South African lamb bredie (lamb stew)

A lamb bredie (bree – eh – die) is just another name for a lamb stew. But whereas a stew is typically cooked in a large amount of stock, a bredie uses hardly any stock and relies on the juices from the vegetables to form the liquid component of the dish. This recipe for lamb bredie was given to me by my mother-in-law, many years ago, and it’s remained a firm family favourite over the years.

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Hearty lamb bredie made with lamb ribs

Nothing beats a good stew on a cold winter’s night, and this hearty lamb stew made with lamb ribs is one of the best lamb stew recipes ever. It’s a popular dish in South Africa, where it is known as lam bredie or lam ribbetjies (lamb ribs). The lamb is succulent and fall-off-the-bone tender, while the stew itself is packed with vegetables. The gravy is thick and full of flavour, and today I’m going to share my secret to making this gravy without the use of a thickening agent. Once you’ve tried it I’m sure you’ll agree that this lamb stew is a winner.

I can’t think of many meals that satisfy the senses as much as a stew. The wonderful aroma that emanates from the pan as the stew is cooking; the sight of the meat and vegetables, piled on your plate, accompanied by slices of crusty bread to mop up the delicious juices; and the taste of those mouthwatering flavours that stay with you from the first forkful to the last. A good stew is definitely a meal made in heaven.

In my opinion, the best cut of meat for making a lamb bredie has to be the lamb ribs. The meat on a lamb rib contains a lot of connective tissue and can be quite tough if it is roasted. But pop it in a pressure cooker, or simmer it for a few hours on the stove or in the slow-cooker, and it turns into a fork-tender, juicy, meat that just melts in your mouth. Add some chunky vegetables of your choice, and you end up with a lamb stew that will warm up the coldest winter night.

What you will need

You can get the complete list of ingredients and full instructions on how to make this lamb stew recipe on the printable recipe card at the end of this post.

You can make this lamb bredie either in a pressure cooker, in a saucepan on the stove top or in slow-cooker. I’ve included instructions for all methods below.

Equipment

You will need a pressure cooker – I use an electric pressure cooker similar to this one, but you can use a normal stovetop pressure cooker too. Just consult your manual for cooking times for your particular model.

Other than that, you will need a sharp knife and a chopping board for cutting up the vegetables, and a box grater for grating the potatoes.

Ingredients

I love this stew because it is a way of using up all the vegetables that are lurking in the back of the fridge. You definitely need onions, carrots, and potatoes. But after that, the sky’s the limit. Just use what you have available.

This recipe will serve 4 people.

• Lamb rib – I normally buy my lamb ribs ready sliced, but you can buy them as a whole rack and slice through them yourself. Because the lamb ribs have a bone running through them, you will need approximately 1kg (2.25 pounds) of ribs to serve 4 people. Try to get ribs with as little fat as possible. If there is a lot of excess fat on the ribs you could trim it off before cooking.
• Vegetables – carrots, celery, onions, green beans, tomatoes, potatoes and cabbage. You can swap out the vegetables with whatever you have in your fridge. Leeks, parsnips, swedes and even mushrooms would be a good choice. If you want to add softer vegetables such as cauliflower, broccoli, squash or marrows, I would be inclined to steam these separately and then stir them in at the end of the cooking process to avoid them becoming mushy.
  • quantities – apart from the cabbage, potatoes and tomatoes, you should aim to use approximately one cup of vegetables per person.
  • cabbage – is added to help form the gravy. The cabbage should be finely shredded and it will cook away to almost nothing in the pressure cooker, leaving all its moisture and flavour behind.
  • potatoes – to help the gravy thicken, you will need one medium to large potato which you grate on the largest holes of a box grater. The grated potato will disintegrate as it cooks, leaving the starch to thicken the stew. The remaining potatoes should be cut into chunks.
  • tomatoes – the tomatoes should be grated on a box grater. You can cut them in half and rub the cut side on the grater. Discard the large piece of tomato skin that gets left behind.
  • The remaining vegetables should all be cut into bite-sized pieces.
• Tomato paste (also known as tomato puree) – this is made from highly concentrated tomatoes and is normally sold in a tube or small can. Don’t confuse it with tomato ketchup.
• Worcestershire sauce – to enhance the flavour of the stew.
• Stock – if you don’t have fresh stock you can dissolve one stock cube in a cup of boiling water and use that. I like to use vegetable stock in this recipe.
• Salt – for seasoning – use to your own taste.
• Oil – one or two tablespoons of sunflower oil for browning the meat.

What to do

These are the easy instructions for making a lamb bredie in the pressure cooker

Brown the lamb, onions and celery

Cook the lamb in the stock with the cabbage and grated potato

Cook the vegetables

Serve

I like to serve this lamb stew with slices of chunky bread or crusty bread rolls to mop up the juices. You could also serve it over rice. See these links for how to cook rice in the oven, or how to cook rice in the microwave.

Make it in a slow cooker

If you would like to make this meal in a slow cooker, here is how to do it.

• Brown the meat, onions and celery as per the instructions above (but use a frying pan rather than a pressure cooker).
• Then transfer them to a slow-cooker along with the grated potato and shredded cabbage the stock and the rest of the ingredients (only add half of the salt).
• Cook on low for 6 to 7 hours (my meat was cooked on low and took 6.5 hours). You could also cook on high for 5 to 6 hours.
• Taste for seasoning and add the remaining salt if necessary.

Make it on the stove

If you would like to make lamb bredie in a saucepan on the stove:

• Brown the meat, onions and celery as per the instructions above (but use a saucepan).
• Add the grated potato and cabbage to the onions and stir in the stock, Worcestershire sauce and half of the salt. Add an extra cup of stock to allow for evapouration.
• Cover with a lid and simmer for 2.5 to 3 hours or until the meat is tender.
• Add the remaining vegetables and continue to simmer for another half an hour until the vegetables are cooked.
• Top up with more stock if it starts to lose too much moisture.
• Taste for seasoning and add the remaining salt if necessary.

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Other recipes

If you enjoyed this lamb bredie, why not try one of my other comfort meals.

• Hungarian beef goulash
• Meat and potato pie
• Lancashire hotpot
• Cottage Pie
• Slow-cooker Irish lamb stew
• Hearty beef and barley stew
• Slow cooker oxtail stew

Recipe – Lamb Bredie (Lamb Stew)

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