Ingredients

• 1 large carrot
• cut into 3 pieces
• 1 onion
• cut into quarters
• 2 cloves garlic
• sprig rosemary
• sprig thyme
• 1 bay leaf
• pinch rock salt
• 1 tbsp tomato purée
• 2 litres/3½ pints water
• 1 middle neck of lamb with bones
• about 1kg/2¼lb
• plain flour
• for dusting
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 Spanish onion
• thinly sliced
• 2 carrots
• thinly sliced
• 1 clove garlic
• thinly sliced
• salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 tbsp thyme leaves
• 1 tbsp chopped rosemary
• 3 Maris Piper potatoes
• very thinly sliced
• unsalted butter
• 1 small red cabbage
• cored and sliced
• 1 red onion
• finely chopped
• 150g/5½oz unsalted butter
• 200ml/7fl oz red wine vinegar
• 50g/2oz clear honey
• 100g/3½oz demerara sugar
• 1 bay leaf
• sprig thyme
• salt

Directions

• Preheat the oven to 200C/400F/Gas 6.
• First make the stock. Remove the meat from the middle neck of lamb and set aside. Chop the bones and put them in a roasting tray. Roast until lightly browned.
• Meanwhile
• cook the carrot
• onion and garlic in a little olive oil in a large heavy-bottomed stockpot until lightly browned. Add the herbs and salt
• then stir in the tomato purée and cook for a couple of minutes. Add the roasted bones and cover with the water. Bring to the boil
• then turn down to a simmer and cook for one hour
• skimming off any fat or scum regularly. Pass the liquid through a fine sieve into a clean pan. Return to the heat and reduce until you have 1 litre/1¾ pints of stock.
• Turn the oven down to 150C/300F/Gas 2.
• To make the hot pot
• cut the lamb into 2cm/1in thick slices. Dust them with flour. Heat the oil in a pan and quickly fry until lightly coloured on both sides. Remove and set aside.
• In the same oil
• quickly fry the onion
• carrots and garlic until lightly browned.
• Layer the lamb
• onion and carrots in a heavy casserole dish
• filling it to 1cm/½in from the top. Season each layer with salt and freshly ground black pepper
• and the herbs
• spooning liberal amounts of stock between each layer.
• Arrange the potatoes neatly all over the top of the dish. Dot a few small knobs of butter on the potatoes
• cover with a tight-fitting lid and cook in the oven for 1½ hours. Remove the lid and cook for a further 45 minutes.
• Meanwhile
• make the red cabbage. Mix together all of the ingredients. Put into a roasting tray and cover with foil. Place in the oven and cook for about 1½ hours
• stirring regularly
• until most of the liquid has evaporated.
• Serve the hot pot from the casserole onto warm plates with the cabbage.