Wholesome Wednesday: Irish Lamb Stew

I have always loved lamb stew.  Always.  I love the gravy and the carrots and potatoes.  There's just something about it.  Even though its a fave of mine, I'd never tried making it.  Rarely do we have lamb as no one really seems to like it but me.

But when Susie and I stopped at Jewel earlier this week, they had packages of lamb marked down.  Perfect time to try my hand at lamb stew.  I mean I've made pot roasts for years, so a lamb stew couldn't be that difficult.  After doing some recipe research, I cobbled together a recipe that would work with the ingredients I had on hand.

One thing to keep in mind if you're going to try this stew, you need to make it the day before.  Lamb stew needs a day in the fridge for the flavors to blend together before serving.  Trust me, it will taste so much better the second day.  :)

Irish Lamb Stew

1 lb cubed lamb stew meat
1/3 cup flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoons pepper
4 slices bacon, cubed
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup dry white wine
2 teaspoons sugar
2 cups chicken stock
2 bay leaves
1 teaspoon thyme
1 teaspoon rosemary
6 good sized red potatoes, cut into chunks
6 carrots, cut into chunks

Combine flour, salt and pepper in a bowl, toss with cubed lamb.  Set aside.

Fry bacon in a dutch oven until crisp.  Remove to a paper towel lined plate.  Drain pot, reserving bacon fat.  Return 1 tablespoon bacon fat to the pan along with 1 tablespoon olive oil.  Add the lamb and brown on all sides.

Add the onion, and cook several minutes till beginning to soften.  Then add garlic, cooking till fragrant about 30 seconds.  Pour in wine and stir to combine.  Add the bacon back to the pan with sugar, stock, bay leaves, thyme and rosemary.  Mix well and bring to a simmer.  Cook covered about 1 hour.

Once the lamb is tender, add the potatoes.  Cover and cook about 10 minutes.  Add carrots and cook covered about 20 minutes or more until veggies are tender.  Cool and refrigerate.

Next day, remove dutch oven from fridge and heat on extremely low heat for about 30-40 minutes.  You may need to add more stock or water to keep stew from sticking to dutch oven.