When only a hearty stew will do
What the Face authors look at how diet and lifestyle impact our appearance and health. Craig Rodger has two recipes to help nourish and support our inner health and outer wellbeing.
This a meal you make when you want to cook and have the oven on, on a cold and wet weekend in winter.
Even though there is a bit to do, it’s split into stages. You get the meat on, which takes 10 minutes, then you have a few hours before you need to do much else. It’s actually quite a practical recipe.
The flavours are deep and exciting, and elevate a stew into a delicious meal to combat the winter blues.
You can use beef or lamb interchangeably, but if using chicken, cook the thigh for the same length of time but only cook the breast for 45 minutes before beginning to cook the pumpkin.
For those who haven’t indulged in Middle Eastern food much, za’atar is a tasty spice that is easily found in the supermarket. But you could always make your own by combining equal quantities of dried oregano, dried thyme and/or dried marjoram, sumac and toasted sesame seeds.
Middle eastern winter warmer
Serves 4 Preparation time: 30 minutes Cooking time: 21⁄2 hours
For the spice mix:
■ 1 tablespoon ground cumin
■ 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
■ 1⁄2 tablespoon ground chilli (use 1 teaspoon for less heat)
For the meat:
■ 400-600g braising meat (chuck, shoulder, blade, neck, bolar etc)
■ 1 cup plain unsweetened yoghurt
■ 2-3 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
■ 1-2 onions, thinly sliced
■ 1 teaspoon salt
■ 1 cup stock (chicken, beef or vegetable)
For the pumpkin:
■ 1⁄2-1 crown pumpkin, de-seeded and cut into wedges ■ 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
For the vegetables:
■ 1 broccoli, florets separated and stalk diced 1-2cm ■ 1 courgette, diced 2cm
■ 1 capsicum, diced 2cm
■ 1 tablespoon za’atar
■ 1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil
Preheat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius, and line an oven tray with baking paper.
Mix the spice mix ingredients together, then place half of the mix in a non-reactive bowl.
Add the meat, yoghurt, garlic, sliced onion, and salt. Toss together and leave to marinate for at least 10 minutes.
If you like, you can marinate this for much longer, up to overnight to 2 days, covered and in the fridge.
Transfer the meat mix to an ovenproof dish with a tight-fitting lid, add the stock and stir to combine. Place the dish in the oven and braise for about 2 hours.
Prepare the pumpkin. Toss it with the remaining spice mix and the oil, then spread it out over the oven tray. When the meat has almost finished cooking, roast the pumpkin for 20 minutes.
Prepare the green vegetables (as well as the za’atar if making it yourself). Toss the vegetables with the za’atar and the oil.
Remove the pumpkin from the oven and push it to one side of the tray to make room for the green vegetables. Season the vegetables with salt and pepper, and return the tray to the oven for 12-15 minutes until the vegetables are tender with a bite.
Serve the meat and some gravy in bowls with the pumpkin wedges and green vegetables.
Recipes reproduced with permission from What the Face: Eat Your Way to Lasting Wellbeing and Radiance, by Dr Caryn Zinn, Professor Grant Schofield and Craig Rodger (Blackwell and Ruth, $35).