I used to work with a woman who absolutely raved and raved about a dish called Lancashire Hotpot which I had never heard of, but she insisted I try it. She tried time and again to explain it to me, but not being a cook herself she never quite translated how it’s made or just how great it is. Though this dish does require a good amount of time in the oven, it’s not too difficult or time-consuming to prepare and smells amazing as it cooks.
The origin of Lancashire Hotpot is a long-winded story and didn’t always have ties with Lancashire, but there is a similar recipe dating back to 1591. The long and the short of it is that stew is nothing new. It’s classic. It’s so classic that people have been making variations of lamb, mutton and beef stews for centuries and they are still just as popular today for cold weather or rainy days. Lancashire Hotpot is fairly similar to Irish Stew, but different in that it contains Worcestershire Sauce, layers of potatoes on top, sometimes lamb kidneys and that it’s cooked in the oven while many Irish Stew recipes are cooked solely on the hob or stovetop.
It’s a drizzly, rainy day here in London as I type this and I’ve got a Lancashire Hotpot in the oven. I’ve taken every opportunity this winter to tweak and perfect my recipe, eating the results with each version proving tastier than the previous one. The house smells so good as we anxiously anticipate our piping hot lunch that will surely warm us up despite how much the damp weather makes the cold feel twice as chilly. It’s comfort food at it’s finest – a great, hearty stew!
Serves 4
Ingredients
- 100g butter
- 600g stewing lamb (I use neck fillet)
- 1 onion, finely chopped
- 3 carrots, peeled and diced
- 3 tablespoons flour
- 3 tablespoons Worcestershire Sauce
- Leaves from a few fresh sprigs of Rosemary and Thyme, chopped finely (optional)
- 500ml lamb stock (I use a Knorr stock pot)
- 2 large potatoes
- Olive oil for drizzling
- Salt & freshly ground black pepper
- Few more Thyme leaves for serving (optional)
Method
- Preheat the oven to 160°C / 140°Fan / 325°F.
- Put a large flame-proof lidded casserole (Dutch oven) on medium-high heat and add about 1/2 of the butter. Melt it and continue heating it until it starts to sizzle a little and then throw in your chunks of lamb to brown them on all sides. You can do this in batches if you need to. You’re looking for lovely, flavourful colour on these chunks of lamb. Once sufficiently browned on all sides, remove the lamb pieces to a plate and set aside.
- With your pan still on the heat, throw in the rest of the butter along with the onions and carrots. Cook, stirring occasionally until the onions are soft and everything is starting to look a bit golden. Be careful not to burn anything and adjust the heat if you need to.
- Now add the flour, Worcestershire Sauce and fresh herbs to the pot. Stir to coat everything and let this mixture sizzle a little for a few seconds, stirring continuously. Season with salt & pepper and pour in the lamb stock and stir to combine everything. You should see it starting to thicken up already.
- Add the lamb back to the pot along with any juices on the plate and bring the stock mixture to a boil. While you’re waiting for that to boil, you can slice the potatoes. I don’t bother peeling them – just slice them pretty thin.
- When the mixture boils, turn off the heat, give it a stir and start layering the potato slices on top. Give the potatoes a nice, generous drizzle of olive and season with plenty of salt & pepper. Pop the lid on the casserole and put it in the oven for 1 hour and 35 minutes. If you have the time, cook the hotpot for 2 hours as it will just make the meat even more tender.
- At the end of the cooking time, turn on the grill (broiler) at a high temperature and cook for an additional 8 to 10 minutes or until the potatoes are crisp & browned and blistering. Serve hot, preferably with some bread for scooping and dunking.
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