 Lancashire hotpot | |
| Course | Main course |
|---|---|
| Place of origin | England |
| Region or state | Lancashire |
| Serving temperature | Hot |
| Main ingredients | Lamb or mutton, onions, potatoes |
Lancashire hotpot is a stew originating in Lancashire in North West England. It consists of lamb or mutton and onion, topped with sliced potatoes and slowly baked in a pot at a low heat.
In the 17th century, the word "hotpot" referred not to a stew but to a hot drink—a mixture of ale and spirits, or sweetened spiced ale. [1] An early use of the term to mean a meat stew was in The Liverpool Telegraph in 1836: "hashes, and fricassees, and second-hand Irish hot-pots" [2] and the Oxford English Dictionary (OED) cites the dish as being served in Liverpool in 1842. [1] The Oxford Companion to Food (OCF) cites Elizabeth Gaskell's 1854 novel North and South , depicting hot-pot as the most prized dish among cotton workers in a northern town. [3] [4]
The OED gives the etymology as "hot adj. + pot n.", and cites the analogous French term pot-au-feu . [1] The OCF refers to earlier forms of the term: "hotchpotch" (a mixed dish, typically a meat and vegetable stew) and "hotchpot", from the medieval French hochepot. [3] [n 1] A Book of Cookrye (1591) gives a recipe for hodgepodge, using "neck of mutton or a fat rump of beef", cooked and served in a broth thickened with bread. [6] The term "hotchpotch" for a stew continued into the 19th century: Mrs Beeton (1861) gives a recipe under that name for a beef and onion stew in beer. [7]
Hotpot became associated with Lancashire. In the OCF the food historian Roy Shipperbottom writes:
The recipe usually calls for a mix of mutton (nowadays more frequently lamb [8] ) and onions covered with sliced potato, and slowly baked in a pot containing stock or sometimes water. [9] [10] Some early recipes add lamb kidneys or oysters to the dish. [9]
The traditional Lancashire hotpot dish is tall, round, and straight-sided, with a lid. [3] [9] Regardless of the baking dish, the lid should fit tightly. [8]
Lancashire hotpot is traditionally served with pickled red cabbage. [9]
