Boneless mutton yields from culled ewes, and the possibility of utilizing mutton in restructured chunked and formed roasts were investigated. Boneless mutton yields from lean conditioned (LC) ewe carcasses weighing 19-21 kg were significantly (P < .05) lower than those from medium conditioned (MC) ewe carcasses weighing 26-28 kg. Leg, loin, rib and shoulder; mechanically separated mutton (MSM) and ground breast and flank (BF) from LC carcasses had more moisture, hydroxyproline (OHPRO), and lower fat contents than those from MC carcasses. Higher moisture, OHPRO and lower fat contents had a detrimental effect on appearance, objective measurements and sensory characteristics of restructured mutton roasts. Hot boning (HB) produced roasts with superior flavor when compared to cold boning (CB). Stripping the fell and subcutaneous fat 1-2 h after slaughter (FSH) and then chilling the mutton carcasses produced higher weight losses than stripping the fell from chilled carcasses (FSC). Restructured roasts from FSH carcasses had lower cook losses, higher binding strengths and superior sensory characteristics. Effects of ES or the addition of 10% mechanically separated mutton on restructured roast characteristics were not significant when compared to non ES or addition of 10% ground breast and flank. Freezing and cooking from the frozen state resulted in significantly (P < .05) lower cooking losses and higher warming losses. Restructured lamb roasts had lower cook losses and Warner-Bratzler shear values and higher binding strengths than mutton roasts. Addition of lamb to mutton improved the overall quality of mutton roasts. Monosodium glutamate at 0.2% level failed to mask the mutton flavor. The content of pyridinoline, a trifunctional cross-link of collagen, was significantly (P < .001) lower in lamb epimysial tissue than in mutton epimysial tissue. Greater amounts of pyridinoline are probably partially responsible for lower quality restructured mutton roasts when compared to those from lamb. Overall, restructured roasts from MC ewes were superior in quality to those from LC ewes, but the best roasts made from mutton were inferior in quality to those made from younger beef or lamb.
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