Traditional Irish stew with homemade bread

Ingredients:

Stew

• 1.8 kg diced lamb shoulder
• 1/2 cup pearl barley
• 1.5 tsp coarse salt
• 1/2 tsp ground black pepper
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• 24 pearl onion sets, peeled, root ends trimmed
• 2 medium carrots, cut into 4 cm pieces
• 3 cups chicken broth or water
• 2 cups of strong beer
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 tbsp chopped fresh thyme leaves
• 12 new potatoes, cut in half
• 1/4 cup finely chopped fresh parsley leaves for garnish
• 1 tbsp finely chopped fresh chives for garnish
• Additional equipment: 12-liter saucepan with a tight-fitting lid

Irish soda bread

• 2 cups whole grain bread flour
• 1.5 cups of wheat flour, plus a little more for working with the dough
• 1/2 cup oatmeal
• 2 tbsp. l. brown sugar
• 2 teaspoons of salt
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 3 tablespoons cold butter
• 1.5 cups of sour milk
• 1 egg

Preparation:

1. Preheat oven to 180°C. Season the meat with salt and pepper.
   
   Pour vegetable oil into a saucepan and heat it over medium-high heat. Fry the lamb in small batches until golden brown. Remove from heat. Add the onion, carrot, and pearl barley. Cook, stirring, for about a minute.
2. Add chicken broth, beer, bay leaf, and thyme. Return the meat to the pan, top with the potatoes, and bring to a boil. Cover and simmer in the oven for 1.5–2 hours until the meat is tender.
   
   Season the stew with salt and pepper to taste. Sprinkle with parsley and chives. Serve with Irish soda bread.
3. Irish Soda Bread: Preheat oven to 180°C. In a large bowl, combine all the flour, oats, brown sugar, salt, baking soda, and baking powder. Grate the cold butter into the dry ingredients and mix with your hands until the mixture forms crumbs.
   
   In a small bowl, mix together sour milk and eggs. Using your hands, mix the liquid ingredients with the dry ingredients until a dough forms that can be formed into a ball.
4. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface and knead for 5 minutes, until soft and elastic. Form the dough into a round loaf, approximately 15 cm in diameter. Place on a parchment-lined baking sheet.
   
   Dust the surface of the bread with flour. Using a sharp knife, make a cross-shaped cut on the top, about halfway down the loaf, leaving 5 cm (2 inches) from the edge. Bake for 45-50 minutes. The bread should sound hollow when tapped on the bottom.