Carne Adovada (red Chile Lamb Stew)

Total Time: 3 hrs Preparation Time: 1 hr Cook Time: 2 hrs

Ingredients

• Servings: 6
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 3 lbs lamb butt, well-trimmed of fat and cut into 1-inch pieces (or shoulder)
• 2 onions, chopped
• 6 garlic cloves, chopped
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon flour
• 1/2 teaspoon fresh ground pepper
• 1 cup ground dried new mexico chile powder
• 4 -6 cups water or 4 -6 cups broth

Recipe

• 1 preheat oven to 350°.
• 2 in a large pot over medium heat, add oil. when hot, add lamb pieces to brown (add only enough so the pieces are in a single layer and don't touch each other; you will need to do this in batches). lamb should sizzle the minute it touches the pot; if it doesn't, remove it and wait for the pot to heat up. cook, undisturbed, until well-browned on one side, about 3 minutes. turn and brown on all sides. transfer lamb to a large bowl or plate and repeat with remaining batches.
• 3 when all lamb is browned and set aside, add onions, garlic, and salt to pot. cook, stirring, until soft, about 3 minutes. sprinkle with flour and pepper and cook, stirring, until flour smells like pie crust, about 3 minutes.
• 4 add ground chile and stir to combine. add 3 cups water and bring to a boil.
• 5 in a blender, whirl chile mixture until smooth. return to pot and add another 1 cup water and reserved lamb. bring to a boil, cover, and bake 1 hour. stir, add additional 1 cup water if stew seems dry, and bake until lamb falls apart with a fork and sauce is thick, about another hour.serve hot.