Irish lamb stew recipe

At its most traditional, Irish stew is made with just lamb, onions, potatoes, and water. There’s no browning or precooking to develop flavor, which often results in a bland stew that lacks complexity. We set out to change that and create a lamb stew that would be sustaining, satisfying, and memorable. While most recipes call for boneless cuts of lamb, tasters liked the rich taste and velvety texture of broth fortified with marrow-rich bones. To make sure that our recipe remained a stew and not a braise, we cut the meat off the bones (we chose lamb shoulder chops for their superior flavor) and cut it into small pieces. As a bonus, the pieces had more surface area to build flavorful browning. Simply adding the bones to the Dutch oven as the stew simmered gave the stew plenty of body, and the bones were easily removed before serving. To further thicken the stew, we stirred in ¼ cup of flour, and added medium-starch Yukon Gold potatoes halfway through cooking. The potatoes released some starch while also holding their shape nicely. Though we prefer 1½-inch-thick chops here, 1-inch-thick chops will suffice. If possible, try to buy the chops from a butcher, since most supermarket chops are too thin. Depending on the size of your Dutch oven, you may need to brown the lamb chops in three batches rather than two.