Lancashire Hotpot

Recipe

Lancashire Hotpot is thought to have originated during the cotton industry in the 19th century. It’s a simple meal that would have been left to cook slowly all day, ready for the hungry cotton workers at the end of their shift. It was probably more likely to have contained mutton in those days, and would invariably have been left to cook with a lamb bone still in the dish – for added flavour. The meat was often bulked out more with oysters – which were very cheap in the 19th century.

Ingredients Serves 4-6

100g dripping or butter
900g stewing lamb cut into chunks
3 lambs kidneys sliced and fat removed
2 medium onions chopped
4 carrots peeled and sliced
25g plain flour
2 tsps Worcestershire sauce
500 ml lamb or chicken stock
2 bay leaves
900g potatoes

Method

Heat oven to 160C/fan 140C/gas 3.
Heat a little of the 100g dripping or butter in a large shallow casserole dish and brown 900g stewing lamb chunks in batches, lift to a plate, then repeat with 3 trimmed and sliced lamb kidneys.
Fry 2 chopped onions and 4 peeled and sliced carrots in the pan with a little more dripping until golden.
Sprinkle over 25g plain flour, allow to cook for a couple of mins, shake over 2 tsp Worcestershire sauce, pour in 500ml lamb or chicken stock, then bring to the boil.
Stir in the stewing lamb and kidneys and 2 bay leaves, then turn off the heat.
Arrange 900g peeled and sliced potatoes on top of the meat, then drizzle with a little more dripping.
Cover, then place in the oven for about 1½ hrs until the potatoes are cooked

Remove the lid, brush the potatoes with a little more dripping, then turn the oven up to brown the potatoes, or finish under the grill for 5-8 mins until brown.