Irish Lamb Stew Recipe

Irish Lamb Stew is a warm, flavorful, comfort meal that’s perfect for special occasions, including St Patrick’s Day. Pair this meal with fresh homemade sourdough bread or Irish soda bread.

Ingredients for Irish Lamb Stew

• Lamb Shoulder. The lamb shoulder is best for stews. It becomes nice and tender when cooked long and slow. The shoulder has a bit more fat on it that you can trim off. I like to trim it off but then add it to the stew for the extra flavor. Before serving I take as much as the fatty timing and the bones out.

• Potatoes. You can use any type of potato you have for this stew but I prefer small red potatoes. They are soft and creamy, yet hold their shape well. I also just love the flavor of red potatoes, especially paired with rosemary.
• Carrots. We want our veggies cut large for this stew. You can use whole baby carrots for easier prep work.

• Cabbage. This is optional. Some people really don’t like cooked cabbage or cabbage at all and If that’s you, leave the cabbage out.
• Onion. An onion will add so much flavor as well as rich nutrition. Onions are rich in antioxidants and immune system building properties. They are great for you and great tasting.
• Garlic. Garlic also add a lot of flavor with some of the same nutritional benefits. Improving immune system and great for blood flow and heart health, garlic is a great addition to your meals.

• Broth. You can use any type of broth you want but lamb broth will be the best choice for this lamb stew. Beef broth and chicken broth also taste great in the stew. Vegetable broth will also work. The only thing I don’t advice is plain water, that will diminish the flavor greatly.
• Flour/Cornstarch. For a little thicker broth add about a 1/4-1/2 a cup flour or cornstarch to the broth. The more you use the thicker the broth will get. I advice add the flour half way (or later) through cooking the stew. We want the meat and vegetables to soak in the flavor of the broth while cooking. If the broth is to thick it will not soak in and you might will be tough and the flavor of the vegetables will be weak. You can add the flour in 20 minutes before serving and that should be long enough to thicken up.

• Rosemary. The only seasoning (besides salt and pepper) we will need for this recipe is rosemary. I like to use fresh rosemary but dried will work as well.
• Salt and Pepper to taste. If I am using homemade broth I typically need to add a lot more salt than if I’m using store bought broth. So as I am making my stew and get it a taste or two and add the needed salt and pepper to my liking.

How To Make Irish Lamb Stew

• Chop Vegetables. Cut your potatoes in quarter or large chucks, same with your carrots, onion and cabbage. Large chunks. Dice the garlic in small pieces.
• Chop Lamb. Cut your lamb shoulder into 1-2 inch pieces. Large is good but not to big.

• Saute. Get you pot nice and hot. I like to use cast iron, it works best but if you don’t have cast iron your normal pot should work just fine. With a little cooking oil in the pot sauce the onions first. As they soften add the garlic and lamb. Once the lamb is seared, not cooked though, but as soon as it is brown add the potatoes, carrots and cabbage. Stir in and cook for a few minutes.

• Add Broth. Pour in the broth till it just covers the meat and vegetables. Cover with a lid and let simmer for a minimum of 30 minutes. The longer you let your stew simmer the more flavor your stew will have. I will often turn it on low and leave it for 2 hours or longer.

• Temper Flour. To thicken the broth add about a 1/4 cup flour to your broth. To do this without having cooked flour chunks you will need to temper the flour with the broth. To temper the flour and broth you will first add the flour with some room temperature water or broth at a 1:1 ratio. Then ladle some of the hot broth from the stew into you flour and water and mix together. Keep adding broth till the flour and broth are well mixed and hot. To make sure not flour chucks I strain the mixture while adding it to my stew. Simmer for another 20 minutes to thicken up before serving.