Cawl

A cook's recipe, traditionally cooked over the week over a fire or on the stove.

Nothing is very precise. Everything is adaptable. You really need to taste it and keep tweaking as you go along. I like to add a little apple cider vinegar before eating, and plenty of freshly ground black pepper.

If it's a bit fatty, leave it out covered on a cold night and remove some of the set fat the following day.

250g Large Diced Lamb Shoulder 1 Pinch Plain Flour 1 Large Onion, peeled and sliced 3 Carrots, washed and cut into 3cm pieces 2 Potatoes, peeled and cut in 1 inch chunks  1 Leek, washed and chopped into 2cm pieces  50g Peas Worcestershire Sauce Salt and Pepper

Toss lamb in flour and brown off the meat. The darker the brown, the deeper the taste.

Add the onions and soften gently, stirring.

Put the carrot over the meat and onion base. Add half the potatoes (keep the rest under water so they don’t brown, or be prepared to peel and dice again later) and enough water to reach the top.

Bring to the boil and simmer for about 2 hours. Stir occasionally. You should see the potatoes break up and melt into the stew.

Add the rest of the potatoes and splash of sauce, and season to taste. Simmer again for anything between 1hr and 2hrs. It’s a very forgiving dish, so the longer it goes, the better.

Keep stirring so it doesn’t catch. Serve with bread, butter and cucumber pickles, or I love pickled red cabbage (recipe in Welsh Lamb and Leek Hot Pot With Pickled Red Cabbage).

The family like ketchup with it, and now also Bryn’s Sôs Coch. My Dad swears by brown sauce. Whatever. So do I.

ingredients

• Diced Lamb Shoulder

• Plain Flour

• Large Onion

• Carrots

• Potatoes

• Leeks

• Peas

• Worcestershire Sauce

• Salt and Pepper