Lamb Stew (Irish Old-Fashioned)

When you conjure up thoughts of Ireland, you likely think of sloping thatched-roof houses with gardens in front and huge fireplaces in rooms where the owners take refuge from Ireland's frequent rain. And on the table, by the fire, you would probably find Irish stew, a regular one-pot meal. Rustic, simple, and hearty, there's no one true recipe for the stew. It has evolved and adapted over time and different places, but it's usually made with lamb, onions, and potatoes. Other ingredients have been added or replaced over time; originally the stew was made with mutton - older animals with tougher and fattier meat-but nowadays lamb's shoulder seems to be the go-to cut. It was also made without potatoes, as these came to Ireland only in the 16th century when they were brought over from South America.

Each family has a favourite variation, but most people like to add carrots. Parsnips, peas, turnips, or celery can also appear, and even Guinness is added in some versions. Our recipe has tasty bacon and bacon fat to add an extra layer of flavour to the broth. In traditional fashion, make this stew the day before and refrigerate overnight, as it is even better reheated. The flavours have time to blend together more, which results in a more flavourful dish. Accompany your meal with a loaf of good soda bread.

½ lb thick-sliced bacon, diced
6 lbs lamb shoulder, boneless, cut into 2" pieces
1 tsp. sea salt
½ tsp. black pepper, freshly ground
½ cup all-purpose flour, unbleached
½ cup vegetable oil, or as needed
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 large yellow onion, finely chopped
4 cups beef stock
2 tsp. sugar
4 cups carrots, chopped into 1" pieces
2 large yellow onions, thinly sliced
3 lbs potatoes, peeled, qtered, and cut into ½" pieces
1 tsp. dried thyme
1 bay leaf
½ cup dry white wine

To Serve:
chopped parsley
1 loaf soda bread

In a large frying pan, sauté the bacon. Drain the fat and reserve both the bacon and the fat.

In a large mixing bowl, place the lamb, salt, pepper, and flour. Toss to coat the meat evenly.

Without cleaning, reheat the frying pan you used to fry the bacon. In batches, brown the lamb in the reserved bacon fat. If you run out of fat, use some of the vegetable oil.

Transfer the browned meat to a 10 qt stovetop casserole, leaving about ¼ cup of fat in the frying pan.

Add the garlic and the chopped yellow onion to the pan and sauté until the onion begins to colour a bit.

Add the garlic-onion mixture to the casserole, along with the reserved bacon pieces, beef stock, and sugar.

Cover and simmer for 1½ hours, or until the lamb is tender.

Add the carrots, the sliced onions, potatoes, thyme, bay leaf, and wine to the pot and simmer, covered, for about 20 minutes, or until the vegetables are tender. Taste test and add salt and pepper as needed.

Top with the parsley garnish before serving and accompany with soda bread.

What Is the Difference Between a Stew and an Irish Stew?
What mainly sets the Irish stew apart from other stews is that it is, in origin, made with very few ingredients, like lamb, potatoes and carrots. Nowadays, the recipes have many more ingredients, but the true base is a humble and simple one-pot meal. Besides the number of ingredients, what differentiates Irish stews from other similar preparations is that they're thickened by the starch in the potatoes, and not by a roux. Even if adding a slurry of flour and cooled broth from the stew would thicken the consistency, Irish stews rarely rely on this trick.