Mutton

Lamb, hogget, and mutton are the meat of domestic sheep. The meat of an animal in its first year is lamb that of an older sheep is hogget and later mutton.

The strict definitions for lamb, hogget and mutton vary considerably between countries. In New Zealand for example, they are defined as follows

In Australia the definitions are extended to include ewes and rams, as well as being stricter on the definition for lamb which is

The younger the lamb is, the smaller the lamb will be however, the meat will be more tender. Sheep mutton is meat from a sheep over two years old, and has a less tender flesh. In general, the darker the colour, the older the animal. Baby lamb meat will be pale pink, while regular lamb is pinkish-red.

In many eastern countries including the Indian sub-continent, Malaysia and Singapore the term mutton refers to goats' meat which is properly called chevon and usually not to sheep's meat. Often, the mutton curries of the Indian cuisine use goat meat when cooked at home, although in Indian restaurants sheep meat is often used, partly because it is cheaper.