Stewy recipes
Kris was asking about stew-type recipes, so here are three I know:
Southern chicken, prawn and chorizo stew
(you could leave out the prawns, if you don't eat/like them)
1 onion (roughly chopped)
2 cloves garlic (crushed)
250g mushrooms (quartered)
1 red pepper (roughly chopped)
500g diced chicken
1-2 chorizo sausages (2 if they're normal sausage sized, 1 if it's a ring)
500g cooked (pink) king prawns (optional)
1 tsp paprika (or pimenton)
ground black pepper
pinch of salt
1 small peeled potato
2 cans chopped plum tomatoes
1 chicken stock cube
Spinach (add as much as you like. I quite often use frozen spinach cubes)
Heat 2 dsp of olive oil in a large saucepan and fry the onions for a couple of minutes. Add the garlic, then the mushrooms and fry for another few minutes. Add the chicken and fry until sealed. Peel the chorizo if needed, and then chop into chunks.
Add the red pepper, chorizo, prawns, pepper and paprika and cook for another 5 mins.
Put in the tomatoes and the potato, and crumble in the stock cube. Bring to a slow boil, cover and simmer for 30 mins and then check to see if it needs more salt.
Finally, add in the spinach and cook for a further 10 minutes.
Take out the potato (it's just there to control the acidity), and serve with rice.
This recipe will stay hot on the stove for ages - although the prawns get chewier and the chicken can disintegrate if left too long. It also freezes well.
Leftover roast veg chilli (VEGETARIAN)
I often do roasted veg: quartered mushrooms, quartered onions (or whole, small shallotts), 10 whole peeled garlic cloves, big chunks of red pepper, butternut squash, courgette and aubergine, drizzled with olive oil and balsamic vinegar and baked in the oven. If there are some left over (tricky, because they're so tasty) here's a fabulous recipe:
1 onion
2 cloves garlic, crushed and chopped
1-2 tsp cumin seeds
2 green bird-eye chillies and 1 normal red chilli, finely sliced (amend to desired temperature)
1 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp pimenton or paprika
ground black pepper to taste
leftover roast veg
1-2 cans chopped plum tomatoes
1/2 tsp sugar
1 veg stock cube or 1 tsp vecon (yum!) or 1 tsp swiss vegetable bouillon powder (also yum)
1 can butter beans, drained
Fry the onion and garlic in olive oil, then add the cumin seeds and fry until they pop. Add the chillies (if using) and fry for another 2 mins.
Stir in the other spices and then add the roast veg and fry for 4-5 mins. Add the tomatoes and stock cube/paste/powder and sugar, bring to the boil and cook, covered for around 15 mins.
Add the butter beans and cook for another 15 mins or so.
Serve with rice or nice bread, if desired. It's nice just on its own!
This can be frozen, but watch out - it tends to go to mush when reheated.
Tarragon chicken
I got this one from Mark's mum. Not techincally a stew, but stove-based, and seriously yummy. Possibly the ultimate comfort food for carnivores.
1 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, crushed
500g chopped chicken breast
250g mushrooms, sliced or quartered
1 red pepper, chopped
White sauce:
50g butter or margarine
4-6 dsp flour (enough to make a paste)
1 pint milk
1 tsp dried tarragon
black pepper to taste
Fry the onion and garlic for 5 minutes, then add the chicken and cook until sealed. Add the mushrooms and fry for a further 5 minutes, and then the peppers. Cook until the peppers soften (another 5-10 mins), then set aside.
Make the white sauce: melt the butter/margarine, then stir in the flour to form a paste. Turn off the heat, and beat in the milk gradually, to prevent lumps forming. Put the heat back on, and stir constantly until the sauce thickens. Add the tarragon and pepper, once it has thickened. The consistency should be around the thickness of double cream, or thicker. The meat and mushroom juices will thin the final consitency out a bit.
Pour the sauce over the chicken mixture, and then cook it, covered, for 15-20 minutes, stirring occasionally to make sure it doesn't stick. Check the seasoning and add salt if you feel it is needed - this dish tends to be quite sweet.
Serve with rice or pasta.
Southern chicken, prawn and chorizo stew
(you could leave out the prawns, if you don't eat/like them)
1 onion (roughly chopped)
2 cloves garlic (crushed)
250g mushrooms (quartered)
1 red pepper (roughly chopped)
500g diced chicken
1-2 chorizo sausages (2 if they're normal sausage sized, 1 if it's a ring)
500g cooked (pink) king prawns (optional)
1 tsp paprika (or pimenton)
ground black pepper
pinch of salt
1 small peeled potato
2 cans chopped plum tomatoes
1 chicken stock cube
Spinach (add as much as you like. I quite often use frozen spinach cubes)
Heat 2 dsp of olive oil in a large saucepan and fry the onions for a couple of minutes. Add the garlic, then the mushrooms and fry for another few minutes. Add the chicken and fry until sealed. Peel the chorizo if needed, and then chop into chunks.
Add the red pepper, chorizo, prawns, pepper and paprika and cook for another 5 mins.
Put in the tomatoes and the potato, and crumble in the stock cube. Bring to a slow boil, cover and simmer for 30 mins and then check to see if it needs more salt.
Finally, add in the spinach and cook for a further 10 minutes.
Take out the potato (it's just there to control the acidity), and serve with rice.
This recipe will stay hot on the stove for ages - although the prawns get chewier and the chicken can disintegrate if left too long. It also freezes well.
Leftover roast veg chilli (VEGETARIAN)
I often do roasted veg: quartered mushrooms, quartered onions (or whole, small shallotts), 10 whole peeled garlic cloves, big chunks of red pepper, butternut squash, courgette and aubergine, drizzled with olive oil and balsamic vinegar and baked in the oven. If there are some left over (tricky, because they're so tasty) here's a fabulous recipe:
1 onion
2 cloves garlic, crushed and chopped
1-2 tsp cumin seeds
2 green bird-eye chillies and 1 normal red chilli, finely sliced (amend to desired temperature)
1 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp pimenton or paprika
ground black pepper to taste
leftover roast veg
1-2 cans chopped plum tomatoes
1/2 tsp sugar
1 veg stock cube or 1 tsp vecon (yum!) or 1 tsp swiss vegetable bouillon powder (also yum)
1 can butter beans, drained
Fry the onion and garlic in olive oil, then add the cumin seeds and fry until they pop. Add the chillies (if using) and fry for another 2 mins.
Stir in the other spices and then add the roast veg and fry for 4-5 mins. Add the tomatoes and stock cube/paste/powder and sugar, bring to the boil and cook, covered for around 15 mins.
Add the butter beans and cook for another 15 mins or so.
Serve with rice or nice bread, if desired. It's nice just on its own!
This can be frozen, but watch out - it tends to go to mush when reheated.
Tarragon chicken
I got this one from Mark's mum. Not techincally a stew, but stove-based, and seriously yummy. Possibly the ultimate comfort food for carnivores.
1 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, crushed
500g chopped chicken breast
250g mushrooms, sliced or quartered
1 red pepper, chopped
White sauce:
50g butter or margarine
4-6 dsp flour (enough to make a paste)
1 pint milk
1 tsp dried tarragon
black pepper to taste
Fry the onion and garlic for 5 minutes, then add the chicken and cook until sealed. Add the mushrooms and fry for a further 5 minutes, and then the peppers. Cook until the peppers soften (another 5-10 mins), then set aside.
Make the white sauce: melt the butter/margarine, then stir in the flour to form a paste. Turn off the heat, and beat in the milk gradually, to prevent lumps forming. Put the heat back on, and stir constantly until the sauce thickens. Add the tarragon and pepper, once it has thickened. The consistency should be around the thickness of double cream, or thicker. The meat and mushroom juices will thin the final consitency out a bit.
Pour the sauce over the chicken mixture, and then cook it, covered, for 15-20 minutes, stirring occasionally to make sure it doesn't stick. Check the seasoning and add salt if you feel it is needed - this dish tends to be quite sweet.
Serve with rice or pasta.