Recipe courtesy of Giana Ferguson

Irish Stew

  • Level: Intermediate
  • Yield: 6 servings
  • Total: 3 hr
  • Prep: 30 min
  • Cook: 2 hr 30 min
Advertisement

Ingredients

2 medium-sized onions, chopped

Oil, for frying

1-ounce butter

1 sprig dried thyme

2 1/2 pounds best end of lamb neck, cut into large pieces

7 carrots, chopped lengthways into 2-inch pieces

2 tablespoons pearl barley

5 cups Chicken Stock, recipe follows

Salt (recommended: Fleur du Sel)

Freshly ground black pepper

1 bouquet garni (parsley, thyme, and bay leaf)

12 medium potatoes

1 bunch parsley, leaves finely chopped

1 bunch chives

Serving suggestion: Herb Butter, recipe follows

Stock:

Chicken carcass

1 onion

4 cups water

3 stalks celery, roughly chopped

Bay leaf

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Herb Butter:

1 stick butter

1 small bunch parsley, finely chopped

1 small bunch chives, finely chopped

1 sprig thyme

Directions

  1. In a large heavy-bottomed saucepan, cook the onions in oil and butter, on medium-high heat until they are translucent. Add the dried thyme and stir. Add the lamb and brown on a high heat to seal in juices. Add carrots, and pearl barley. Pour in the Chicken Stock so that it almost covers the meat and vegetables. Season with salt and pepper, and add Bouquet garni. Cover and cook on low heat for 2 hours, being careful not to boil. Place potatoes on top of the stew, cover and cook for 30 minutes until the meat is falling beautifully off the bones and the potatoes are fork tender.
  2. Serve the stew in large flat soup bowls, and drizzle Herb Butter over the potatoes or garnish with parsley and chives.

Stock:

  1. Preheat the stockpot. Combine ingredients in a large heavy-bottomed saucepan and cover with water. Bring to boil and simmer for approximately 30 minutes. Then let it cool down and skim off the fat.

Herb Butter:

  1. Melt butter in a small saucepan. Add parsley, chives and thyme.

Let's Get Cooking!

Sign up for the Recipe of the Day newsletter to receive editor-picked recipes,tips and videos delivered to your inbox daily. Privacy Policy

Thanks for subscribing to the Recipe of the Day newsletter. Check out all our other great newsletters from Easy Recipes, Healthy Eating Ideas and Chef Recipe Videos.

We're sorry, there was an error signing you up. Please try again later.

Advertisement

Anonymous

I made this last night and was impressed with the flavors! I used a leg of lamb, homemade beef stock and twice the amount of barley. It did need a touch of flour to thicken. The bouquet garni was key.

See All Reviews