Lambs in Dark Sheds, Fed on Chalk and Dried Peas
More from Adam Balic. A strong tonic to current nostalgia. And something I’ll be following up.
It is worth remembering how much “Starving in Spring” dominated peoples lives until very recently. In fact in some cases it still dominates the terms we use in relation to food. Consider “Spring Lamb”, it is now a ubiquitous term associated with lamb in general, to the point that it is quite meaningless. When asked most people think that the terms means that the lamb was born in Spring and associate the term with happy lambs gambling (a very lamb term) on green fields.
Actually the opposite is true. “Spring Lamb” is ready to be killed an eaten in Spring, which means it is born in Winter. Another name for it was “House Lamb”, because it was housed, not put onto pasture:
1867
“The spring lamb, occasionally called house lamb, especially by some foreigners, it is presumed from the circumstance of its being born during the winter months, when its tender life, if not carefully housed, fed, and kept warm, would perish, remain dwarfish, or become sickly. Its flesh is prized for its unseasonable character, and, although delicate and tender, is quite insipid and no way nourishing.
The old-country fashion of preparing house lambs was, many years ago : ” As soon as the lambs are born they are put into a warm outhouse. Some white peas and bran are mixed together and placed near them, with a little fine hay and a chalk-stone to lick. The dams are turned into good grass, and brought to their lambs four times a day. Every lamb is suffered to suck as much as it will. By this process they become extremely delicate.” But in this country it usually lacks the pleasant flavor that grass imparts to the flesh.”
The type of lamb that is now thought of as “normal”, that is fed on pasture, is called “Grass Lamb”:
1852
“grass lamb makes its appearance now much earlier than formerly: the quality much depends upon the winter season; if a mild winter they may really be fed upon grass, but if the contrary, they must be fed with prepared food, which increases their size but diminishes their quality.”
If you want an idea of what people thought about the two types of lamb:
“House lamb may be obtained throughout the whole year, but there is no great demand for it before February”.
In other words you ate Grass Lamb as long as possible, Spring/House lamb was a second rank product. It also likely why mutton, rather then lamb was the main sheep meat eaten. There are similar stories for veal v beef, poultry etc. It is difficult to imagine how different this relatively recent way of life is to what is often though of as “tradional”. New born lambs kept in dark sheds, fed on chalk and dried peas – wonderful.
Thanks Adam.
Gives new meaning to the word ‘pastoral’.
Sure does.