Cawl & Welsh Potato Cake recipe

With Sue here “W” on our Around The World for £4 gig was always going to be Wales. So Cawl & Welsh Potato Cake it was! The Lamb neck was actually more likely to have been Mutton neck from our friendly local Continental shop. But as they generally throw it out it cost us the grand sum of £0.70 to cover the cost of the bag….

Ingredients (Cawl):-

1 Onion
1 kg lamb neck , bone in, cut into 5cm chunks if you can. If not you can strip the meat once it’s cooked. (Buster enjoyed the bone!)
1 kg Swede
2 Carrots
2 Parsnips
500g Maris Piper potatoes
1 1/2 large Leeks
Mature Caerphilly cheese , to serve. (Or a similar crumbly white cheese)
2 Stock Cube dissolved in 500ml of water
Plenty of Salt & Pepper

Method:-

(1) Pour 2 litres of water into a large pan with 2 teaspoons of salt, then bring to the boil over a high heat. Peel and add the whole Onion, along with the Lamb.
(2) Bring back to the boil. Simmer on a medium heat for 10 to 15 minutes, or until the Lamb is cooked through.
(3) Using a slotted spoon, remove the Lamb to a plate and leave until cool enough to handle.
(4) While it’s cooling, peel the Swede, chop into 1cm chunks, and add to the pan to get a head start. Peel the Carrots and Parsnips, slice at a slight angle 1cm thick, and drop them into the pan. Now peel the Potatoes and cut into 4cm chunks. Add the Stock to the pan.
(5) Strip all the Lamb meat from the bone, and return the meat to the pan with the Potatoes. Bring back to the boil, then simmer it all for 15 to 20 minutes, or until almost tender, while you wash the Leeks and cut them into 1cm-thick slices.
(6) Stir the leeks into the pan, bring to the boil again, then simmer for 10 minutes with the lid on, or until tender. Taste and season as required.
(7) Ladle into serving bowls and serve with lots of black Pepper, a wedge of mature Caerphilly cheese and a slice of  bread and buitter (Home made Gluten free in our case)  for dunking.

Ingredients (Welsh Potato Cakes):-

1 Onion
½ a Leek
1 very large Potato
Oil and Margarine to fry
Salt & ground Black Pepper
Caerphilly cheese, grated

Method:-

(1) Slice the Onions, Leeks and Potatoes.
(2) Fry the Onions and Leeks together
(3) Fry the Potatoes separately
(4) Layer Potatoes, then Onions and Leeks. Sprinkle with grated Cheese Salt and Pepper.
(5) Repeat the layers ending with Cheese on the top.
(6) Place in the oven at 180c for about 40 minutes until browned and crispy on the top.