then finishing in the oven.

Yummy.

[Dave the Cook]

Typically, a marinade comprises an acid (for tenderizing, yes, though I think the effect is usually overrated), a fat for lubrication, and flavoring agents. Coffee, with a nominal pH of 6.9, doesn't really qualify as acidic, so for a traditonal application, you'd need to add that in the form of vinegar, wine, fruit juice, etc. Good luck finding something that will work that won't mask the flavor of the coffee. I think you're better off trying to get coffee into the flavor profile in some way other than a marinade: as part of a sauce, or ground beans as a component in a rub, or as part of a brine (though I don't know if that would really work).

Why would you want to conceal the smell and taste of lamb fat?

[Kevin72]

Why would you want to conceal the smell and taste of lamb fat?

I think lamb fat is what gives it its "lamby" or gamey taste. My wife doesn't like lamb but if I carefully trim it of most of its fat or mix in pork fat (when making lamb sausages) she likes it.

Just a guess on my end. I happen to love it.

[FaustianBargain]

thanks for the recipe link, GG...i couldnt understand, for the love of squid, why someone would want to use bitter coffee as a marinade...

on another note...what would be the Ph of decaff? (isnt decaf coffee = culinary oxymoron?)

[carswell]

Paula's right that coffee-roasted leg of lamb is a Swedish specialty. If the coffee was originally used to hide the taste of the meat, that's no longer the case. Also, in the versions I've seen coffee is used for basting, not marinating. Here's how I remember it being made: The leg was rubbed with mustard, roasted for a while, then basted with a cup of coffee (with cream and sugar) spiked with a small amount of sweet wine (Sherry? Port?). The Gravy was made from the drippings, probably with the addition of some flour, beef or lamb stock and cream. Craig Clairborne has a simpler version in The New York Times Cookbook: rub a 5 lb. leg with salt and pepper and roast in a 425ºF oven with sliced carrots and onions for 30 minutes; lower the temperature to 350ºF and pour a mixture of 1½ cups coffee, 1 cup cream, 1 tablespoon sugar and 1 cup beef broth into the roasting pan; roast 40-60 minutes more, basting frequently; transfer the leg to a warm platter; degrease the contents of the pan, push through a strainer and serve as a sauce.

Here's a non-Swedish version that uses coffee in the marinade: Kona Coffee Roasted Rack of Lamb. And a mole-like Coffee-Cocoa-Spiced Rack of Lamb.

[gingerly]

is this unusual because of the use of coffee or because it's combined with lamb?i've seen lots of brazilian recipes for beef with coffee.

[Dave the Cook]

on another note...what would be the Ph of decaff? (isnt decaf coffee = culinary oxymoron?)

Caffeine doesn't really affect acidity. Here's what does: bean type and soil composition; degree and method of roasting; whether the beans are wet-processed or dry processed; and finally, the water and method used to brew it.

My 6.9 pH, above, is misleading, by the way. PH of 4.9 to 5.2 is the target range for good brewed coffee. This still isn't very acidic -- it's approximately the same as bananas.

[Dave the Cook]

I happen to love it.

I think you're right about the gaminess. But really, my question was just another way of expressing the sentiment in your final statement.

[Kevin72]

Ah. My apologies.