One of the Best Slow Cooker Cawl Recipes
Usually, you wouldn’t brown the lamb before cooking it. However, browning the meat first will help the flavor and texture by heaps when using a Crock Pot or other slow cooker. This is among the best lamb cawl recipes because it’s so easy to make but still has tons of flavor from the broth, meat, and vegetables simmering for hours. In this recipe, potatoes are left whole during the cooking process and cut up afterward. By preparing it this way, the potatoes won’t overcook if left in the cooker the entire time. You don’t have to worry about the additional step of adding them 1 – 2 hours before the rest of the ingredients are done.
Ingredients
- 1 kg/2.25lbs lamb shoulder bone-in
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 yellow onion peeled and diced
- 4 garlic cloves peeled and minced (or use a garlic press)
- 1 large leek sliced
- 5 medium potatoes peeled and left whole
- 3 carrots peeled and sliced into coins
- 1 swede rutabaga, peeled and chopped
- 1 bay leaf
- 48 oz vegetable stock
- Salt and pepper to taste
- small bunch of fresh parsley chopped
- bread and cheese if desired, for serving
Instructions
- Heat the olive oil over medium-high heat in a large saucepan. Add the lamb shoulder, left on the bone, and brown it on all sides.
- Transfer the browned meat to the slow cooker. Add the leeks and cook in the same pan where you browned the meat. Add a little more olive oil if necessary to prevent sticking. Stir the leeks occasionally until they become soft. Then, transfer them to the slow cooker.
- Add the rest of the ingredients to the crock pot and stir everything well.
- Place the lid on the slow cooker. Cook the cawl for 8 – 10 hours on low or 4 – 5 hours on high. (The meat should be very tender. The potatoes will be soft (but you don’t want them mushy) and start to break apart when stuck with a fork.)
- After the desired cooking time, open the lid and turn off the cooker.
- With a spoon, skim off the excess fat from the surface.
- Remove the bone from the lamb (the meat will fall right off) and break up the meat with a fork. Discard the bone.
- With a knife, break up the potatoes into rough pieces.
- Discard the bay leaf and stir the cawl gently. Serve in a bowl with a side of bread and cheese. Enjoy!
Notes
- Cook time: 8 – 10 hrs on low, 5 – 7 hrs on high
- If you prefer a thicker cawl, make a paste of oat flour and water and stir it in. You can also directly add a small amount of oats.
