This Lancashire Lamb Hot Pot is a traditional northern English dish consisting of lamb and vegetables in a luscious gravy and topped with sliced potatoes. A wholesome and flavorful family meal perfect for a cold day!
After convincing my English husband to move to back to Texas with me I knew I was going to have to ramp up my British culinary repertoire. Luckily, despite the somewhat unfortunate reputation, British food is generally pretty fantastic!
This Lancashire Lamb Hot Pot is a perfect example of how good British food can be! Succulent lamb and veggies slow cooked in a rich gravy until tender and topped with golden sliced potatoes. I mean, come on! No wonder these things are the pride of Lancashire!
This meal is perfect for a lazy weekend in the fall or winter. It's warming, hearty and one of my favorites. Hope you enjoy!
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Check out other British & Irish Inspired Recipes from The Jam Jar Kitchen!
If you like this Lamb Hot Pot recipe you will also love my other British and Irish recipes. Here are some of my favorites:
Irish Apple Crumble with Whiskey Cream
Seared Salmon with Parsley Sauce
Equipment
- Cast Iron Skillet or other comparable baking dish: While it may not be the most traditional method, I love using my 10 inch Le Creuset Cast Iron Skillet for this recipe as it basically make this a one pot meal! You could also use a skillet to sear the meat and then just transfer to a casserole dish.
- Cutting board and sharp knife
- Mandolin (optional): This is for slicing the potatoes. I like this Oxo Handheld Mandolin but you can also just use a sharp knife and cut the potatoes as evenly as possible.
- Cheese Grater (optional): I prefer freshly shredded cheese but you can buy pre-shredded for this recipe if you prefer.
- Slotted spoon or tongs
- Pastry or basting brush (optional): I recommend these Silicon brushes from Amazon.
- Measuring cups and spoons
Ingredients
- Lamb stew meat: I like to buy precut stew meat just to make things easier. You can also purchase lamb neck, lamb shoulder or even leg of lamb and then cut into 1-2 inch squares.
- Onion: I like yellow onion for the recipe. White or even red will work as well.
- Carrots: I use 4 medium carrots for this recipe.
- Worcestershire sauce
- Fresh thyme: If you don't have fresh thyme dried thyme will also work. Just cut the amount by about half.
- Flour
- Beef broth: Homemade or store bought both work. In a pinch you can use chicken brother or even vegetable broth.
- Frozen peas: These are not necessarily traditional but I really like them. Feel free to leave out if you're not a pea person.
- Yukon gold potatoes: I think Yukon gold are the best kind of potatoes for hot pots. They are usually a good size, flavorful and roast beautifully. If you don't have any you can use another waxy potato of your preference.
- Butter: Salted or unsalted will work.
- Olive oil
- Salt & pepper
- White cheddar cheese (optional): This is not exactly traditional, though a lot of pubs are making hot pots with cheese on top recently. Feel free to leave off if you want but I think it adds great flavor and extra umptiousness.
Step by Step Instructions
Time needed: 2 hours and 25 minutes
How to make this Lancashire Lamb Hot Pot
- Preheat the oven to 325 and prep the vegetables and lamb.
Slice the potatoes, chop the onions and carrots.
If not using pre cut stew meat, cut the lamb into 1-2 inch cubes. Pat dry and season both sides with salt and pepper. - Sear the lamb.
Sear both sides of the lamb in batches so as not to overcrowd the pan.
- Sauté the veggies and make the gravy.
Cook the onions and carrots in the lamb drippings. Then add gravy ingredients, frozen peas and lamb.
- Add the sliced potatoes and bake.
Arrange the potatoes over the stew and brush or drizzle butter over the top.
Bake the lamb hot pot at 325 for an hour and a half, then turn the heat up to 375 for an additional 25-30 minutes. - Add cheese and broil (if desired)
- Remove from oven and allow to rest for 5-10 minutes. Serve and Enjoy!
Frequently Asked Questions
You can totally cube up your own stew meat at home. Ideally you'll want a fattier cut, such as lamb neck. Lamb shoulder also works great or even leg of lamb. Cut into 1-2 inch cubes and you'll be good to go!
Yes! I love using a cast iron skillet for that exact reason.
Yes, simply follow the instructions up until increasing the heat to 375. Then remove from the oven, allow to cool slightly and cover with foil.
When you are ready to cook simply take it out of the fridge about 30 minutes before baking and then bake at 375 for around 30-40 minutes.
Lancashire is the county in North West England where this dish is said to have originated sometime during the 19th century.
Yes. Searing the meat seals in the juices while cooking. It also adds a ton of flavor to the gravy.
Serving Suggestions
This is a pretty hearty meal on its own. I sometimes like serving it with a light salad or even some bread to soak up all those extra juices.
Like this recipe? Let me know by leaving a comment below !
Recipe
Lancashire Lamb Hotpot
Equipment
- Cast iron skillet or casserole dish
- Cutting board and knife
- Mandolin (optional)
- Slotted spoon or tongs
- Measuring cups and spoons
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 - 1.5 lb lamb stew meat
- 1 onion, diced
- 4 carrots, sliced into ½ inch circles
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 teaspoon fresh thyme
- ¼ cup all-purpose flour
- 2 cups beef broth
- ½ cup frozen peas
- 1 - 1.5 lb yukon gold potatoes, peeled and cut into roughly ¼th inch slices
- 2 tablespoon butter, melted
- fresh thyme
- salt & pepper
- ⅓ cup white cheddar cheese, crumbled or shredded optional
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.
- Remove lamb from fridge and season both sides with salt & pepper.
- Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in an oven safe casserole dish or cast iron skillet over medium high heat until hot and shimmering. In batches, so as not to overcrowd the lamb, sear one side of the meat undisturbed for 1-2 minutes until browned. Flip meat to the other side and sear for an additional 1-2 minutes until browned. Using a slotted spoon or tongs, remove the seared lamb (it will not be cooked through at this time) to a plate and set aside.
- Repeat the process until all of the stew meat has been browned. This will probably take about 2 batches. Set aside.
- In the pan with the lamb drippings, add the diced onion and sautee over medium to medium-high heat for about 3 minutes until slightly softened.
- Add in the carrots, Worcestershire sauce and 1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves. Stir to combine.
- Sprinkle in ¼th cup flour and cook over medium to medium-high heat for 1-2 minutes stirring constantly.
- Stream in beef broth, stirring constantly, and bring to a boil.
- Once a boil has been reached, season with salt and pepper and turn heat off (but leave the pan on the warm burner). Add in the seared lamb and juices and ½ cup of frozen peas. Stir to combine and remove from the heat.
- Arrange the potato slices on top of the meat and then use a pastry brush to brush on the melted butter. *Note* If you don't have a pastry brush you can just drizzle the butter over the potatoes.
- Season the top of the potatoes with salt, pepper and a little fresh thyme. Cover the pan with a lid or some foil and place in the oven.
- Bake the hotpot for 1.5 hours at 325 degrees F. Then remove the lid or foil, turn the heat up to 375 degrees F and cook for an additional 25-30 minutes to brown the outside of the potatoes.
- If desired, sprinkle some sharp white cheddar on top of the potatoes and place until the broiler for a minute or 2 until melted and golden.
- Let the hotpot set for about 5-10 minutes and then serve. The consistency is a bit thicker than a stew but thinner than a casserole. Enjoy!
Liz
This looks so amazing! I love that you used yukon gold potatoes, those are my favorite!
Freya
This looks so good, I think you replicated the original perfectly!
Amy
To be honest I have never heard of it either but quite similar to some of the stews I have had although I do love all the potatoes on top! It's getting cold here in Australia so I'm banking up all my nice warm comfort food recipes. Trying this one for sure!
Adriana
Lamb is a great option for comforting dishes like this. Never heard of this recipe before but I am excited to try it soon.
Addie
Total comfort food! Such a great way to cook lamb!
Jeannie
I love learning new recipes from different countries and how you will make it, this looks so good!
Emily Flint
This sounds amazing, I can't wait to try it!
Mama Maggie's Kitchen
Delish!! I could eat that today and tomorrow and the next day. lol.
Nicole
The ingredients used in this recipe complement each other so well. I learned to live lamb when I lived in England.
Kim Beaulieu
Such a great recipe with so much flavor. We loved it.