Judy Nunn’s summer cookbook recipe for lamb chop stew
This is the meal I constantly cook because my husband will live on it quite happily for a week, saving me a lot of bother ... he is not a modern man.
Every day this summer, we’ll publish an exclusive recipe from a favourite Australian author, dishes made with affection for family, friends or someone special.
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This is the meal I constantly cook because my husband will live on it quite happily for a week, saving me a lot of bother (he is not a modern man – he does not cook).
To warrant the grand title, the chops need to be scrag end neck.
Scrag end necks are one of the world’s best kept secrets – in the bygone days of my youth they were fed to the dogs.
Not in our house, where juice is sucked from the bones.
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Lamb scrag end neck chops stew
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I generally buy the necks whole and have the butcher cut them into rosettes (and trim off a bit of the fat if he’s not too busy, otherwise I’ll do it myself).
This being said, the recipe will be fine for lamb shanks, but the stew simply won’t be the same.
The recipe can be made in a slow cooker, in which case just whack everything in and let her rip. I prefer a huge stew pot or saucepan myself, because the taste test throughout is so much a part of cooking this sort of meal. I’ve therefore written the preparation along those lines.
I have very little idea of actual ratios as I’ve made this stew so often I do it by rote, so I’ll use three lamb necks to start with.
I always cook this stew the day before it’s to be eaten. It allows the flavours to really set in. Re-heat very slowly the following day.
My husband likes this meal “soupy” fashion – i.e. served up for him in a bowl with his mash on the side. For normal guests I present it more tastefully – served on plates, the gravy a “jus”, with side dishes of mash and green beans.
Keeping it lowbrow, though – a bowl centre-table to chuck in the bones (which must be sucked dry of juices and marrow).
3 lamb necks, which when cut into rosettes should make about 12 chops
3 large onions, roughly chopped (I like a lot of onions)
3 sticks of celery, finely chopped
3 large carrots, chopped any old way
3 large cloves of garlic, finely chopped (and I mean large cloves – otherwise six small ones)
1 medium-sized swede, medium chopped
(The above veg is all you need, but quite frankly you can shove in just about any others you like – no potatoes, though, because this stew must be served with mash. I like to include Brussels sprouts. My husband prefers without, but I often rebel and put them in anyway)
A handful of fresh rosemary, tied together with cooking twine (nick it from someone’s front garden if the only alternative is that tasteless
dried stuff)
About ½ cup of olive oil or possibly
a bit more, see how you go
Flour for coating chops
3 cups of chicken stock (maybe a bit more to add later – again, see how you go)
At least a ½ a bottle of red wine (usually a bit more for me)
Pepper and salt to taste (I generally chuck in a good deal of supermarket-bought ground black pepper, which may be unfashionable, but it works a treat)
1. Coat the chops lightly in flour and fry in the oil until browned. Add the onions and stir through until softened (add a bit more oil if necessary) and pour in the wine, add the celery, garlic and rosemary.
2. Stir all together, then add the stock and give it another stir. Add the carrots and swede, together with seasoning.
3. Bring all to a very low simmer, whack the lid on and leave to cook for two hours.
4. Taste test time – add a bit more seasoning if necessary, together with a bit more wine and/or stock, depending upon the consistency you’re after.
5. Simmer for a further hour until the chops are easily pierced with a sharp knife. Meat should be close to falling off the bone. Serves 6.
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After combining her internationally successful acting career with scriptwriting for television and radio, in the ’90s Judy Nunn decided to turn her hand to prose. Her first three novels, The Glitter Game, Centre Stage and Araluen, set in the worlds of television, theatre and film, became instant bestsellers. She has since developed a love of writing Australian historically based fiction including Kal, Beneath the Southern Cross, Khaki Town and Showtime! She has now sold over one million books in Australia alone.
The Long Weekend, by Judy Nunn, Penguin