A classic Lancashire lamb hot pot recipe: a tender stew of mutton or lamb, kidneys and bacon with vegetables in gravy, topped with potatoes and baked golden brown.
Prep Time20 minutesmins
Cook Time1 hourhr40 minutesmins
Total Time2 hourshrs
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: British
Keyword: Lancashire Hot Pot
Servings: 8Servings
Calories: 323kcal
Author: Alan
Cost: 20
Equipment
large skillet for browning the meat
Dutch oven
Ingredients
Stew
¼teaspoonchopped fresh rosemary
1large yellow onion(6 oz) diced ½ inch
6ozcarrot2 medium cut into 1 inch pieces
6oz1 medium turnip cut into 1 inch pieces
24ozlamb or goat shoulderneck, or stewing meat, cut into 1 inch pieces
8oz3 medium lamb or goat kidneys, whole
3ozlamb or goat baconoptional cut into ½ inch pieces
Kosher salt and fresh ground black pepper
2cupslamb stock or water
2tablespoonsall purpose flour or equivalent
Melted lard or cooking oilfor browning the meat
¼cupdry red wineoptional
1.5lbspotatosliced thin
¼cuprendered lamb fatplus more for drizzling on the potatoes
1Tablespooncrumbled dried mushrooms
1teaspoonWorcestershire sauce
Instructions
Season the neck or other meat with 1 teaspoon salt and mix.
In the dutch oven or similar pot you will cook the hot pot in, sweat the onion in 2 tablespoons of the fat with the rosemary and a pinch of salt for 2 minutes. Add the flour and stir to combine, cook for a minute more, then turn the heat off and set aside.
Preheat the oven to 325F.
Brown the stew meat in batches in a large pan-10 inches wide is a good size to start. After each pan of meat is browned, add a ¼ cup of water, quickly scrape the pan and pour the juices and meat into the dutch oven with the onion. Put the browned meat into a pan as you go. After the meat is browned, cook the bacon if using until it’s released its fat and is nearly crisp.
Remove the bacon to the dish with the browned meat and pan juices then brown the kidneys in the bacon fat until golden on both sides. Add the carrot and rutabaga or turnips to the pan and cook on medium-high until browned and almost tender. Remove the kidneys from the pan to cool, then cut into ½ inch pieces.
Add the browned meat and pan juices, along with the cooked vegetables and dried mushrooms if using to the dutch oven with the onions.
Add the wine, worchesterchire and stock, bring the mixture to a boil, then turn the heat off, top with the sliced potatoes, overlapping them like shingles to give it an attractive design.
Put the lid on the pot and bake for 45 minutes, then remove the lid, increase the heat to 475 F, baste the potatoes with lamb fat, and cook until the potatoes are browned, then serve. It will improve in flavor as it sits.
Notes
Many different cuts of lamb and goat can be used here. Neck meat is great, but shanks and shoulders will work good too.