Jerusalem Lamb Stew with Potatoes and Bay Leaves with homemade vegetable stock

👨‍🍳 Method

To assemble

1. 1
   Heat the oil in a wide pot and brown the meat on all sides. Remove to a plate.

   StoveWide, shallow pot

   💡Brown the meat in batches, without crowding: in a crowded pot it stews in its own juices instead of searing.

   💡What you brown (meat, patties, schnitzel) goes into hot oil: in lukewarm oil it soaks it up and comes out greasy. For onion and garlic that you soften, oil heated over medium or low heat is enough; do not wait for it to smoke.
2. 2
   Add the onion to the oil left in the wide pot and fry 5 minutes, stirring now and then, until the onion is soft and translucent and starts to turn golden at the edges. If it browns too fast, lower the heat.

   StoveWide, shallow pot

   💡Add by cooking time: what needs long (onion, carrot, meat) goes in first, and what burns fast (garlic, dry spices) goes in last, only until fragrant.
3. 3
   Add the garlic and fry 1 minute, just until fragrant. Don't let the garlic brown.

   Stove

   💡Garlic burns quickly and turns bitter. Add it only after the onion has softened, over medium heat, and add the next ingredient as soon as it smells fragrant.
4. 4
   Add the cumin, turmeric and baharat and fry 30 seconds, until fragrant.

   Stove
5. 5
   Put the onion, carrot, celery, parsley, garlic, bay leaves and thyme in a large pot with the cold water.

   Large pot

   💡Start with cold water: the vegetables release their flavor slowly as the water heats up.
6. 6
   Bring to a boil over high heat and skim off the foam.

   Stove
7. 7
   Turn down to medium-low heat and simmer uncovered 30–45 minutes.

   Stove

   💡A gentle simmer, not a boil: a hard boil dries the food out and clouds it, a slow simmer cooks it evenly.
8. 8
   Strain the stock through a fine sieve.

   Fine sieve
9. 9
   Add the tomatoes, stock and bay leaves and bring to a boil.

   Stove
10. 10
    Return the meat to the pot and season with salt and black pepper.
11. 11
    Turn down to low, cover and simmer 50 minutes, until the meat soft.

    StoveLid
12. 12
    Add the carrot and potatoes and cook another 25 minutes, until the vegetable is tender and the sauce thickens.

    Stove
13. 13
    Serve with the parsley.