Stew MacSween

A stew is a combination of solid food ingredients that have been cooked in liquid and served in the resultant gravy. A stew needs to have raw ingredients added to the gravy. Ingredients in a stew can include any combination of vegetables and may include meat, especially tougher meats suitable for slow-cooking, such as beef, pork, lamb, poultry, sausages, and seafood. While water can be used as the stew-cooking liquid, stock is also common. A small amount of red wine is sometimes added for flavour. Seasoning and flavourings may also be added. Stews are typically cooked at a relatively low temperature (simmered, not boiled), allowing flavours to mingle.

Stewing is suitable for the least tender cuts of meat that become tender and juicy with the slow moist heat method. This makes it popular in low-cost cooking. Cuts having a certain amount of marbling and gelatinous connective tissue give moist, juicy stews, while lean meat may easily become dry.

Stews are thickened by reduction or with flour, either by coating pieces of meat with flour before searing, or by using a roux or '' beurre manié'', a dough consisting of equal parts of fat and flour. Thickeners like cornstarch, potato starch, or arrowroot may also be used.

Stews are similar to soups, and in some cases there may not be a clear distinction between the two. Generally, stews have less liquid than soups, are much thicker and require longer cooking over low heat. While soups are almost always served in a bowl, stews may be thick enough to be served on a plate with the gravy as a sauce over the solid ingredients.

History

Stews have been made since ancient times. The world's oldest known evidence of stew was found in Japan, dating to the Jōmon period. Additionally, Herodotus says that the Scythians (8th to 4th centuries BC) "put the flesh into an animal's paunch, mix water with it, and boil it like that over the bone fire. The bones burn very well, and the paunch easily contains all the meat once it has been stripped off. In this way an ox, or any other sacrificial beast, is ingeniously made to boil itself."

Amazonian tribes used the shells of turtles as vessels, boiling the entrails of the turtle and various other ingredients in them. Other cultures used the shells of large mollusks (clams etc.) to boil foods in. There is archaeological evidence of these practices going back 8,000 years or more.

There are recipes for lamb stews and fish stews in the Roman cookery book ''Apicius'', believed to date from the 4th century AD. ''Le Viandier'', one of the oldest cookbooks in French, written in the early 14th century by the French chef known as Taillevent, has ragouts or stews of various types in it.

The first written reference to 'Irish stew' is in Byron's "The Devil's Drive" (1814): "The Devil ... dined on ... a rebel or so in an Irish stew."

As part of the ''Eintopfsonntag'' campaign, from 1933 the Nazi party made a midday Sunday ''eintopf'' (stew) obligatory on some days: in particular as part of the Winterhilfe,
the first Sunday of the month from October until March was declared ''Eintopfsonntag''.

Types

Meat-based white stews also known as ''blanquettes'' or ''fricassées'' are made with lamb or veal that is blanched or lightly seared without browning, and cooked in stock. Brown stews are made with pieces of red meat that are first seared or browned, before a browned mirepoix and sometimes browned flour, stock and wine are added.

List of stews

* Baeckeoffe, a potato stew from Alsace
* Beef bourguignon, a French dish of beef stewed in red burgundy wine
* Beef Stroganoff, a stew with beef from Russia
* Bigos, a traditional stew in Polish cuisine
* Birria, a traditional stew from Mexico
* Bo Kho (Vietnamese: bò kho), a beef stew in rich seasonings, served with bread, noodle or plain rice from Vietnam
* Bollito misto, consisting of beef, veal, and pork simmered in an aromatic vegetable broth from Italy
* Booyah, an American meat stew
* Bosnian Pot, a stew with beef or lamb which is a national dish in Bosnia and Herzegovina
* Bouillabaisse, a fish stew from Provence
* Brongkos, a spicy Javanese meat with beans stew from Indonesia, made of ''Pangium edule'', coconut milk, and various spices
* Brunswick stew, from Virginia and the Carolinas
* Burgoo, a Kentuckian stew
* Brudet, fish stew from Dalmatia regions, known in Greece as bourdeto
* Caldeirada, a fish stew from Portugal
* Carbonade flamande, a Welsh stew
* Chakapuli, a Georgian stew made with lamb chops, coriander and tarragon leaves, and white wine
* Chanakhi, a Georgian lamb stew with tomatoes, aubergines, potatoes, greens, and garlic
* Charquicán, a Chilean dish
* Chankonabe, a Japanese dish flavoured with soy sauce or miso: Chankonabe is traditionally eaten by sumo wrestlers
* Chicken stew, whole chicken and seasonings
* Chicken paprikash, chicken stew with paprika
* Chili con carne, a meat and chili pepper stew originating in Texas
* Chilorio, a pork stew from Sinaloa, Mexico
* Cincinnati chili, developed by Macedonian immigrants from Greece immigrants in the Cincinnati area
* Cholent, a slow-cooked Jewish dish
* Chorba (also spelt "Shorba"), a stew like soup dish found in various North African, Middle Eastern, Central Asian, South Asian, and European cuisines
* Cochinita pibil, an orange color pork stew from Yucatán Peninsula, Mexico
* Cocido, a traditional Spanish and Portuguese strew with many variants (madrileño, montañés, à portuguesa, etc.)
* Cotriade, a fish stew from Brittany
* Cream stew, a yōshoku Japanese white stew
* Crow stew, a sour cream-based stew made with crow meat, popular in the United States during the Great Depression
* Daal, the Indian legume stew that has many varieties, a staple food throughout Asia
* Dalma, a traditional dish of Orrisha, India, contain pulses with vegetable
* Daube, a French stew made with cubed beef braised in wine, vegetables, garlic, and herbs
* Dinuguan, pork blood stew from the Philippines
* Eintopf, (''one pot'') the German word for a stew: many different regional specialty recipes for ''Eintopf'' are known in Germany; for example, the Kassel area has a type called ''Lumben un Fleeh'' in the local dialect (Standard German: ''Lumpen und Flöhe'' - ''rags and fleas''), which is quite similar to Irish stew. There are thicker German stews such as Hasenpfeffer or Labskaus; these would not usually be considered an ''Eintopf'', though the technical difference is minor (longer cooking times and fewer vegetables)
* Ewedu, vegetable stew from Nigeria
* Fabada asturiana, an Asturian bean and meat stew
* Feijoada, Brazilian or Portuguese bean stew
* Fårikål, traditional Norwegian stew with lamb or mutton and white cabbage
* Főzelék, a thick Hungarian vegetable dish
* Gaisburger Marsch, a German dish of stewed beef served with Spätzle and potatoes
* Gheimeh, an Iranian stew with cubed lamb and yellow split peas
* Ghormeh sabzi, an Iranian stew with green herbs, dried limes, beans, and sheep meat
* Goulash, a Hungarian meat stew with paprika
* Gumbo, a Louisiana creole dish
* Hachee, a Dutch type of stew with wine or vinegar
* Haleem, an Indian - Pakistani lentil and beef stew
* Hasenpfeffer, a sour, marinated rabbit stew from Germany
* Hayashi rice, a Japanese dish of beef, onions and mushrooms in red wine and demi-glace sauce, served with rice
* Irish stew, made with lamb or mutton, potato, onion, and parsley
* Ishtu, a curry in Kerala, India made from chicken or mutton, potato, and coconut milkKoshi Ishtu – Kerala Chicken Stew Recipe – Food.com – 265726
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* Istrian stew or ''yota'', or ''jota'', a dish popular in Croatian and Slovenian Istra and NE Italy
* I-tal Stew, a Rastafarian vegan dish of mostly Caribbean root vegetables and spices
* Jjigae, a diverse range of Korean stews
* Kalops, a traditional Swedish beef stew, with onions and carrots, served with potatoes and pickled beets
* Kare-kare, stewed beef or oxtail and vegetables in peanut sauce from the Philippines
* Karelian hot pot, from the region of Karelia in eastern Finland
*Kharcho is a traditional Georgian soup containing beef, rice, cherry plum purée, and chopped walnuts
* Khash, a traditional Armenian/Azerbaijani dish of pig's or cow's feet
* Khoresht, a variety of Persian stews, often prepared with saffron
* Kokkinisto, Greek stew with red meat, in a tomato passata with shallots, cinnamon, and other spices
* Kuurdak, a type of stew from Central Asia
* Lobscouse, a Norwegian stew with beef, potato, onion, and carrot
* Lancashire hotpot, an English stew
* Lecsó, a summertime favourite in Hungary, vegetable stew with bell pepper and tomato as main ingredients
* Linseneintopf ("lentil stew")
* Lobby, a stew from Staffordshire, England
* Locro, a stew (mainly in the Andes region)
* Machanka, a Belarus and Ukraine pork stew
* Matelote, a French fish stew made with freshwater fish, fish stock, and wine
* Mechado, a Philippine beef stew
* Moppelkotze
* Moqueca, a Brazilian stew with fish (or shrimp, crab, or other seafoods) as its main ingredient
* Mućkalica, a Serbian stew
* Nihari, a Pakistani beef stew made overnight and served for breakfast
* Nikujaga, a Japanese beef and potato stew
* Oil down, national dish of Grenada, made of breadfruit, salted meat, chicken, dumplings, callaloo, coconut milk, spices
* Olla podrida, a Spanish red bean stew
* Pašticada, a Croatian stew from the region of Dalmatia
* Peperonata, an Italian stew made with peppers
* Pepposo, a Tuscan beef stew
* Pescado Blanco, a white fish stew from Pátzcuaro, Michoacán, Mexico
* Pichelsteiner a traditional German stew
* Pörkölt, a Hungarian meat stew resembling goulash, flavoured with paprika
* Potjiekos, a South African stew
* Pot-au-feu, a simple French beef stew
* Pozole, a Mexican stew or soup
* Puchero, a stew from Andalusia, Spain, also common in South America and the Philippines
* Pulusu, is a form of stew from Andhra Pradesh in India that is typically sour and cooked with tamarind paste
* Ratatouille, a French vegetable stew
* Ragoût de Porc, a French pork stew
* Sambar, a thick vegetable stew, from South India
* Sancocho, a stew from the Caribbean
* Scouse, a stew commonly eaten by sailors throughout Northern Europe, popular in seaports such as Liverpool
* Semur, a typical Indonesian stew with beef or chicken, potatoes, carrots, various spices, and ''kecap manis'' (sweet soy sauce) from Indonesia
* Steckrübeneintopf (based on rutabaga)
* Slumgullion, a watery stew of meat and vegetables
* Tagine, a Moroccan stew, named after the conical pot in which it is traditionally cooked or served
* Tocană, a traditional Arab stew of bread in broth
* Waterzooi, a Belgian stew
* Yahni, a Greek (γιαχνί), Turkish, and Persian stew

See also

* Braising
* Casserole
* Curry
* Hot pot
* Jugging
* List of foods
* Nabemono
* Perpetual stew
* Pottage
* Soup

References

External links

Stew recipes
Food.com.

Jäger-Eintopf (hunter's Stew) Recipe

{{Cooking techniques

Cooking techniques
Culinary terminology
World cuisine
Types of food

de:Eintopf