La Madeleine Lamb Stew is a delicious and hearty meal. Enjoy a bowl of tender lamb, tomatoes, and vegetables for dinner.
La Madeleine lamb stew is tender lamb meat mixed together with carrots, potatoes, onion, and green peas. This has the perfect meat and vegetable flavor you will love. You do not want to miss this French lamb stew.          Â
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Where Does this Recipe Come From?
This amazing lamb stew recipe comes from the wonderful kitchen of La Madeleine. Now, with this great recipe, you can make this flavorful lamb stew at home in your own kitchen.
How to Make French Lamb Stew
Begin by cooking the cubed lamb stew meat in oil for only 3-4 minutes. Then add in the garlic, onion, bouquet garni, tomato, salt, and pepper to the lamb meat and let it cook for about 5 minutes.
Once that is done, add in the water and let it come to a boil. When it begins to boil, reduce the heat and let it simmer for 45 minutes and let the flavors meld.
Then, add in the carrots and let it cook for another 5 minutes. After 5 minutes, add in the potatoes and let everything cook for another 30 minutes.
When the 30 minutes is up, add in the roux and peas and let them warm up, then feel free to serve it hot!
What Cut of Lamb Should You Use?
For this lamb stew recipe, you will want to use lamb shoulder or leg. The shoulder is a little fatter cut, so you will want to trim off the excess fat. However, the lamb shank is fairly lean so you won’t have much fat to remove.Â
Both the shoulder and leg produce a very tender meat that will melt in your mouth once cooked with all of the delicious spices.
Is Lamb Healthier Than Beef?
Meat from lamb does tend to be more grass-fed, which will aid in the meat having more omega-3’s and a higher content of vitamins such as zinc, vitamin B, iron, and more!
However, lamb can also be higher in saturated fat, which is not good for your cholesterol levels as it can elevate your bad cholesterol.
So, depending on how you look at it, lamb can be better or beef can be better for you.
Does Lamb Get Tougher the Longer You Cook it?
For most meats the longer you cook it (over the stove top in a simmer) the more tender it will get. The same can be said for lamb, however you will want to make sure that you braise the meat first!
By braising the meat in hot oil before simmer, you will be able to lock in the flavors and moisture you need to get to that tenderness you are looking for. Once the meat has been seared on the outside, simmering the meat over low heat for long periods of time will produce a very tender piece of lamb.
Want to Prep The Lamb Stew Recipe in Advance?
Cooking lamb stew can be quite a long process. If you are looking to do a portion ahead of time here are a few tips to prepare this lamb stew as much as you can in advance.
- Cook the Lamb Cubes in Advance
You can cook the lamb chunks in the oil in advance and sear them the day before. Just make sure to let them cool completely and store them in an airtight container in the fridge. - Cut Up Your Veggies
By cutting up the vegetables in advance, you’d be surprised how much time you can save. Since they are already prepared, all you have to do is throw them in once you get to that part of the recipe. - Use a Slow Cook
If you have the meat seared ahead of time, you can throw everything in a slow cooker and let it cook on low for 8 hours and you will have a delicious meal ready for you when you get home!
How to Store Lamb Stew
Once the stew is done and has cooled down completely, pour it into an airtight container and store it in the fridge for up to 5 days.
Or, if you’d like, you can pour this into a freezer-safe container or ziplock bag, and store it in the freezer for up to 3 months.
Lamb Stew Recipe Ingredients
Here’s a list of what you need:
- Boneless lamb shoulder
- Extra virgin olive oil
- Chopped tomatoes
- Bouquet garni (fresh parsley, thyme, and bay leaf tied together)
- Garlic
- Onion – pearl onions would be a nice substitute
- Carrots
- Potatoes
- Green peas
- All-purpose flour
- Unsalted butter
- Salt
- Ground black pepper
How to Make Lamb Stew
- Cut the lamb into bite-sized pieces.
- Heat oil in a large pot or dutch oven over medium-high heat.
- Add the lamb pieces and cook the meat until browned, about 3 to 4 minutes.
- Add garlic, onion, bouquet garni, tomatoes, salt, and pepper to the browned lamb.
- Stir and cook for 5 minutes.Â
- Add water, bring to boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 45 minutes.Â
- Add carrots, stir, and cook for 5 minutes.
- Add potatoes, stir, and cook for 30 minutes.
- Melt butter in a small pan and add flour. Cook for 4 minutes to make a roux.
- Add roux and peas to the stew. Stir to combine.
- Cook for a few minutes, until the stew has thickened.
- Remove and discard the bouquet garni and serve.
Love homemade stew and soup? Try these recipes!
- Autumn Squash Soup
- Cheddar Cheese Soup
- Creamy Chicken Tortellini Soup
- Easy Instant Pot Beef Stew
- Homemade Potato Soup
- Olive Garden Tuscan Soup
- Panera Bread Broccoli Cheddar Soup
- Sausage Lentil Soup
- She Crab Soup
- Southwest Chicken Soup
More La Madeleine Copycat Recipes
Check out more of my easy soup recipes and the best copycat restaurant recipes here on CopyKat!
Lamb Stew
Ingredients
- 3 pounds lamb meat (shoulder or lamb leg cut in medium cubes)
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 3 teaspoons minced garlic
- 1 cup chopped onion
- 1 bouquet garni (parsley, thyme and bay leaf tied together)
- 4 cups chopped tomatoes
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1/2 pound carrots
- 2 pounds potatoes
- 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 pound green peas fresh and shelled
Instructions
- Cut the lamb meat into bite-sized pieces.
- Heat oil in a large pot over medium-high heat.
- Add the lamb pieces to very hot oil stirring once or twice.
- Let the meat brown for 3 to 4 minutes.
- Add garlic, onion, bouquet garni, tomatoes, salt, and pepper to the lamb base.
- Stir and cook for 5 minutes.
- Add 1 quart of water, bring to boil, then reduce heat to simmer for 45 minutes.
- Peel and cut carrots and potatoes into bite-sized pieces.
- Add carrots, stir, and cook for 5 minutes.
- Add potatoes, stir, and cook for 30 minutes.
- Melt butter in a small pan and add flour. Cook for 4 minutes, stirring constantly, to make a light roux.
- Add roux and peas to the stew. Stir to combine.
- Cook for a few minutes, until the stew has thickened.
- Remove the bouquet garni and serve.
Notes
- Instead of using water, you may want to swap it with a like , , chicken stock, or even if you have any on hand.
- I recommend serving the stew with some fresh crusty bread.Â
Karen
Love this recipe and have had it many times over the years. I recommend using the beef broth (Zoup) instead of just water to knock down some of the gamey taste of the lamb.
Stephanie Manley
That’s a great tip! Much appreciated.
Liz Nelson
This sounds really good! I will try it soon.