Tasty Winter Casseroles

The very first dish of this kind that I made when I was first married. I recall measuring out the ingredients so carefully... of course, I don't do that any more. The great thing about stews and casseroles is that they are very forgiving and precise weighing isn't important as long as you're somewhere in the ballpark.

You will need (approximately):

50g or 2oz beef dripping or vegetable oil
700-900g or 1 1/2 to 2lbs of stewing steak cut into 4cm or 1.5 inch cubes(you can leave a little fat on but get rid of any tough bits)
4 medium onions, skinned and halved lengthways
350g or 12oz carrots, peeled and cut into chunks
200g or 8oz button mushrooms, halved
30ml or 2 level tbsp plain flour
600ml or 1 pint beef stock (broth)
15ml or 1 level tbsp tomato purée
salt and pepper
2 bay leaves
100g or 4oz frozen peas - optional.

Heat the oil or dripping in a flameproof casserole. Increase the heat and when the fat is just beginning to smoke, add the meat about one quarter at a time. Fry each batch until browned. Remove with a slotted spoon.

Reduce the heat, add the onions, carrots and mushrooms and fry until lightly browned. Remove from the casserole.

Sprinkle the flour into the fat remaining in the pan and stir well until evenly blended. Return to the heat and cook slowly, until the roux (fat and flour) turns brownish.

Add the stock a little at a time, put back on the heat stirring constantly so there are no lumps. Keep adding the liquid in small batches. Add the tomato purée and seasoning and bring to the boil. Gently put the meat and vegetables back into the gravy together with the bay leaves.

Cover the casserole and cook in the oven at 170C (325F) Gas Mark 3 for about two hours, preferably three. Alternatively, cook on low heat on top of the stove, stirring occasionally. If you are including the frozen peas, add them 15 minutes before the end of cooking.

Variations:
Replace some of the stock with an equal amount of red wine or dark ale, such as Guinness.
Substitute some of the carrots with a chopped medium potato - this will break down and add thickness.
Slice the onions smaller - they may disappear but all the flavour will be there.
Add any other root vegetable such as swede (rutabaga), turnip or parsnip that you like.

You can cook this the day before you want it and then reheat it until steaming hot. It will taste even better.

Photo courtesy of Twmlabs

Cawl is a traditional meal in Wales, where lamb is plentiful and flavoursome. We get lots of rain here so the hillside grass is always good for raising sheep.

Back in the old days cawl would be served as a two-course meal. The broth was strained off and served as a light soup with the meat and vegetables following as the main course.

It was usually cooked in a cast iron pot or cauldron over an open fire but these days it is pretty good in a slow-cooker or heavy casserole. Traditionally cawl was eaten in wooden bowls with wooden spoons so that there was no fear of burning the mouth. The best cawl is started on Monday but not eaten until Wednesday. Eat with home-made bread and golden, creamy Welsh butter.

Recipe:

Cawl should be started the day before so that any fat can be skimmed off and all the flavours intermingle.

1-1.5 kg/2-3 lb. Welsh lamb best end of neck cutlets. If lamb is difficult to get hold of, casserole beef is pretty good in this recipe too.
1 large sliced onion
3 leeks
2 medium sliced carrots
1 medium parsnip
1 small swede turnip (rutabaga) or 2 white turnips
2 tablespoons chopped parsley
6 small potatoes
salt and pepper
2 litres (8 cups) water
If in season cabbage, celery, etc., can all be used.

Trim the fat from the meat as much as you can but don't worry too much about it.

Cover with cold water, add salt and pepper, bring to the boil, simmer slowly for 1 hour.

Allow to cool (preferably overnight) and skim off all the fat.

Put in all the vegetables except 1 leek, the potatoes and half the parsley.

Cover and simmer very slowly for 1 hour, then add the potatoes, halved and continue cooking for 30 minutes.

Add the remainder of the parsley, taste for seasoning and finely chop the remaining leek (green and white part) on top. Let it cook for 5 minutes and serve.

Serves 4-6.

This recipe is taken from Delia Smith's Complete Cookery Course, Delia Smith's Complete Illustrated Cookery Course and The Evening Standard Cookbook.

Traditional Lancashire Hotpot
Serves 4

2 lb (900 g) best end and middle neck of lamb, chopped into chop-sized pieces
1 tablespoon groundnut or other flavourless oil
butter
4 lambs' kidneys, cored, skinned and chopped fairly small
12 oz (350 g) onions, peeled and cut into half lengthways through the root then cut into ½ inch (1 cm inch) wedges
1 level tablespoon flour
1 pint (570 ml) hot water, mixed with ½ teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1 bay leaf
2 sprigs fresh thyme
2 lb (900 g) potatoes, peeled and cut into ¾ inch (2 cm) slices
salt and freshly milled black pepper

First trim the lamb of any excess fat and wipe with kitchen paper. In a large frying pan, heat the oil and ¼ oz (5 g) butter until it is very hot, then brown the pieces of lamb two or three at a time until they all have a good brown crust. As they cook, remove them to a wide casserole. Brown the pieces of kidney too, and tuck these in among the meat.

Next, fry the onions - add ¼ oz (5 g) butter to the pan if you need any extra fat - cooking them for about 10 minutes till they turn brown at the edges. Now stir in the flour to soak up the juices, then gradually add the hot water and Worcestershire sauce, stirring or whisking until flour and liquid are smoothly blended. Season with salt and pepper and bring it up to simmering point, then pour it over the meat in the casserole. Add the bay leaf and thyme, then arrange the potato slices on top, in an overlapping pattern like slates on a roof. Season the potatoes and add a few flecks of butter here and there.

Cover with a tight-fitting lid and cook near the top of the oven for 1½ hours, then remove the lid and cook for a further 50 minutes.I sometimes finish off the hotpot under the grill. If you brush the potatoes with a little more butter and place the casserole under a hot grill they crisp up and brown beautifully. Alternatively, if you think they're not browning enough during cooking, you can turn the heat in the oven right up during the last 15 minutes. Remove the bay leaf and thyme sprigs before serving.

Mmmm... delicious!