← Nouns Cooking · British & Irish

Ingredients

• 1 kg lamb neck or shoulder, cut into large chunks
• 1 tbsp Vegetable oil
• 3 Onion, thickly sliced
• 3 Carrot, cut into chunks
• 1.2 kg potatoes (half floury, half waxy), peeled
• 4 sprigs Thyme
• 2 bay leaves
• 75 g Pearl barley (optional)
• 1.2 l lamb or chicken stock
• 1 handful Parsley, chopped
• Salt
• Black pepper

Method

1. Season the lamb. Heat the oil in a large casserole over medium-high heat and brown the lamb in batches, about 5 min per batch, then lift it out. (Traditionalists skip this, but it adds flavour.)
2. Lower the heat, add the onions and cook for 5 min until starting to soften.
3. Cut the floury potatoes into thick slices and the waxy ones into big chunks. Layer the sliced floury potatoes in the bottom of the pot, then add the lamb, carrots, thyme, bay leaves and barley. Top with the waxy potato chunks.
4. Pour in enough stock to just cover the meat, season and bring to a gentle simmer. Cover and cook on the lowest heat for 1½ hours (or in the oven at 160°C / 140°C fan for the same time).
5. Uncover and simmer for 20 min more until the lamb is falling-apart tender and the floury potatoes have broken down to thicken the broth. Skim off any fat, check the seasoning and scatter with parsley.

Tips

• Pearl barley contains gluten; leave it out for a gluten-free stew (check your stock too).
• Like most stews, it tastes even better the next day.

Sources

Written in our own words after cross-checking these recipes:

BBC Good Food Jamie Oliver