Irish Lamb Stew

Ingredients

• 1 kg lamb shoulder, in large cubes
• 2 onions, thickly sliced
• 4 carrots, in thick chunks
• 800 g floury potatoes, halved
• 80 g pearl barley
• a few sprigs of thyme
• 2 bay leaves
• 1.2 litres light stock
• 2 tbsp oil
• a handful of parsley, chopped

Method

1. Brown the lamb

   Season the lamb well and brown it hard in batches. Crowding the pan drops the temperature and the meat stews in its own liquid instead of colouring.

   15 min

2. Soften the vegetables

   Cook the onion and carrot in the same pan, scraping up everything stuck to the base.

   8 min

3. The long braise

   Return the lamb with the barley, herbs and stock. Bring to the barest simmer, cover, and cook until the lamb is completely tender.

   1 h 30 min

4. Add the potatoes

   Add the potatoes and cook uncovered until soft. Some will break down and thicken the broth, which is exactly what you want.

   35 min

5. Rest and serve

   Skim any fat from the surface, check the seasoning and scatter with parsley.