Irish Stew

There are few finer things in life than a good Irish stew!  In the cold of winter a good Irish stew really hits the spot with it's rich flavours and warmth.

Ingredients
1 tbsp of olive oil, lard or similar
10 lamb or hogget shoulder chops
4 onions, roughly diced
6 cloves of garlic, crushed and finely diced
4 cups of good beef stock
2 Tbsps of soy sauce
2 Tbsps of Worcestershire sauce
2 Tbsps of good tomato relish (homemade is best)
2 cups of chopped tomatoes or similar (1 can of condensed tomato soup or 1 can of savoury tomatoes works well)
4 carrots, diced
4 potatoes, diced
3 stalks of celery, diced - some leaves add extra flavour
1 cup of peas (more if you like lots of peas)
1 tsp of mixed, dried herbs or finely diced fresh chives
1 tsp of salt
1 tsp ground black pepper   
1/4 cup of cornflour and 1/2 cup of water (to thicken if necessary)

Directions
In a good sized electric wok or large, deep frying pan (or you can use a large saucepan) brown the chops on both sides for about 5 minutes. 

Remove the chops, add the onions and garlic and saute for 5 minutes on a medium heat. 

Add the beef stock, tomato relish, chopped tomatoes, Worcestershire sauce, soy sauce, herbs and salt and pepper, then stir and bring to the boil. Return the chops to the pan.  Turn down to a simmer for 30 minutes. 

After 30 minutes add the carrots and potatoes, bring back to the boil and then turn down to simmer for another 30 minutes.  

Add celery and peas and simmer for another 20 -30 minutes.

Mix the cornflour and water to a paste if you think the stew needs thickening and add it into the stew, stirring briskly so it doesn't stick to the bottom.  Turn the heat back for a few minutes.

During cooking add more liquid as necessary or to achieve the consistency you prefer.

If you prefer you can leave the potatoes out of the stew and serve it with hot mashed potatoes.  

Serve with vegetables and enjoy!