Cawl
Ingredients
- 2 1/2 pounds lamb shoulder, bone-in – trimmed of excess fat, cut into large chunks
- 10 cups water
- 2 sprigs thyme
- 1 leaf bay
- 2 1/2 tsp kosher salt
- 1 tsp black pepper
- 8 ounces onion – cut into 1-inch chunks (~1.5 medium onions)
- 12 ounces carrot – peeled and cut into 1-inch chunks (~6 medium carrots)
- 16 ounces rutabaga (swede) – peeled and cut into 1-inch cubes (~1 medium rutabaga)
- 16 ounces potatoes, waxy (Yukon Gold) – peeled and cut into 1.5-inch chunks (~3 medium waxy potatos)
- 12 ounces leek – cleaned, halved lengthwise, sliced 0.5-inch thick (~3 medium leeks)
- 2 tbsp flat-leaf parsley – chopped (for garnish)
- crusty bread – for serving
- Caerphilly cheese – for serving
Instructions
- 1.
Trim excess surface fat from the lamb and cut into large chunks. Rinse and prep the vegetables as directed.
- 2.
Put the lamb and water in a large heavy pot and bring to a gentle simmer over medium heat. Skim foam, then add the thyme sprigs, bay leaf, 1.5 tsp kosher salt, and 0.5 tsp black pepper. Partially cover and simmer gently until the meat is very tender and the broth is flavorful, 1.5–2 hours.
- 3.
Lift the lamb out to a board. Strain the broth through a fine sieve back into the pot; discard the thyme and bay. Remove and discard bones, then cut the lamb into bite-size pieces and reserve. (At this point you can chill the broth and meat separately overnight for deeper flavor, then continue.)
- 4.
Return the clear broth to a simmer. Add the onion, carrots, and rutabaga. Simmer until just starting to soften, 18–22 minutes, until a knife meets slight resistance.
- 5.
Add the potatoes and leeks. Simmer until the potatoes are tender when pierced and the leeks are silky, 15–20 minutes. Stir the lamb pieces back in for the last 5 minutes to warm through. Season with the remaining 1 tsp kosher salt and 0.5 tsp black pepper, adjusting to taste.
- 6.
Ladle the cawl into warm bowls. Garnish with chopped parsley and serve hot with crusty bread and Caerphilly cheese.
Cawl is a comforting Welsh broth-stew built on tender meat and a clear, savory stock, finished with sweet leeks and chunky root vegetables like carrots, potatoes, and swede (rutabaga). The flavor is gentle and honest: lambiness rounded by long simmering, vegetables that stay distinct yet yielding, and a broth that is light enough to sip yet full of body. It is the kind of pot that warms from the inside out, typically eaten with good bread and a wedge of local cheese at the table.
Historically, cawl is considered a national dish of Wales, with roots as a farmhouse staple that made the most of mutton or lamb bones and winter stores. Families often cooked it over two days—stock on the first, vegetables and serving on the second—which deepened the broth and fit rural rhythms. Today it remains central to Welsh identity, frequently enjoyed on St. David’s Day and throughout the colder months, with countless local variations passed down through generations.