It was back at the end of February that I said I’d a fancy to make a proper old fashioned meat and dumplings stew. I bought a packet of suet for the dumplings but then couldn’t find any neck of lamb chops in the first places I tried – they are the tastiest cuts for a stew – not a lot of meat but all the flavour. Even the butchers in Diss didn’t have them. But finally I spotted one pack on it’s own on the shelves in Morrisons.
It’s very strange that the cuts of meat that I knew from having our own lambs butchered are called different things in different butchers. The butchers in Diss offered me small cutlet chops when I asked for neck of lamb chops and when I demonstrated they were round he said I meant Stewing Scrags! a name I’d never heard before.
The stew made enough for two days and the dumplings, gravy and vegetables were delicious but the meat was disappointing – no flavour and nothing like I remembered from our own lamb all those years ago. I didn’t take food photos as a stew isn’t very photogenic!
We have a shortage of proper butchers now but I know of a couple more to try in two other villages so next time I fancy a stew that’s where I’ll go.
