Stovies is a traditional Scottish dish made of potatoes, onions and, usually, leftover roast meat with beef dripping. During hard times, Stovies were a popular way to reduce waste and save food, using every scrap available. On New Year’s Eve, Kirsty’s mother brings a pot of Stovies to the castle kitchens, probably made from the ends of Christmas dinner. Nowadays, it’s the perfect recipe to use up any leftovers from a Sunday roast. There is no one correct way to make Stovies, in fact, many Scottish families have their own recipe, invoking nostalgia and memories of childhood.
Serves 4-6
Ingredients:
• 30g lard or butter, or dripping saved from a roast
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 400g swede, peeled and cut into cubes
• 2 large carrots, peeled and chopped into cubes
• 1 celery stick, finely chopped
• 500g leftover roast meat (or see below for more ideas!)
• 700g potatoes, peeled and cut into cubes
• 500ml beef stock
• Oatcakes or crusty bread, to serve
Method:
1. Heat the lard, butter or dripping in a medium sized saucepan. Add the onion and fry for 10 minutes over a low heat until softened.
2. Add the swede, carrot and celery and fry for 5 minutes.
3. Stir in the meat, if using leftover roast meat, then the potatoes.
4. Pour over the stock and season generously, bring to the boil, then turn the heat down to a simmer.
5. Cook covered for 1 hour 30 minutes or until the vegetables have softened and the potatoes have broken down completely.
6. Serve with oatcakes or crusty bread and enjoy!
Variations:
• Add tinned corned beef instead of leftover meat. Add this to the pan 20 minutes before the end of cooking.
• Slice up some sausages and add them to the frying onions.
• Go vegetarian by omitting the meat and swapping the dripping for olive oil or butter and vegetable stock.