On the heat. Mild

Ingredients

• 1 kg lamb neck bones
• 1 kg lamb neck slices
• 3 onions, quartered
• 4 carrots · 3 parsnips · 1 swede
• 4 potatoes, in large chunks
• 3 leeks, sliced — reserve half for the end
• 2 bay leaves · thyme · parsley stalks
• 3 l water · salt, plenty of white pepper
• Caerphilly or a crumbly white cheese, and bread

Method

1. Bones and neck slices into the water with the onions and herbs. Bring up slowly, skim carefully, then simmer 2 hours.
2. Cool completely and refrigerate overnight. Lift the set fat off the top the next day — this is the traditional method and it makes a far cleaner cawl.
3. Pull the meat off the bones and return it to the pot.
4. Reheat, add the carrots, parsnips and swede, and simmer 25 minutes.
5. Potatoes and half the leeks in for 20 minutes more.
6. The reserved raw leeks in for the final 3 minutes only, so they stay green and sharp. Serve the broth first with bread and cheese, then the meat and vegetables as a second course.

Cook's note. Two courses from one pot — exactly the same structure as the Persian abgoosht on the other side of the book. Two shepherd cultures, four thousand kilometres apart, arriving at the same answer.

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