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Scotch broth

Scotch broth is a hearty winter soup that I am sure you will enjoy. Mutton has been replaced by lamb and the vegetables are progressively added to maintain their shape and texture. The ‘greens’ are added closed to the end to maintain their colour. You’ll note that neither the lamb nor the vegetables are sautéed or sweated – everything is simmered. 
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Course: Soup
Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients
  

Ingredients for 5 litres:
  • 1 cup pearl barley soaked in 3cups of cold water for 6 – 8 hours
  • 1200 g boneless lamb shoulder or 900g boneless lamb leg
  • 2 litres vegetable stock
  • 2 bay leaf
  • Seasoning
  • 2 sprigs of thyme
  • 1 Swede or turnip about 250g, peeled, 1 cm dice
  • 250 g carrots peeled, 1cm dice
  • 650 g potato peeled, 1cm dice
  • 1 large leek trimmed, halved, washed, green and white separated
  • 2 celery stalks trimmed, peeled, 1 cm dice.
  • ¼ of a Savoy cabbage about 400g, cored, 1cm dice.
  • 1/3 cup curly parsley leaf rinsed, pat dried, roughly chopped (1/3 cup finished)
  • Salt and Pepper
  • Crusty bread to serve

Equipment

  • One sizable saucepan is all you will need for this recipe.

Method
 

  1. Soak the barley, preferably the night before.
  2. Prepare vegetables
  3. Place the lamb, stock, bay leaves and thyme in your saucepan. Slowly bring it to the boil before turning it down to simmer for one hour
  4. Gently skim the scum from the surface of the soup and discard the scum.
  5. Add the Swede, carrot and the white of leek. Continue simmering for a further hour
  6. Add a little water to compensate the evaporation.
  7. Add the barley and any of the water the barley hasn’t soaked up.
  8. Add the potato. Continue simmering for another 15 minutes
  9. Take out and discard the bay leaf and thyme
  10. The meat should be tender enough to take out of the soup. Cut the meat into a one cm dice, discarding any sinew or excess fat. Add the diced meat back into the soup.
  11. Add the green leek, celery and cabbage to the soup. Simmer for a further 15 minutes
  12. Gently skim the surface of fat. There should be more fat if you are using lamb shoulder. Alternatively carefully use some absorbent kitchen paper to soak it up
  13. Add the parsley and serve

Notes

Alternatively you could use lamb shanks, just allow for the bone’s weight.
I used boneless lamb leg. If you are using other cuts you will need to extend your cooking time by perhaps one hour before you add the carrot and Swede.
Turnip is another vegetable you could use as well as or instead of Swede
Maybe avoid parsnip
Kumara would make it more ‘down under ‘style. Add that with the potatoes.