Gwyneth Parry, at home in Beaumaris, Anglesey (North Wales)
“Lobscows is a traditional Welsh hearty dish made with meat and any vegetables available. There are many versions of this recipe, often handed down through the family and vary from town to town throughout Wales. The dish is also known as ‘cawl’ in some areas of the country.
It is often better the day after, when all the flavours have developed. It is sometimes served in a wooden bowl and eaten with a wooden spoon with chunks of homemade bread and Welsh cheese. My grandmother (‘Nain’ in Welsh) and granddad (‘Taid’) used to leave a pot on the stove and we would help ourselves after coming home from school.
Here I have made a slight variation of it, by serving with a very traditional welsh ingredient - Laverbread, which my grandmother used to love. Laverbread is stewed seaweed which is served with cockles and bacon for breakfast. It really enriches the ‘lobscows’ here and adds depth and vibrancy to the dish.”
Chef Tomos Parry, UK
Feeds 4-5
Ingredients
50ml vegetable oil
800g neck of Welsh mutton fillet, cut into rough 2cm cubes
1 leek, cut into 1 ½ cm pieces
1 large onion, peedled
3 carrots, peeled and roughly chopped
500g medium potatoes, peeled and quartered
200g peas (fresh or frozen)
3 sprigs thyme
2 litres chicken or lamb stock
50g pearl barley
50g laverbread
25g parsley, finely chopped
Method
Heat the vegetable oil in a heavy-bottomed frying pan, season the meat with salt and pepper and fry until nicely coloured (I would chargrill if possible).
Add the rest of the ingredients except the laverbread and parsley, bring to the boil, lightly season with salt and pepper and simmer gently for 2-2½ hours until the meat is tender.
When finished, leave to rest (my mother thinks it’s actually better the next day). Spoon a teaspoon of laverbread into each portion and stir in the parsley.