Cosy up for the last of the winter with this delicious pressure cooker lamb stew. It’s made with cubes of lamb leg for extra succulence, but you could just as easily use shoulder, lamb neck or even flank or ribs. It’s packed with vegetables and my top tip for thickening the gravy means that you don’t need to use any thickening agent.
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Lamb stew with vegetables
Let’s face it, lamb stew is one of the tastiest stews out there – you only have to try my recipe for South African lamb bredie to know what I’m talking about.
Last week, it was Easter, and of course, I had to make a leg of lamb for Easter Sunday lunch.
With only 2 of us at home, an entire leg of lamb is a bit of an extravagance. So I cut off half of the meat before roasting the lamb, which meant of course that I had a lot of lamb leg to use up in another recipe. So I got out the pressure cooker and made a lamb stew.
This recipe is the result – and it was absolutely delicious. So delicious in fact, that we ate lamb stew for 2 days running, and then froze the third portion for another meal (in the far distant future I might add – we are so over-saturated with lamb meals at the moment!)
Because this lamb stew is made in a pressure cooker, it’s pretty quick to cook. I used my Ninja multi-cooker, but you could use any pressure cooker – just follow the manufacturer’s instructions for timing for your own particular model. Apart from the time it took the pressure cooker to build up (and release) steam, the total cooking time was 19 minutes.
The meat is juicy and melt-in-the-mouth tender, and the vegetables are perfectly cooked, with just the right amount of ‘bite’ so they are not mushy.
My trick for making thick gravy is to grate some of the potatoes and carrots and cook them with the meat and shredded cabbage. The grated vegetables cook down to almost nothing, leaving not only their starches to thicken the gravy, but also their delicious flavours.
The remaining vegetables are added for the final 4 minutes, which is just enough time for them to cook to tender perfection.
As you can see the meat is fork-tender and just falls apart.
What you will need
Equipment
The main piece of equipment is a pressure cooker. I used my Ninja multi-cooker which is brilliant because it can be used as an air-fryer too. If you have a different pressure cooker you may need to allow a few minutes extra as I’ve found the Ninja is faster than a standard electric pressure cooker. Consult your manufacturer’s manual for timings for your own particular model. You may find you need to cook the lamb for a few minutes longer.
For cutting up the vegetables you will need a sharp knife and a chopping board, and also a box or cheese grater for grating the potatoes and carrots.
Ingredients
The recipe as written will feed 6 people, but you can freeze any leftovers. You could half the recipe if you don’t want any leftovers.
**You can get the complete list of ingredients and full instructions for making this easy pressure cooker lamb stew on the printable recipe card at the end of this post**
Lamb – I used cubed lamb leg. You could also use shoulder, neck or even a pack of lamb simply labelled ‘stewing lamb’ from the supermarket. You may have to adjust the cooking time if you are using anything other than lamb leg. Leg is very tender and cooks quickly – other cuts may require a few minutes longer.
Carrots and potatoes – you will need both cubed and grated carrots and potatoes.
Leeks – these should be washed and cut in half lengthwise, then sliced into 1-inch pieces.
Onions and celery – these should be cut into half-inch pieces.
Cabbage – you can use either white cabbage or savoy cabbage. It should be finely sliced.
Stock – I used vegetable stock pots dissolved in boiling water. You could use lamb or chicken flavour if you prefer.
Tomato puree – you may know it as tomato paste – and it is highly concentrated tomatoes.
Worcestershire sauce – for a hint of umami flavour. You could substitute it with dark soy sauce.
Salt and black pepper – for seasoning.
Sunflower oil (not pictured) for browning the meat.
What to do
Start off by preparing the vegetables.
- Peel and grate one carrot and one potato (use the largest hole on the grater) and slice the cabbage finely.
- Slice the leek lengthwise, rinse it under cold water to remove any dirt or grit, then slice it into semi-circles.
- Peel the remaining carrots and onions and cut them into 1-inch chunks.
- Peel the onions and wash the celery and cut them both into half-inch dice.
Cut the lamb into bite-sized pieces, season with salt and pepper, and then using the saute function on the pressure cooker, brown the lamb in sunflower oil. You could also use a frying pan for this step.
Once the lamb has browned, add the onions and celery and saute for 2 to 3 minutes, until the onions start to soften.
Add the grated carrots and potato, and shredded cabbage. Stir in the Worcestershire sauce and tomato puree and add the stock.
Put the pressure cooker lid on the Ninja, and turn the valve to the ‘seal’ position. Select the ‘Pressure’ function and set the timer for 15 minutes.
After 15 minutes do a quick pressure release.
Stir in the cubed potatoes and carrots, and the sliced leeks.
Replace the lid and turn the valve to the ‘seal’ position. Select the ‘Pressure’ function and set the timer for 4 minutes.
After 4 minutes do a quick pressure release.
Serve hot, with crusty bread to mop up the juices.
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Pressure cooker lamb stew FAQ
Yes – this lamb stew is ideal for freezing and defrosting. Allow the stew to cool to room temperature before packing it into meal-sized, air-tight plastic containers. Freeze for up to 4 months. Allow the stew to defrost overnight in the refrigerator and then transfer it to a saucepan and heat gently until piping hot. Serve immediately but do not refreeze.
If you are in a hurry you could also defrost the lamb stew in the microwave.
You can store this lamb stew in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Reheat in a saucepan on the stove.
Any root vegetables can be used in this lamb stew. Why not try adding chopped parsnips or swedes/rutabagas? You could also add mushrooms or even a handful of frozen peas or corn. If adding frozen peas or corn, I would be inclined to add them after the final cooking time, and leave the pressure cooker on the saute function until they are just warmed through.
The amount of liquid depends on how much meat you are cooking. For this recipe, 2 cups of stock should be ample. You should have just enough liquid to cover the meat.
This lamb stew recipe should thicken sufficiently from the starch which is released from the grated potatoes. If the stew hasn’t thickened to your liking, you can stir in a slurry of 2 teaspoons of cornflour/cornstarch and 2 tablespoons of water (with the pressure cooker on saute function) until the stew has thickened. You may not need the whole amount of cornflour/water.
Save for later
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Other recipes
If you enjoyed this pressure cooker lamb stew, here are some other stew recipes you may like to try:
- Easy beef stew – Packed brimful with vegetables and tender chunks of beef, swimming in a delicious gravy, this stew is the perfect comfort food.
- Hearty beef and barley stew – packed with vegetables and barley, this soup is healthy and nutritious.
- Slow cooker oxtail stew – succulent oxtail slow-cooked in a rich gravy with vegetables.
- Pressure cooker lamb shanks in a rich tomato gravy – Lamb shanks are always a popular meat choice, and cooking the vegetables in the same pot creates a delicious and hearty stew that will have everyone asking for seconds.
The recipe
Pressure cooker lamb stew
(Click the stars to rate this recipe)
Ingredients
- 2 pounds / 900 grams lamb leg cubed
- 3 medium potatoes peeled and cubed
- 2 large carrots peeled and thickly sliced
- 1 large leek washed and sliced
- 1 medium potato peeled and grated
- 1 medium carrot peeled and grated
- 1 large onion peeled and diced
- 2 sticks celery washed and diced
- ¼ small white cabbage shredded
- 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
- 3 tablespoons tomato puree / tomato paste
- 2 cups vegetable stock
- ½ teaspoon salt or to taste
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper or to taste
- 2 tablespoons sunflower oil
Instructions
Preparation
- Peel and grate one carrot and one potato (use the largest hole on the grater) and slice the cabbage finely1 medium potato, 1 medium carrot, ¼ small white cabbage
- Slice the leek lengthwise, rinse it under cold water to remove any dirt or grit, then slice it into semi-circles.1 large leek
- Peel the remaining carrots and onions and cut them into 1-inch chunks.3 medium potatoes, 2 large carrots
- Peel the onions and wash the celery and cut them both into half-inch dice.1 large onion, 2 sticks celery
- Cut the lamb into bite-sized pieces and season with salt and black pepper to taste.2 pounds / 900 grams lamb leg, ½ teaspoon salt, ¼ teaspoon black pepper
Make the stew
- Using the saute function on the pressure cooker, brown the cubed lamb in sunflower oil. You could also use a frying pan for this step.2 tablespoons sunflower oil
- Once the lamb has browned, add the onions and celery and saute for 2 to 3 minutes, until the onions start to soften.
- Add the grated carrots and potato, and shredded cabbage. Stir in the Worcestershire sauce and tomato puree and add the stock.2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce, 3 tablespoons tomato puree / tomato paste, 2 cups vegetable stock
- Put the pressure cooker lid on the Ninja, and turn the valve to the 'seal' position. Select the 'Pressure' function and set the timer for 15 minutes.After 15 minutes do a quick pressure release.
- Stir in the cubed potatoes and carrots, and the sliced leeks.
- Replace the lid and turn the valve to the 'seal' position. Select the 'Pressure' function and set the timer for 4 minutes.After 4 minutes do a quick pressure release.
- Serve hot, with crusty bread to mop up the juices.
Notes
If you are in a hurry you could also defrost the lamb stew in the microwave.
Nutrition
I am not a nutritionist. The nutrition information has been calculated using an on-line calculator, and is intended for information and guidance purposes only. If the nutrition information is important to you, you should consider calculating it yourself, using your preferred tool.
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