If corned beef and cabbage isn’t your style, here’s a tasty lamb stew.
Irish Lamb Stew
- 2 lbs. boneless lamb shoulder or shank, cubed (you can also use ground lamb if you roll it into little balls and fry them first)
- 1 quart of cold water
- 2 lbs. medium potatoes, peeled and halved
- 1 lb. white boiling onions, peeled
- 1 lb. carrots, peeled and cut into 2-inch chunks
- 6 stalks of celery, cut into 2-inch pieces
- 2 t. salt
- 1/4 t. ground black pepper
- 1 t. caraway seeds
- 2 T. chopped parsley
Use a large stock pot or an 8-qt. Dutch oven. Put the meat and water in and bring to a boil over high heat. Skim off the surface foam with a slotted spoon.
Add all the rest of the ingredients except the parsley and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, covered, for about 1 1/2 hours. The meat and vegetables should all be tender.
Serve with a garnish of parsley.
I find it a bit surprising that there is no pre-browning of the meat, nor thickeners in this stew recipe (in a typical beef stew, the meat is browned and floured before adding liquid, and the fat and flour mix to help thicken the stock.
Is the stock supposed to be thin in this stew?
We bought a lamb from a farm in the valley when our kids were little. It came neatly wrapped for the freezer, but unfortunately, Paul had been visiting the farmer’s grandson the day it was butchered. While we ate stew, he told how the lambs were butchered (–with great relish since he was about 7 years old). Julie tearfully asked “daddy, do they really kill baby lambs?” and Gene assured her that lambs were babies. From that moment on, despite the disguises like garlic in huge quantities, or mint, as soon as she smelled lamb cooking, Julie refused to eat that night.
Years later she admitted that it tasted like our French Poodle smelled. So, even though she isn’t with us, I think I will just tell myself that this is delicious, and eat corned beef, which I do really like.
Love, Auntie Joan