This is a family recipe courtesy of my mothers’ family, still on the same piece of stained and torn paper on which it was written so many years ago. A frugal dish that is ridiculously simple to make but boy is it tasty. The sort of stew that you need in these cold and windy days just before the spring warmth arrives to thaw us out.
To go with this dish, I’ve gone for the Villa Wolf Wachenheimer Dry Riesling. Hailing from the Pfalz region of Germany, right on the border with France, Villa Wolf is a storied and well-regarded producer of crisp and refreshing wines. Their Wachenheimer Dry Riesling is a lovely and well-balanced dry Riesling with bags of acidity and lemon that will cut through the richness of the hotpot and bring a much-needed lightness and freshness to the dish.
Ingredients
1 gammon joint
4 carrots – peeled and quartered
4 large potatoes – peeled and quartered
1 large onion - quartered
1 medium leek - quartered
4 cloves garlic - peeled
Herbs – Thyme, Rosemary, & Parsley, feel free to add other green herbs to taste
1 veg stock cube
1 tsp turmeric
2 large handfuls of barley
Salt and pepper
Method
Place your gammon in the centre of a large, thick bottomed, ovenproof pan.
Place your vegetables and barley around the side.
Add in herbs, stock cube and turmeric.
Pour over cold water until everything is just covered.
Cover with a lid and place inside a 200 degrees celcius oven for two hours.
After two hours remove the gammon and remove fat and string.
Shred the gammon back into the barley and vegetables.
Serve with lashings of brown sauce and crusty bread and butter.
The Perfect Wine Match
Villa Wolf Wachenheimer Dry Riesling
Light, refreshing wine, zesty enticing aromas of lime and white peach, perfect balance of stone fruits and acidity, bursting with ripe nectarines and apricots on a dry finish.
