Stovies
A traditional Scottish recipe
Last night we had a nice bit of Roast Lamb so today I need to use up the little bit of meat that we didn't use yesterday. There's not a lot of it but that's okay for what I have in mind which is Stovies, also known as Stoved Potatoes.
Originally this was a way of using up Sunday dinner left-overs in Scotland. It uses the ends of the roast joint, surplus potatoes and other veg and gravy along with cheap ingredients to extend a small piece of meat. During the Second World War the Ministry of Food promoted this recipe as a way of using corn beef and it is also made, in some places, with sausage.
Ingredients
Left over roast beef or lamb
Potatoes ( a good helping per person - this is the main ingredient)
Onions (two large ones or equivalent if feeding 3 or 4)
Dripping
Left over gravy, left over veg (not essential to the recipe)
Method
Put a heavy bottomed pan on a low heat and add 1-2 tablespoons of dripping (you can use lard or vegetable oil but dripping is best). Halve and slice the onions and put them on to sweat down. Peel or wash and then chop your potatoes into 1 inch cubes or thereabouts and put them in a pan of salted water and bring to the boil.
When the onions have softened and coloured add your meat, cut into small pieces, to the pan and stir. Take the potatoes off the heat when they have boiled for 5-10 minutes and still have a bit of bite to them (they shouldn't be cooked all the way through yet), drain and add them to the onions and meat. Add the gravy and any veg if you have them. if you haven't any gravy add a little stock. Cover and leave on a low heat, checking periodically that the stovies don't go dry. The potatoes should break up a bit and turn mushy at the edges while still leaving good sized solid chunks.
Originally this was a way of using up Sunday dinner left-overs in Scotland. It uses the ends of the roast joint, surplus potatoes and other veg and gravy along with cheap ingredients to extend a small piece of meat. During the Second World War the Ministry of Food promoted this recipe as a way of using corn beef and it is also made, in some places, with sausage.
Ingredients
Left over roast beef or lamb
Potatoes ( a good helping per person - this is the main ingredient)
Onions (two large ones or equivalent if feeding 3 or 4)
Dripping
Left over gravy, left over veg (not essential to the recipe)
Method
Put a heavy bottomed pan on a low heat and add 1-2 tablespoons of dripping (you can use lard or vegetable oil but dripping is best). Halve and slice the onions and put them on to sweat down. Peel or wash and then chop your potatoes into 1 inch cubes or thereabouts and put them in a pan of salted water and bring to the boil.
When the onions have softened and coloured add your meat, cut into small pieces, to the pan and stir. Take the potatoes off the heat when they have boiled for 5-10 minutes and still have a bit of bite to them (they shouldn't be cooked all the way through yet), drain and add them to the onions and meat. Add the gravy and any veg if you have them. if you haven't any gravy add a little stock. Cover and leave on a low heat, checking periodically that the stovies don't go dry. The potatoes should break up a bit and turn mushy at the edges while still leaving good sized solid chunks.
Season with a salt and a lot of pepper. I like to add a dash of Worcester sauce too. Serve.
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