Scotch Broth Recipe
Scotch broth is a nutritious, hearty soup that's so comforting on a cold day! It's made with lamb, vegetables, pearl barley, and fresh herbs. Make it yourself to taste Scotland's most popular soup.
Servings: 11 cups
Calories: 142kcal
Ingredients
Lamb Broth
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1.5 pounds lamb neck bones
- 1 large yellow onion skin on quartered
- 3 large carrots peelings and cut into chunks
- 3 large celery ribs cut into chunks with leaves
- 1 large leek leaves only, reserve bottom for soup
- 8 sprigs of fresh thyme leaves tied up with kitchen string
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 ½ teaspoons kosher salt
- ¾ teaspoons black peppercorns
- 18 cups water cold, filtered
Scotch Broth Soup
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 cup yellow onion diced
- 1 large leek split lengthwise and sliced
- ¾ cup celery diced
- ¾ cup carrots peeled and diced
- 1 tablespoon garlic minced
- 10 cups lamb broth (ingredients are above)
- ¾ cup turnips diced
- ¾ cup rutabagas diced
- ¾ cup parsnips diced
- ⅓ cup pearl barley
- ⅓ cup dried green split peas
- salt, to taste
- black pepper, to taste
- green cabbage 1 quarter of a small green cabbage, cut up
- lamb meat shredded
- 2 tablespoons fresh Italian flatleaf parsley chopped
Instructions
Making the Lamb Broth
- In a Dutch oven, heat up the oil until it starts to smoke. Add the lamb neck bones and sear until brown, turning occasionally with tongs.
- Add the rest of the broth ingredients and cover with 18 cups of water. Cover and bring to a boil, then simmer for 2 hours.
- Remove the lamb neck bones and allow them to cool, then remove the meat and store covered in the fridge to use later. Discard the bones.
- Remove the aromatics and spices and discard. Allow the broth to cool, then cover and place in the fridge overnight. This will help the fat rise to the top and improve the flavor of the lamb broth.
- The next day, skim the fat off the top of the broth. Reserve the fat for another use. Using a fine mesh sieve, strain the lamb broth into a large bowl; you should have 10 cups.
Making the Soup
- In a Dutch oven, heat up the oil until hot, then add the aromatics (onion, leek, celery, and carrots) and some salt and pepper. Sauté for 10 minutes over medium heat, then add the garlic and cook until fragrant.
- Deglaze the pot by pouring in ½ cup of lamb broth and scraping the browned bits off of the bottom of the pot. Pour in the rest of the homemade lamb broth (9½ cups).
- Add in the turnips, rutabagas, parsnips, pearl barley, and split peas. Stir, cover, and bring to a boil, then turn down the heat to medium low and simmer for 1 hour.
- Taste and season with salt and black pepper, then stir in the cabbage and the cooked lamb. Simmer for 10 minutes.
- Remove from the heat, and stir in the fresh parsley. Serve the Scotch broth while still hot with some crusty bread or bannock.
Notes
- Brown the lamb necks in very hot oil before making the lamb broth.
- Use lamb, as the flavor and color is very different if you use beef.
- Take the time to make homemade lamb broth instead of using chicken broth.
- Cook the barley and the split green peas in the soup to thicken it and add flavor.
- Don't skimp on the vegetables. It makes it more hearty.
Nutrition
Serving: 1cup | Calories: 142kcal | Carbohydrates: 17g | Protein: 8g | Fat: 5g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 3g | Cholesterol: 17mg | Sodium: 496mg | Potassium: 345mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 4g | Vitamin A: 1719IU | Vitamin C: 17mg | Calcium: 55mg | Iron: 1mg
