Development and consumer acceptance of pre-cooked lamb leg roasts

Pre-cooked foods are becoming a wide spread convenience item in today's supermarkets. Lamb legs (n = 60) were fabricated into 240 roasts. Roasts were assigned to one of four treatments. After further processing, roasts were smoked to an internal temperature of 63°C, vacuum packaged, and frozen at -10°C. Roasts were thawed and reheated one of three ways before being served to a trained panel. No differences (P > 0.05) were found between reheating methods. The control treatment (CON) was rated higher (P < 0.05) for lamb flavor, warmed over flavor, and flavor intensity by trained panelists. Consumers (n = 199) were served samples of roasts to determine preferred spice blend. Consumers rated the prime rib spice the highest (P < 0.05) for all palatability attributes and the CON the lowest (P < 0.05). Therefore, roasts seasoned with the prime rib rub appear to have the most market potential.