Interested in Irish lamb stew? Do you want to know about the many lamb stew varieties available? Read our guide for more information on choosing the right stew for your meal.
Lamb stew makes a hearty dish for any meal. The thick broth which forms the base of Irish lamb stew is fully satisfying. As the Irish left their homeland for far flung nations across the world in search of a better life, they brought with them the stew which was a staple at mealtimes in Ireland.
Succulent shoulders of lamb that’s been cut off the bone and trimmed of fat is diced into cubes and thrown into a large skillet to be slowly cooked until tender. The Irish cook their lamb stew with potatoes and onions. By adding different spices and local condiments, Irish lamb stew took on distinctly local variations.
For example, in South Africa, Irish lamb stew is flavored with lentils, ginger, chili and garlic. In Norway, cabbage and peppercorns are the primary flavors whereas in France, lamb stew is rich in wine, turnips and root vegetables. In the US, lamb stews can incorporate a myriad of flavors from Indian spices like cardamom and cloves to Moroccan chickpeas.
Lamb Stew in Various Regions
There are broad manifestations of lamb stew throughout the world. In the Middle East, where lambs were domesticated for thousands of years in Mesopotamia for their wool and meat, lamb stew is cooked with lemon and dill or fava beans, turmeric, tomatoes and assorted pulses. Usually eaten with leavened flat bead, couscous or pilaf rice, lamb stew is often served at feasts to celebrate births, marriages and religious observations.
The lamb is cut into small, bit sized morsels in deference to guests who are treated hospitably and not allowed to struggle with large chunks of food. The rich lamb stew has a strong and complex flavor. This variation of the Irish lamb stew is usually made from sheep of local origin as opposed to imported meat.
Irish lamb stew is no longer a purview of people living in Ireland. This delicious lamb stew has been exported by the Irish to every foreign land that they’ve settled in. Local variations of Irish lamb stew incorporate regionally available ingredients that result in tender cubes of lamb meat stewed in a variety of vegetables and spices for a full flavor.
