Vegetarian · Slow cooker adaptation

Happy Pear Irish Root Veg Lentil Stew (Slow Cooker)

The Happy Pear's Irish root veg lentil stew, a 30-minute hob recipe with a colcannon mash on the side. Adapted for the slow cooker so the lentils and root veg can deepen across the day; the mash stays a hob job at the end.

R By Richard · Adapted from Jamie Oliver · Published 10 June 2026
👁 150.1k source views ❤️ 3.6k source likes
⏱Prep 20 min
🍲Slow cook 5 hr (Low) / 3 hr (High)
🍽Serves 4
Irish Stew with Root Veg | The Happy Pear

Source video by Jamie Oliver on YouTube. This recipe was adapted with strict source-fidelity rules and is marked for human review.

From The Happy Pear on the Jamie Oliver Food Tube channel. Stephen and David Flynn build a vegetarian Irish stew around red onion, garlic, carrots, parsnip and a full leek with bay, thyme and a splash of white wine, then simmer with a litre of veg stock, lentils and tamari. Served over a kale colcannon mash with oat milk, spring onions and chives. Adapted for the slow cooker: the stew goes Low 5 hours; the colcannon mash is built fresh in 20 minutes near the end so the kale stays bright.

Slow cooker notes: Original is a 30-minute hob recipe. For the slow cooker, soften the red onion, garlic, carrots, parsnip and leek in oil for a few minutes first to start the sweetness, then tip into the slow cooker with the wine, stock, lentils, tamari, bay and thyme. Salt goes in at the start, black pepper at the end (per the original). Build the colcannon mash fresh on the hob near the end of the slow cook so the kale stays bright green.

Ingredients

Stew
  • 2 tbspolive oil
  • red onions, chopped
  • 4garlic cloves, chopped
  • carrots, skin on, sliced fine
  • parsnip, skin on, hacked into chunks
  • 1 tspsalt
  • 2bay leaves
  • fresh thyme, leaves stripped from stems
  • 1leek, full length, white and green, cleaned and chopped
  • 100 mlwhite wine
  • 1 litrevegetable stock
  • lentils, rinsed and drained
  • 3 tbsptamari
  • black pepper (add late)
  • chives, chopped (add late)
Colcannon mash
  • waxy potatoes, skin on
  • 150 mloat milk
  • kale, stripped from stems, chopped fine
  • spring onions, full length, chopped
  • 0.5 tspsalt
  • black pepper

Method

  1. Heat 2 tbsp of olive oil in a large frying pan. Add the chopped red onions, garlic, carrots and parsnip. Fry for 4-5 minutes to start the sweetness.

    ~5 min

  2. Tip the pan into the slow cooker. Add 1 tsp of salt, the bay leaves, the stripped thyme, the chopped leek (full length), 100 ml of white wine, 1 litre of veg stock, the rinsed lentils and 3 tbsp of tamari. Stir once.

    ~5 min

  3. Lid on. Cook on Low for 5 hours (or High 3 hours).

    ~300 min

  4. Near the end of the slow cook, put the waxy potatoes on to boil (skin on) until tender, about 20-25 minutes.

    ~25 min

  5. Drain the potatoes, return to the pan and let the steam dry them out for a minute. Add 150 ml of oat milk, 0.5 tsp of salt and a good pinch of black pepper. Mash.

    ~4 min

  6. Stir the chopped kale and spring onions through the hot mash. The kale wilts in the heat without cooking.

    ~2 min

  7. Taste the stew, adjust salt and pepper. Plate the mash, ladle the stew over and finish with chopped chives.

    ~3 min

Frequently asked

Why lentils in an Irish stew?
This is The Happy Pear's vegetarian take. Lentils stand in for the lamb or beef of a traditional Irish stew, giving the dish body and a meaty bite.
Why use the green of the leek as well?
Stephen says the green has all the flavour you usually throw away. Slice it fine and use the whole leek; it cooks down in the stock.
Can I skip the colcannon mash?
Yes, but the mash is half the point. The stew is light and lentil-forward; the kale-and-spring onion mash gives the meal its weight.
What if I don't have tamari?
Soy sauce works, or a splash of Worcestershire if you're not keeping it strictly vegetarian. The job is a hit of savoury depth, nothing more.
Extraction notes (transparency): Most key quantities stated: 2 tbsp oil, 4 cloves garlic, 1 tsp salt, 100 ml white wine, 1 litre veg stock, 3 tbsp tamari, 150 ml milk for the mash, half a tsp salt for the mash. Quantities not stated for onion (red, count unknown), carrots, parsnip, bay leaves ('a couple' = 2 used here), thyme, leek (1 full, count clear), lentils, potatoes for the colcannon, kale ('a good handful'), spring onions ('a full bunch'), black pepper, chives.