TO MAKE AN HOTCHPOT
"Take a piece of Brisket-beef; a piece of Mutton; a knuckle of Veal;
a good Colander of pot-herbs; half minced Carrots, Onions and Cabbage
a little broken. Boil all thse together until they be very thick."
Pretty basic stuff here. I used maybe a pound of beef brisket, and 1/2 pound each of lamb for stew (they didn't have actual mutton) and veal for stew (no knuckles). For pot herbs I used some parsley, sage and thyme, skipping the rosemary so we wouldn't have to sing. Then a pound of carrots, maybe, a few onions and a head of cabbage. I tossed 'em all in with some water and let 'em simmer.
I had to restrain myself from browning the meat first, since that's fairly standard in modern cooking. The instructions didn't say so, though, so I didn't do it. Note also the lack of salt and pepper in the recipe. That could be by intent or by oversight. However, once again, it was mentioned so I didn't do it.
After an hour or two, it was cooked, although not quite what I would call thick. After serving, it was clear that it did need salt and pepper. Still, that could be added at table, so if I do it again I might well leave the s&p out anyway.
There were leftovers, of course. The next day, I found, it was thick! The veggies had broken down some more and pulled in some more of the water and the whole thing was, well, thick.
As an aside, the modern usage of hotchpot seems to be mostly legal - it comes up in estate law, where you throw a bunch if mismatched assets together to try to achieve equal distribution to the beneficiaries.