HELP with lamb stew please ..

mardatha

Did lamb chops in the crockpot with mushrooms, onions, cabbage (just a bit, to be healthy !) and carrots. It smells & tastes lovely but it very watery. What can I use to thicken and brown it a wee bit ?

andygb

Hi Mardartha,
I would normally suggest tomato puree, but it doesn't always go well with cabbage, so how about some cornflour if you have it. Some people use that to thicken Bouef Bourgignon and other casseroles.
Andy

count_rostov

I wouldn't add anything to thicken it, but would reduce the sauce to make it more intense. This is basically evaporating the water to leave all the tasty stuff behind. Remove all the meat and vegetables and let the sauce bubble really fast over a high heat with the lid off. Taste it every few minutes to see how far you want it to go. The only warning with this is, if you have already seasoned the stew then be very careful when reducing, as the salt won't evaporate and you can end up with a very salty stew. Once the sauce is thick and tasty enough, turn the heat down and stir the meat and veg back in.
If the seasoning is already perfect you could mash together an ounce of butter and an ounce of flour, add this a wee bit at a time to the simmering stew, stirring as you go. Careful though - you don't want to make your delicious stew taste of flour.
Have fun!

maman

I'd put a heaped teaspoon of cornflour in a cup with some water, mix to a paste and then add to casserole. If still too thin then do the same again. It will need to bubble up before you can tell how thick it's going to be. If you haven't got gravy browning then try some marmite or red wine (or both!) to darken.

ubamother

I would go with cornflour too, mixed in a bit of water and stirred through. If you haven't got any, a handful of oatmeal or porridge oats is a healthy and thickening addition - a tablespoon of instant mash in emergencies. If you're desperate you can mix a buerre marnier - equal amounts of fat/flour mixed really well and dropped in the mix - in theory as the fat melts the flour distributes evenly, but it really needs to simmer a bit to cook the floury taste out and I don't know if SC's simmer. (I'm guessing a crockpot is a slow cooker? sorry if wrong) I suppose you could take out the liquid and thicken in a saucepan and put back if you had to.

mardatha

ok brilliant help thanks all. We dont like tomatoes in stuff much, so I will try some oatmeal and a quick boil. Need to empty it out of the crockpot first though.
Watch me drop it on the floor....

charliee_3

if i thought it would take the flavour id bung in some instant chicken (or lamb if you have it) gravy granules.. will thicken it and brown the sauce a bit... but make sure it doesnt make it too salty

tandraig

er - hate to say this - but why are you casseroling lamb chops? chops should really be cooked quickly as they are from expensive cuts. casseroling should be done with cheaper cuts which need slow cooking. such as neck end or the cubes the supermarkets sell.
just a thought hun. chops i would either grill or fry quickly with my accompaniments salad or steamed veg and a nice sauce or chips! and sauce of course!
sauce suggestions
minted mayo
couple tablespoons mayo and one teaspoon of jar mint sauce mixed well
or - jar redcurrant sauce
or jar cranberry sauce - goes well - try it!
my OH loves lamb gravy - fry the lamb and remove from pan - should be at least a tablespoon of fat left - if not add lard. add a tablespoon of plain flour and a splash of cold water. mix well - add half pint of either veg water or hot water out of kettle and a knorr lamb stock cube. stir well and bring to boil. simmer a couple of minutes. you can add some mint if you like! oh and i have substituted other stock cubes and increased mint - no-one noticed!

andygb

tandraig wrote: »

er - hate to say this - but why are you casseroling lamb chops? chops should really be cooked quickly as they are from expensive cuts. casseroling should be done with cheaper cuts which need slow cooking. such as neck end or the cubes the supermarkets sell.
just a thought hun. chops i would either grill or fry quickly with my accompaniments salad or steamed veg and a nice sauce or chips! and sauce of course!
sauce suggestions
minted mayo
couple tablespoons mayo and one teaspoon of jar mint sauce mixed well
or - jar redcurrant sauce
or jar cranberry sauce - goes well - try it!
my OH loves lamb gravy - fry the lamb and remove from pan - should be at least a tablespoon of fat left - if not add lard. add a tablespoon of plain flour and a splash of cold water. mix well - add half pint of either veg water or hot water out of kettle and a knorr lamb stock cube. stir well and bring to boil. simmer a couple of minutes. you can add some mint if you like! oh and i have substituted other stock cubes and increased mint - no-one noticed!

You can indeed slow cook lamb chops, and two of the best known dishes can be prepared using them - Lancashire hotpot and Irish Stew. They are fantastic dishes, and the fact that the meat is on the bone simply adds to the flavour.

ChapelGirl

andygb wrote: »

You can indeed slow cook lamb chops, and two of the best known dishes can be prepared using them - Lancashire hotpot and Irish Stew. They are fantastic dishes, and the fact that the meat is on the bone simply adds to the flavour.

Howdonabit owd lad! Wossup wi thee? Traditional Lancashire Hotpot is made with scrag end of neck or middle or best end if you are feeling flush, NOT with rib or loin chops! I can't speak for the Irish but I can confirm that Lancastrians would not waste a good lamb chop by stewing it!

I am sure that there are some trendy chefs out there who would put such a thing on a restaurant menu but I'll bet they don't leave the chops to stew. They probably make an oven-baked potato-based dish and top it off with a few lightly grilled chops at the end. Very nice, but not a recipe for an old-style moneysaver, I don't think!

Would you put a T-bone steak in a stew because it is on the bone? Then again, maybe you would...? :think:

merlin1

hi, one of the best thickening tips i've received via this forum is to mix some butter and flour together til you get a smooth paste - add and let dissolve this bit by bit til its as you like! i prefer this to using cornflour as you do really get a nice silky smooth sauce but its rich! its been very nice for any watery sc meal so far! :beer: