Irish Lamb Stew recipe with lamb shoulder chops, bacon, potatoes, turnips, carrots, onions and barley. Cooked slowly until fork tender.
Around St. Patrick’s Day I notice a lot of people coming to this site looking for a recipe for Irish lamb stew.
After some experimentation and a lot of research into Irish stews, I’ve settled on a stew that has its roots in the traditional approach but takes a few detours to add a little more flavor.
Where we embellish this recipe is that we work with lamb shoulder, first sear the meat in bacon fat and add carrots, bacon and thyme.
All of these steps serve to add a richer flavor to the stew! (You can skip some or all of these additions if you wish.)
Irish lamb stew with bacon
Boil the lamb chops on the bone for better flavor, especially if you use water instead of lamb broth. If you wish, remove the bones before serving.
Beets have a strong flavor and add a nice balance to the stew, so use them when you can.
A waxy potato like a Yukon Gold will stand up to long cooking better, but you can also use a starchy potato like a Russet, it will likely fall apart a bit, but that will only thicken the stew.
More barley will further thicken the stew.
ingredients
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2 1/2 lb lamb shoulder or shoulder blade chops, bone-in, trimmed of excess fat
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6 slices baconthick cut
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2 lb potatoes (preferably Yukon Gold), peeled, quartered
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2 big onionsquartered
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2 big carrotspeeled and cut into 2 inch segments
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1 turnippeeled and cut into 1 inch pieces
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2 accumulate tablespoon pearl barley (omit for gluten-free version)
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1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme or 1 teaspoon dried thyme
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Kosher sold and freshly ground black pepper
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1 quart water or lamb shareheated
method
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Cook bacon:
Heat a large (6 quart) heavy-bottomed Dutch Oven over medium-high heat. Place the bacon in the bottom of the pan and gently fry the slices for a few minutes on each side, until most of the fat is drained and the slices are lightly browned.
Place the cooked bacon strips on a paper towel-lined plate to soak up the excess fat. Chop the bacon and set aside.
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Fry the lamb in the bacon fat:
Remove all but 2 tablespoons of bacon grease from pan (do not pour removed grease down drain or it will clog drains). Increase the heat to medium-high.
Working in batches so as not to overcrowd the pan, brown the lamb cuts on all sides, being careful not to stir the lamb cuts so they get enough browning.
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Arrange the meat and vegetables in layers in the pan:
Start with a layer of lamb first, then add a layer of potatoes, onions, beets, carrots, and chopped bacon. Add another layer of lamb and then another layer of vegetables. Add the barley, thyme, black pepper and a teaspoon of salt.
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Add water or broth:
Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a gentle simmer and cover, but with lid slightly ajar, simmer 1 1/2 to 2 hours, until meat is tender and falling off the bone.
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Skim off excess fat, remove bones, season:
Skim off excess fat. Use pliers to take out the bones and remove them. Adjust seasonings, add salt and pepper to taste.
| nutritional information (per serving) | |
|---|---|
| 542 | calories |
| 16g | Fat |
| 47g | carbohydrates |
| 51g | protein |
