Lincolnshire Sausage Stew

Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 2 hours
Ingredients:

4 Lincolnshire Sausages – each one cut into 4
120g button mushrooms – halved
Half a bulb of fennel – chopped
1 medium carrot – chopped
2 stalks of celery – chopped
150g cabbage – finely shredded
300g tin of butter beans – drained and rinsed
100ml white wine
1 pint of good quality vegetable stock with 4 teaspoons Bisto caramelised onion gravy powder
Olive oil and butter
Salt and pepper

For the dumplings:
50g vegetarian suet or cold grated butter
75g self-raising flour
100ml cold water
Salt
1 twig rosemary
1 twig thyme
3 shoots of chives


Featured in:
November 2016

With the chilly winter finally upon us it’s really time to bring out the warmer comfort foods and can there be anything better than some gorgeous root vegetables, local Lincolnshire Sausages combined with some wonderful butter beans, which make the whole pot so creamy? But of course the stars of the show here are the herby dumplings which soak up all the wonderful sausage gravy and make this a complete one-pot meal, perfect for winter nights and chilly Sunday lunches. The whole dish is surprisingly easy and quick to put together but of course the slower cooking time creates a wonderfully rich and warming dish. I love my dumplings big and fluffy and just a little crispy on top, which is why I suggest removing the lid for the last few minutes – but if you’re not a fan, feel free to leave the lid on…

METHOD

You’ll need a medium-sized casserole dish with a lid.

Pre-heat the oven to 160C.

Start by heating the casserole dish on the hob, melting a little butter and olive oil as you do. Add the sausages and mushrooms and let them both gain a little colour, turning them frequently – this should take roughly 15 minutes – then carefully remove them from the pot with a slotted spoon, leaving a little fat behind.

Add the carrots, celery and fennel and let them sweat and soften for 10 minutes, adding some fresh herbs and plenty of salt and pepper, then add the sausages and mushrooms back into the pot along with the butterbeans, wine and stock. Let it simmer for a few minutes before adding the shredded cabbage. Place the lid on and pop it into the oven for an hour and a half, whilst you make the dumplings.

Place all the dumpling ingredients into a bowl along with the water and bring it all together with your hand, keeping your fingers light and swift. Form them into six similarly sized balls and set aside.

After an hour and a half, carefully remove the pot from the oven. Take off the lid and add the dumplings onto the top of the stew. Replace the lid and pop the dish back into the oven for 20 minutes, then take the lid off the pot, turn the oven up to 180C and let the stew and dumplings bubble away for a further 10 minutes.

Remove from the oven and let the dish settle for 5 mins before serving.

Eat and of course, enjoy!



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