Make a stew of your own out of what you have on hand
How to prepare a comforting meal that’s easy to adapt to what’s in your pantry
The kitchen has long been considered the heart of our homes. It can — and should — be a place of comfort and relaxation. With many of us doing a lot more cooking and a lot more staying at home, our kitchens have never been more important. As a chef with two small kids, I’ll be the first to admit it can be a challenge. But cooking for ourselves and our families can also be grounding and deeply satisfying.
I’m here to help.
I’ll be sharing recipes, tips and splashes of encouragement to help you find the magic around your table.
To start, we are in an unprecedented time where our trips to the grocery store might not result in procuring everything on our “list.” While this can be frustrating, it also brings about the opportunity for discovering unexpected and new favorite combinations of ingredients. With our high-desert nights still cool and our pantry supplies unpredictable, I can’t think of a better time to share one of my favorite recipes of all time — Everyday Stew.
You can follow this recipe exactly and you will undoubtedly notice smiles around your table, although I have to admit I never actually measure anything when making a stew but offer the amounts more as a guide. You can also tinker with this recipe and make it work for the ingredients you have on hand. Who knows? Maybe your new version will become a family heirloom, passed to children, grandchildren and neighbors, a culinary snapshot from this historic moment in time.
Here’s the secret: You don’t have to go to the store for the perfect ingredient, because there are no specific ingredients that are going to make or break this stew. The only requirement is that you trust yourself and let the rest go. I’m considering this a time of invention and innovation in our home kitchens. First, let’s break down this simple recipe that allows for almost endless variations:
Fat: First, start with a big, heavy-bottomed pot. Add a splash of oil or other fat to the pan. This is a great way to use bacon fat (aka bacon butter) leftover from breakfast. In this recipe, I render bacon, remove it when it’s crispy and use the leftover fat to sear the meat. You could also use ghee. The only oil I would recommend not using is an extra virgin olive oil, which is best used for salads and finishing dishes.
Meat: Once the pan is hot, sear the meat. My favorite stew meat is local buffalo, but you could use almost any meat you have on hand: beef shoulder (aka chuck); beef round; ground beef; pork shoulder; pork tenderloin; sausage; boneless chicken breasts or thighs; even bone-in chicken if you’re careful to remove the bones before adding the meat back to the pot after cooking. You could also leave out the meat altogether, use beans or grains instead, and skip to the next step.
Mirepoix: Now it’s time to add the veggies, roots and spices that are going to add loads of flavor to your stew, also referred to as mirepoix (meer-pwaa). What does this mean? This is where you choose what direction you want your stew adventure to go. In France, the classic mirepoix is a combination of celery, carrots and onion. In Italy, cooks will often start with the French mirepoix and add parsley and garlic. Chinese mirepoix consists of green onions, ginger and garlic. If you have a hankering for Thai, try a combo of ginger, lemongrass, basil and lime zest or leaves. In my house, we often go the Indian route and in addition to the carrots, celery and onion, add red chile, fresh ginger and turmeric, and curry powder or paste. This is the time to look around in your fridge, pantry or produce section of the market and get creative. What looks good, sounds good, and what do you have access to? Do you have any fire-roasted New Mexican chiles hiding in the freezer? There has never been a better time to find them. In this recipe, I use herbes de Provence because even though the blend originates in the southeastern region of France, it often includes New Mexico herbs such as lavender, thyme and oregano.
Deglaze: After your mirepoix has been hanging out in your pot for a while, now is the time to deglaze! This means add a bit of liquid to get all the caramelly goodness off the bottom of the pot and into the stew. You could add a few glugs of wine. You could add a can of coconut milk or some crushed tomatoes or broth. Scrape the pot with a wooden spoon.
Hefty vegetables and liquid: Now add your hefty vegetables to add texture and substance to the strew. You can add things like potato, cabbage, celery root, beet, squash, fennel, mushroom, radish, turnip, collard greens, daikon (white radish), etc. Then add more liquid to cover. This could be broth or even water.
Final seasoning and delicate greens: Depending on the meat and/or vegetables you’re using, you will want to simmer over low heat until everything is tender. This could be 40 minutes or four hours. Check seasoning and see if you want to add salt, pepper or other spices. For example, sometimes when I go the Thai route, this is when I add juice from a lime or a splash of fish sauce. Just a bit to brighten it up. This is where tasting and trusting will get you where you want to go. Once everything is cooked and tender, now is the time to add greens and green vegetables. I like to add greens a few minutes (but not more) before ladling into bowls. You can add greens like spinach, kale, broccoli, peas, rapini, chard, asparagus, etc.
There will be a day when we look back on this strange time at home and memories like the scent of lavender in the spring and roasting chiles in the fall will be ingrained in our minds. Maybe we will remember the things we did like reading, going on walks, learning something new or figuring out how to help others in creative ways. But I have a feeling that we will also look back at this time with gratitude, remembering simple meals like this that we shared with the people we love.
EVERYDAY STEW
Makes 6-8 servings
4 slices of bacon, diced
3 pounds beef or buffalo meat, excess fat removed and cut into 2-inch pieces 4 carrots, peeled and sliced
1 large red onion, diced
1 celery root, peeled and diced
4 cloves of garlic, thinly sliced 2 fire-roasted green or red chiles, peeled, seeded and sliced
1 tablespoon herbes de Provence (or a mix of thyme, oregano, dried lavender) 3 tablespoons tomato paste
½ cup red wine
3-4 Yukon Gold potatoes, diced
½ pound fresh mushrooms, brushed with a dry towel or cloth and quartered
8 cups beef broth
1 cup green peas
1 bunch kale, sliced Preparation: In a large, heavy-bottomed pot over medium-low heat, add bacon and cook until the fat is rendered and the bacon crispy. Remove the bacon and reserve to a medium bowl, leaving the fat in the pot.
Turn the heat up to medium-high. Dry the meat with clean paper towels and season with salt and pepper. Working in batches so as not to overcrowd the pan, sear the meat on all sides until caramelized. Transfer the seared meat to a bowl.
Once all the meat is seared and removed from the pot, add carrots, onion, celery root, garlic, green chile and herbes de Provence. Stir and let cook for around 10 minutes.
Add tomato paste, wine and stir for another few minutes, scraping all the caramelized bits off the bottom of the pot with a wooden spoon.
Add potatoes, mushrooms and broth. Bring to a simmer and turn heat to low. Let simmer 2-3 hours until the meat is completely tender. Check seasoning, and add salt or pepper as needed.
A few minutes before serving, add peas and kale to the stew. Ladle into bowls and enjoy.
Marianne Sundquist is a chef, food business consultant and shares recipes for home cooks on Instagram @chefmariannesundquist. She owns the catering business Daya, which has shifted for the time being into an online general store, sourcing and delivering pantry staples to Santa Fe area residents. Visit dayasantafe.square.site.