Is mutton delicious?

The smell of mutton mainly comes from fat, which is related to dozens of components such as "short-and medium-chain volatile fatty acids". It is recognized that 4- methyl octanoic acid, 4- ethyl octanoic acid and 4- methyl nonanoic acid are typical, of which the first two play a major role.

These fatty acids are not produced by sheep themselves, but by microorganisms in their rumen. They are also found in cattle, horses, deer and other animals, but not as obvious as mutton. In addition, phenols, sulfides, pyridine and pyrazine in mutton have been proved to be related to the smell of mutton.

Extended data

There are many factors that affect the smell of mutton, including origin, feed, variety, age, place, fatness and thinness. For example, the smell of ram is heavier, while the smell of castrated sheep (Jie sheep) will be reduced; The smell of adult sheep is more obvious than that of lamb, but from the point of view of feeding economy and smell, sheep around 1 year old are most suitable for slaughter; Whether grazing or captivity, the food eaten by sheep has a great influence on the taste.

It is found that if the forage grass is deficient in sulfur, the smell of mutton will be worse, and if the captive sheep are fed too many leguminous plants (such as alfalfa), the smell of mutton will be worse. Different sheep smell different. For example, some sheep that produce wool are particularly smelly. By selecting improved varieties and optimizing feed, mutton with small smell can be raised.