lemon-pepper soy-ginger lamb heart stir-fry

Stir-fried lamb's heart (plus capsicum and spring onions) with lemon, pepper, ginger and soy.

As an omnivore who often enjoys vegan and vegetarian meals, but still loves the taste of meat too much to give it up, I like using the parts of animal that are often neglected and could otherwise go to waste. The following story and accompanying images contains content that may be off-putting to those who are not comfortable with offal.

However, if you are interested in trying it out, I am of the opinion that heart is a good starting point. The taste is quite gentle, and the texture is conventional enough - some may even prefer it to meat. I've had chicken heart before, which I found to be quite delicious. This is my first experience with lamb heart, and I feel equally positive about it. Lamb heart, when raw, has a fairly rich, fleshy scent. When cooked, it has a pleasantly mild taste of lamb and a tender texture. Other than a stir-fry like this, I can also see myself throwing it into a pho or a curry laksa!

And for those of you who already embrace offal - enjoy!

A lamb heart story:

Girl goes to Victoria Market with parents, uncle and aunt.
Girl meets lamb hearts (only 80 cents each!), is intrigued at first sight.
Girl points out the lamb hearts to mum, who regards them with unconcealed disgust.
Girl points out the lamb hearts to dad, who is as curious as girl and encourages her to buy a couple.
Girl purchases lamb hearts.
Girl gets home and decides to stir-fry one lamb heart for dinner.
Girl's mum helps by preparing the lamb heart - trimming off the fat and tubes; cutting the glistening dark meat into thin slices.
Girl marinates lamb heart in lemon, ginger, soy sauce and black pepper, then stir-fries it in a wok with capsicum and spring onion.
Girl serves up lamb heart stir-fry for dinner, enjoys it with dad as the rest of the table keeps their distance.

Ah, lamb hearts. Certainly a far cry from the cutesy valentiney love hearts we see...

The cross section of the lamb heart. Sorry, it's not really getting more attractive is it?

Lamb heart, all sliced up and swaddled in marinade. Hey, it's not looking too bad now...

lemon-pepper soy-ginger lamb heart stir-fry

1 lamb's heart
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon soy sauce
2cm / 1 inch ginger, cut into thin strips
1/4 teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper
1 small capsicum (bell pepper), cut into strips
2 stalks spring onion (scallions), chopped into sections
oil, for frying

First, prepare the lamb heart. Cut off any vessels, valves, tubes and the like. Trim away excess fat (that would be the white bits on the outside). Basically, you want get it down to that meaty-looking maroon part of the lamb heart, which you then slice into strips.

Create a marinade by mixing together lemon juice, soy sauce, ginger and black pepper in a bowl. Toss the lamb heart in and mix well, then cover and keep in the fridge for an hour.

Heat up some oil (half a tablespoon should do) in a wok or pan over a medium high heat, then stir-fry the lamb heart until the pieces start to change colour. This could take less than a minute, depending on their thickness. Lamb heart gets tougher when it's overcooked, so try not to dilly-dally.

Add in the capsicum and spring onion and stir-fry for another 20 seconds. Taste and add more seasonings if desired. Transfer to a plate and serve immediately with steamed rice.

The result: a not-that-scary and rather scrumptious offal dish: lemon-pepper soy-ginger lamb heart stir-fry.