Irish stew

This simple Irish stew is a classic and makes a great family meal. We've used vegetable stock in this recipe but you could substitute with chicken stock if you prefer.

• serves

  4

• prep

  20 minutes

• cook

  2 hours

• difficulty

  Easy

Ingredients

• 4 large carrots
• 2 cloves garlic
• 2 onions
• 5 potatoes
• 1 kg lamb, breast or leg, diced
• 2 tbsp thyme leaves
• 1½ litre vegetable stock
• 1-2 tbsp oil
• salt and pepper

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 180°C. Peel and slice the carrots. Peel and finely dice the onions.

Peel the potatoes, leave 2 potatoes in water and dice the rest.

Peel and chop the garlic and mix with the diced meat and thyme leaves.

Put the meat and vegetables in alternate layers in a casserole dish, seasoning each layer lightly with salt and pepper. Add the stock, just covering the meat and vegetables. Bake for 1 hour. Thinly slice the last 2 potatoes and arrange neatly on top of the stew. Sprinkle with a little oil, season lightly with salt and return to the oven for 1 more hour until golden.

Cook's Notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.