Slow Cooker Lamb Neck Stew
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Cheap but oh so delicious! This easy slow cooker lamb neck stew can be made with lamb neck chops or forequarter chops.
Lamb’s neck. Tastier than it sounds. As cheap as you would imagine.
Slow-cooked lamb neck chops, otherwise known as Naravin of Lamb, are one of my all-time favourite winter comfort food recipes. So inexpensive, yet hearty and delicious.
Not only is this recipe inexpensive, but it is so easy to cook in the slow cooker.
Cook it on the bone, and the meat just falls off the bone after hours of cooking, and you get all that good marrow and gelatin from the bones.
The downside to using lamb neck chops is there are small bones. If you’re serving this to kids, you will want to make sure all the little bones are picked out so the kids don’t choke. You can reduce the number of bones by using forequarter lamb chops – not quite as inexpensive, but fewer small bones (but still some) to worry about.
Or you can use boneless shoulder. Again, not as cheap, but no bones to worry about.
Where to buy Lamb Neck Chops
Lamb neck chops used to be readily available at the supermarket, but because of their waning popularity, it can be hard to find them.
You can buy lamb neck chops at the butcher, but be sure to ask for the chops. I once asked for lamb’s neck and got the whole neck!
I’m not usually squeamish, but slicing it into chops wasn’t the most fun I’ve ever had, and it’s hard to cut through bone (and can be dangerous) if you don’t have the right knives.
Can’t find lamb necks? Substitute with lamb forequarter chops. They are not as inexpensive but work very well in this dish. The other benefit of forequarter chops is there are fewer bones.
What to Serve with Lamb Neck Chop Stew
If you add vegetables like beans (pictured) and potatoes to this dish, you can eat it as a one-pot meal; no sides are required to make this a complete meal.
But if you want, you can serve some steamed greens on the side or serve with a green salad or some crusty bread and butter.
Another option is to also leave out the potatoes and serve with a side of creamy mashed potato.
Looking for more super frugal meals? Try Bone and Barley Broth or Sausage and Bean Stew.
Cooking Lamb Neck Stew – Frequently Asked Questions
Below are some commonly asked questions about cooking lamb neck stew in the slow cooker.
You don’t have to brown the lamb, but doing so adds another layer of flavour that makes the dish richer. Side by side, the flavour difference isn’t big, so if you’re short on time, you can skip the browning.
Cook for four hours on high or eight hours on low.
This was originally a stove-top recipe I learned way back in school home economics class, which I converted to the slow cooker. Follow the recipe up to step three, but instead of putting the browned meat in the slow cooker, put it on a plate and return it to the pot with the stock in step three. Bring to a boil and then simmer gently for about 1 hour. Add the potatoes and then simmer for 30 minutes or until the potatoes are cooked through. Add the beans in the last 10 minutes or serve them o the side.
Slow Cooker Lamb Neck Stew
This underutilised piece of meat is tastier than it sounds and very cheap.
Ingredients
- 1 kg lamb neck chops
- 2 carrot, roughly cut
- 1 onion, diced
- 2 Tbsp flour
- 2 Tbsp tomato paste
- 1 litre of stock
- 1 bouquet garni
- 1 clove of garlic, crushed
- 5 small potatoes, roughly chopped
- 1 cup sliced green beans (fresh or frozen), optional
- salt and pepper to taste
- parsley to garnish
Instructions
- Brown lamb chops quickly, a couple at a time, in a pan with a little hot oil. Place in the slow cooker.
- Reduce the heat and lightly brown the onion and carrots. Sprinkle flour over onion and cook for a minute, stirring, then add the tomato paste and cook, stirring for a further minute to take off the raw tomato taste.
- Add enough stock to make a sauce and scrape up any brown bits on the bottom of the pan. Pour the onion mixture into the slow cooker.
- Add enough stock to cover the lamb chops, then add the crushed garlic and bouquet garni and give everything a good stir.
- Cook on high for two hours before adding the potatoes and turning the cooker to low. Continue cooking for six hours or until vegetables are cooked through.
- If adding green beans, add them with about 30 minutes to go to allow them to cook through.
- At this point, you can remove the bones if you like, and chop up the meat. The bones are mostly large and easy to remove and the meat tends to just fall off them. Season to taste and serve with steamed greens and a sprinkling of chopped parsley.
- Alternatively, throw the potatoes in at the beginning of the cooking time and cook on low for eight hours or until tender (or you are ready). They will be a bit mushier, but there's less fuss.
Notes
There may be small bones left in the stew, so take care when feeding to children, as the bones can be a choking hazard. Use boneless shoulder (not as cheap) as a bone-free alternative.
You can serve greens on the side, add some green beans or peas in the last 30 minutes or so of cooking, or toss through some lightly steamed veg at the end of cooking.
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
6Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 709Total Fat: 38gSaturated Fat: 15gTrans Fat: 2gUnsaturated Fat: 13gCholesterol: 198mgSodium: 469mgCarbohydrates: 37gFiber: 4gSugar: 6gProtein: 56g
Nutritional information is calculated automatically using the Nutritionix database. Nutrition information can vary for a recipe based on factors such as precision of measurements, brands, ingredient freshness, serving size or the source of nutrition data. We strive to keep the information as accurate as possible but make no warranties regarding its accuracy. We encourage readers to make their own calculations based on the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
The ingredients list says “tomato puree”, but the directions say “tomato paste”. Which is it?
Appologies it’s tomato paste.
Hi Melissa,
Is there a way to stop the small bones ending up in the slow cooker. I love this cut of meat, but last time I used it, I couldn’t serve it to the kids, and I would love to give it another try. Would appreciate any tips. TIA. I am a big fan of your website.
Hi Sarah :)
Good question. If I remember correctly, we just picked through our kid’s plates with our fingers first, lol. Another option is to use forequarter chops until they get older pick individual pieces out of the stew and then strain some sauce over the top.
When ordering the lamb neck from your butcher ask the butcher to use a saw to cut up the neck and not use a cleaver as this causes the bones to splinter.
Good tip, thanks.