Traditional Irish Lamb Stew with Carrots, Celery, & Potatoes
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 1 hour 15 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 25 minutes
- Yield: 4 to 6 servings 1x
- Category: Irish
- Cuisine: Dinner
Description
Having grown up in England, I love Irish and British food. I make a big todo every March in honor of St. Patty’s day. My husband and I hiked across northern England last year on the Wainswright Route. We enjoyed so much good British food ~ bangers and mash, steak and ale pie, fish and chips. After hiking 15 miles each day, these hearty meals fueled our next day’s hike. Granted, we did have some nice changes of pace with Indian in Kirkby Stephen and Moroccan at a small pub in Muker.
I’ve also traveled all over Ireland. I’ve been there four times and have explored every part of the island, including Northern Ireland, except for the very northwestern part of the country. That is still on my bucket list to return and finish seeing the country! I love Ireland and the UK. They will always have a special place in my heart and if anyone can tell me how to retire there, I’m all ears!
When the weather turns cool, or even cold as it has been here in Jersey for the past week, I know most of us turn to comfort foods! Like Wednesday’s split pea soup recipe ~ the ultimate comfort food! I know those of you all who are following me on Instagram have commented emphatic agreement! Today’s recipe for Irish lamb stew, to me, is the quintessential comfort food and embodies all of the qualities from a home cooked meal you want on a cold, dark evening ~ savory, rich, and warm.
This stew is loaded with carrots, celery, and potatoes. I opted for fingerling potatoes for several reasons. They reduce the prep work! I just cut any large potatoes in half. And, they fingerling potatoes I buy are a blend of different colors: yellow, red, and purple, which adds a nice flavor profile.
After I had everything in the pot and simmering, I realized that the sauce was not nearly as thick as I wanted. I am not a big advocate of cornstarch. Honestly, I really only use it in my cookies to prevent them from spreading. I just find that cornstarch has a very noticeable taste to it and I hate tarnishing my savory sauces with that flavor profile. So, I’ve discovered this awesome work around ~ creating a roux without a pot or pan!
Trust me, I know it sounds bonkers, but when I tried it, it has become a life changer when I have a sauce that just isn’t thick enough. So, the trick is to quickly microwave a couple of tablespoons of butter in a small glass. It’s okay if some of it melts but you’re trying to aim more for a “room temperature” feel. Then I add flour to thoroughly smash it together with a fork until the flour is fully saturated. Most people do a ratio of 1 to 1 of butter and flour when making a roux. I aim for about 1 to 2. So, 2 tablespoons butter to ¼ cup (4 tablespoons) of flour.
Now, I’ve made the mistake of just dumping this right in a pot of sauce before and found chunks of roux at the bottom of the dish 😝. What I’ve learned is to add some of the sauce into the glass and mix until thoroughly combined. I repeat this several times until the sauce has made the roux liquidy enough to easily combine into the sauce. After a few minutes, the sauce starts to thicken. If it’s still not thick enough, repeat until it reaches your desired consistency. This is an awesome cooking trick, so store it away in your cooking tricks to wow friends and family with your random cooking hack tricks 😉.
After about an hour, the potatoes and lamb are perfectly tender. Easy peasy! Dinner is served! This is a stick to your ribs dinner that’ll leave your belly feeling sooo happy.
Enjoy! And let me know what you all think!
Ingredients
2 lb lamb stew meat, cut into 1” to 2” chunks
3 cups carrots cut into 1” chunks
2 cups celery cut into 1” chunks
2 cups onions, chopped
1½ lbs fingerling potatoes
6 garlic cloves, minced
2 bay leaves
1 TB fresh rosemary, minced
6 sprigs of thyme
2 TB olive oil
4 TB butter, divided
⅓ cup flour
3 cups beef broth
1 – 14.9 oz can of Guinness
2 TBs Worcestershire sauce
¼ cup A-1 sauce, or similar steak sauce
1 TB Dijon mustard
salt and pepper
Instructions
In a heavy bottomed part or large Dutch oven, heat the olive oil over medium heat. When hot and shimmering, work in batches to sear the lamb on all sides. Be careful not to cook the lamb pieces through ~ they cook quickly because they’re smaller pieces. Remove and set aside in a bowl.
Melt 2 tablespoons of butter then add the onions. Cook, stirring often, for 3 minutes. Add the celery, carrots, and garlic. Lightly salt and cook, stirring often, for 5 minutes. Add the rosemary and thyme. Melt the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter then sprinkle the flour over top. Stir until the flour is fully saturated in the butter.
Slowly add in the Guinness, stirring constantly, until fully blended with the flour. Then add the beef broth, Worcestershire sauce, A-1 sauce, and Dijon mustard. Return the lamb to the pot with all its juices and add the potatoes and bay leaves. Season to taste with salt and pepper then bring to a simmer until the sauce has thickened. Reduce the heat to low and let simmer, uncovered, for 1 hour or until the lamb is tender. (See note to address the broth if it does not get thick enough to your liking). Carefully remove the bay leaves and thyme sprigs.
Serve immediately. Enjoy!
Notes
If the sauce is not as thick as you like, put 2 tablespoons of butter in a small glass and microwave for about 10 seconds until lightly softened. Add ¼ cup flour to the glass and mash together with a fork until the flour is fully saturated. Then, take a small spoonful of the sauce and add it into the glass, stirring to fully incorporate the sauce. Repeat with another 2 or 3 spoonfuls. Then pour the liquid into the pot and stir to combine. Give the sauce a chance to thicken further (about 5 minutes). Repeat the process if you desire a thicker sauce.
Keywords: Irish stew, lamb stew, Irish lamb stew, hearty stew, homemade lamb stew, lamb stew from scratch, traditional Irish stew
