I tried to make it with veal stock. Which is a stupid thing to do on several fronts: a) this is LAMB stew b) I've never made veal stock.
I roasted the veal bones, before adding them to a pan with vegetables (celery, carrot, onion) and herbs (bay, thyme).
It smelled like hooves.
I refused to add tomato paste, or to roast the vegetables first before adding to the stock pot. This was all foolish.
I let it boil, then simmered for 3 hours.
It wasn't long enough. It still tasted of hooves.
So next time I will add tomato paste, roast vegetables, and simmer for at least 8 hours.
Also the lamb cut wasn't good (Sainsbury's not Waitrose). I won't stray again for meat - its just not worth the lower quality.
I also made the brown bread. From 100% wholemeal flour. That wasn't a brilliant idea either. It was very dense. Admittedly it is tasty - but the texture is too dense. A good experiment, but several things to learn: don't use 100% wholemeal flour, let it prove twice before shaping.
