Irish stew
Irish stew (in Irish Stobhach Gaelach) is a traditional Irish dish made from lamb, beef or mutton, (mutton is used as it comes from less tender sheep over a year old and is fattier and more flavourful) as well as potatoes, onions, and parsley.[1] It originated in Ireland and appears in cookbooks all over Europe, including in Escoffier's Guide Culinaire. The essence of Irish stew is summed up in the recipe's entry in The Joy of Cooking: "This famous stew is not browned."
More recently, stouts have been added to provide extra flavor.
Irish Stew since the 80s mainly consists of beef, since lamb has become more expensive.
In popular culture
A well known joke is What's a policeman's favourite dish? Irish Stew (in the name of the law)
Irish stews figure in the 1959 Goon Show episode The Scarlet Capsule, a parody of the BBC serial Quatermass and the Pit, in which several people are struck down by flying Irish stews (a reference to flying objects animated by telekinesis in the original serial.)
Recipe
Ingredients
4 litres of water.
1 lb of stewing beef.
1 lb lean mince beef.
4 med size carrots.
2 med size onions.
A tablespoon of dried mixed herbs.
2 large celerys.
5 med size potatoes + a med size pot of mashed potatoes.
2 stock cubes, or 1 pint of homemade/prepared stock.
Black pepper.
Method
Boil the stewing beef alone for about 1 hour.
Brown the mince.
Strain off most of the fat.
Chop the vegetables to spoon size.
Put all ingredients in a big pot including the stock, and bring to boil and simmer for 1 1/2 hours.
Then serve over the mashed potatoes.
