Indian Spiced Cawl

I’m so excited that it’s soup season again!  Not only is it the perfect meal to come home to when you’ve been out in the cold, but it’s also so easy – whether you get it out of a tin or cook it from scratch.  And when it gets cold enough here in Wales we don’t sip soup, we slurp Cawl.  In case you didn’t know, Cawl is a Welsh soup traditionally made with lamb and whatever root vegetables happen to be lying around in your cupboard (the word “Cawl” can also mean to make a mess of something).   For this version I’ve spiced things up a bit; I’ve kept the base recipe traditional, but have flavoured the lamb and stock with some Indian spices and fresh coriander.  It’s all served up with some toasted naan bread – yum!

Indian Spiced Cawl (serves 4)

Ingredients

• Neck of Welsh Lamb
• ½ a white onion roughly chopped
• 1 echalion/banana shallot roughly chopped
• 3 medium potatoes roughly chopped into chunks
• 1 large parsnip sliced
• 1 leek sliced
• 1 tbsp vegetable oil
• ½ tsp cinnamon
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 tsp garam masala
• 2 tsp cumin
• 2 tsp turmeric
• 1tsp ground ginger
• 1 tsp curry powder
• 1 tsp red chilli flakes
• Handful of chopped fresh coriander

1. Place the lamb in a large saucepan and cover with water. Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for 2 to 3 hours.  Skim off the fat, then leave to cool overnight.
2. Heat the vegetable oil in a deep pan and fry off the onions with the cinnamon.
3. Slice the lamb off the bone and cut into rough chunks, then add to the pan along with the rest of the spices (set aside the water – that makes up the soup stock). Coat the lamb with the spices and leave to fry for three minutes.
4. Add the potato and parsnip, then stir in the stock. Bring to the boil, then turn down heat and leave to simmer for an hour.
5. When ready to serve, add the chopped coriander. Serve with warm naan bread.

Have a great weekend everyone! 🙂