main course dietary requirements : vegetarian : NO vegan : NO
50g butter , melted salt and pepper week one notes
main course dietary requirements : vegetarian : NO vegan : NO
dairy free : NO , omit butter from potatoes
nut free : OK
gluten free : NO , remove a portion before adding beer and add more water if needed
Lamb and ale hotpot
Serves : 4 Cooked : at oven temp 350F / 180C
2-3 tablespoons sunflower oil 1 onion , sliced thinly 2 stalks celery , finely chopped 600-800g lamb , diced into 3cm cubes 2 tablespoons plain flour 500ml bottled beer 300ml water ½ chicken stock cube ½ beef stock cube 150g mushrooms chopped
Preparation time : 25 minutes Cooking time : 1 hour 40 minutes
2 bay leaves 1 tablespoon brown sugar 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce 1 tablespoon tomato purée salt and pepper for the potato top :
4 large potatoes ( baking size ), washed not peeled
50g butter , melted salt and pepper week one notes
This is a classic British recipe but using beer local to you . This can be made with French lager , or even a sweeter dark Continental beer . This is global cooking – a recipe from back home using ingredients from where you are !
1 . Heat the oil in a pan and add the onion and celery plus 1 tablespoon water . Put a tight fitting lid on the pan and cook over a medium heat for 5-10 minutes or until the vegetables are really soft but not brown . Remove the onion and celery from the pan with a slotted spoon leaving the oil in there . 2 . Toss the lamb pieces in 1 tablespoon of the flour and then turn the heat up under the pan until really hot and fry the meat until brown on all sides . Do this in batches adding more oil if necessary so that you do not over load the pan and therefore allow the meat to ‘ stew ’ instead of frying . 3 . Return the onion and celery and batch cooked lamb to the pan and add the beer , water , bay leaves , stock cubes , Worcestershire sauce , sugar , tomato purée , mushrooms and bring to the boil and season . Turn the heat down and simmer for 1 hour or until the meat is very soft and tender . 4 . Remove the saucepan from the heat and allow the fat to surface . Sprinkle the remainder of the flour over the surface in a fine layer and wait until it turns translucent , the fat will have soaked into it . Stir and then bring gently to the boil again , do not over boil as the meat will break up but it needs to boil to cook the flour and thicken the sauce . Repeat with another spoon of flour if the sauce is not the consistency of double cream allowing the fat to surface before you sprinkle on the flour as before . 5 . While this is cooking cook the potatoes : slice the potatoes and put into a roasting tin . Melt the butter and put in with the potatoes seasoning well with salt and pepper . Mix together and then roast uncovered for 30 minutes or until the potatoes are browned and cooked through . 6 . Both the lamb and the potatoes can be cooked in the morning and stored in the fridge until you are ready to re-heat .
Now you have two ways to finish the dish : a . IF THERE IS ROOM FOR ALL YOUR TERRACOTTA DISHES TO FIT INTO YOUR OVEN – divide the cooked lamb into the terracotta dishes so you leave about 1cm to the top . Then cover with a layer of the cooked potatoes . Re-heat at 350F / 180C uncovered for 25 minutes before you want to serve the main course . The potatoes will crisp up . b . IF YOU DO NOT HAVE ROOM FOR ALL TERRACOTTAS IN YOUR OVEN – put the terracotta dishes somewhere to warm through so you are not serving in cold dishes . Warm the stew gently over a medium flame when the guests sit down for starters and put the potatoes back into the oven in their roasting tin to re-heat at 350F / 180C at the same time . Divide the meat into the warmed terracottas and top with a layer of hot crispy potatoes .
To serve : top the potato with chopped fresh parsley and serve on dinner plates offering the sides for the guests to help themselves .