Of all the Irish traditional main dishes, lamb stew is possibly one of the ones most constantly made... and possibly also one of the most contentious. (Please note that not many people here call it Irish stew: it seems a little redundant, since this is not only where it comes from, but where it's being made...)

The problem is, of course, that everybody's Mom makes the best one. Changing recipes from the one that's been passed down in your family for decades or indeed centuries can be a cause of serious friction at home. Serious discussion can break out over what cut of lamb to use...how much water...whether the potatoes are peeled or not.

And there's another far bigger problem surrounding lamb stew in this island: a faultline of culinary thought that runs straight through all strata of society, south and north, and apparently cannot be reconciled. It's the eternal question: carrots or no carrots? EuroCuisineLady once had to sit in EuroCuisineGuy's Mum's sitting room and listen to Mum and her elderly sister going at the Carrot Question, each trying to be polite to the other, each failing badly because neither could deal with the complete irrationality of the other's stance. It got ugly. And since there's no accepted authority to quote, the two sides of the argument continue to refuse to grant one another parity of esteem whenever the subject comes up. Even supermarket versions have to be clearly labeled as "Contains Carrots" or "No Carrots." EuroCuisineLady is afraid that it may take another few generations yet to sort this one out and achieve some kind of consensus.

Meanwhile, our recipe comes down on the No Carrots side (which does seem to have a slight edge on the Carrots side). In fact, like the oldest Irish lamb stew recipes, it contains no vegetables except onions, potatoes, and a few herbs. All the rest is basic seasonings -- salt and pepper and those herbs -- and lamb. In a dish of such pristine simplicity, you must concentrate on getting the best lamb you can find: it will carry the dish.

Ingredients:

• 1.5 kg / 3 pounds best end of neck of lamb (on the bone if you prefer it that way: otherwise removed from the bone and cut into large chunks)
• 900g / 2 pounds floury potatoes, peeled and sliced
• 900g / 2 pounds of onions, peeled and sliced
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 3 cloves garlic, crushed
• 1 large bouquet garni, including celery tops if possible
• 12 small new potatoes (you can peel these if you like, but leaving the skins on is OK too)
• 12 small onions (around ping-pong ball size)
• Chopped parsley

First layer, onions / potatoes

Meat, then the bouquet garni...

Final layer with seasoning

This recipe can be done either on the stovetop or in the oven. If in the oven, preheat the oven to 150° C / 300° F.

In a large heavy pot, place one third of the sliced onions and the sliced potatoes. Place half the lamb on this layer: season it with salt and pepper. Add half the remaining onions and the sliced potatoes.

Season again and add the garlic, the bouquet garni, and the rest of the meat. Finish with a layer of the sliced onions and potatoes, and season with more salt and pepper.

Add water to the pot until it just covers the meat and vegetables. Bring to the boil and then cover with waxed paper and a lid. Cook slowly on the stovetop or in the oven for an hour.

While this stage of the cooking is going on, peel the small onions and (if you want to) the new potatoes.

Remove the stew from the oven or take it off the heat after an hours. The potatoes will be falling apart... which is what you want. Use a potato masher to mash most of them up, as their purpose in the stew is to thicken the gravy. Add the new potatoes and whole small onions to the stew.

If you've left your meat on the bone, you can remove it at this point -- it should be cooked through -- and set it aside: when the stew is done you can return the meat to the pot just before serving. If the stew is too thick for you, add a little water. Cover the pot again and cook for another hour.

Then if you've removed meat on the bone, put it back in and let it heat through. Serve in hot bowls garnished with parsley. Soda bread on the side works really well to soak up the gravy.