The wet and windy cyclonic weather this week has prompted Chef Seeto to dust off some easy one-pot recipes that will keep readers warm and healthy, and provide a pot of medicine to strengthen the immune system through the wet and windy weather.
Cooking soups, stews and casseroles offers many advantages during cyclone season when most families are bunkered down at home or in the village. All of these types of dishes require just one pot or cooking dish, so there is less to wash up as the family secures the home in preparation for the strong winds and rain. It also gives the home cook the chance to clear out the fridge and use up any excess vegetables in the garden that might get washed away. A pot of hearty vegetables, with or without meats and seafood, can also be turned into a cauldron of medicine foods to heal, protect and repair the body during cyclonic weather. But did you know that stews have been around ever since mankind learned how to light a fire and hunt.
History of stew
The history of stew recipes dates back to prehistoric times. Unlike the modern casserole, which is cooked in the oven, stews were cooked over fires in large vessel to hold the meat, vegetables and liquid. With no pots in those days, stew recipes consisted of animal flesh mixed with water placed inside the animal’s stomach, which was boiled over a fire made from the bones of the same animal. This clever but practical use of the whole animal was also seen in the South Pacific with turtle flesh boiled along with other ingredients in the shell of the turtle. The Roman cookery book from the 4th Century also contains stew recipes, which used lamb and fish. An old cookbook from France by the name of Le Viandier also contains information about stew recipes cooked at that time. The ease of cooking stews sees recipes in nearly every culture, whether it is the Indian curry, the French ragout and ratatouille, Irish Stew, Hungarian goulash or Mexican chilli con carne.
Types of stew
Stews can be of numerous kinds, made of different kinds of ingredients and methods of cooking. One classification divides them into white stews and brown stews. White stews are made with lamb or veal meat which has been blanched or seared without browning, and cooked in stock. Brown stew recipe uses red meat that has first been browned. Browned flour, stock and wine are also added to it. Apart from the meat and vegetables, a flavorful liquid is needed to help break down the fibres of tough meats and can include water, stock, wine, beer or in the islands, coconut water.
Secrets of a beef stew is pork
The prevalence of ox, cows, lamb and pigs in ancient times helped define the stew recipes that have remained much the same today. The classic ingredients used for preparing a beef stew include beef (cut into cubes), flour, ground cracked black, salted pork, celery stalks, carrots, onion, garlic, bay leaves, dry red wine, tomato paste, quartered white potatoes, fresh parsley and salt to taste. Long before the invention of vegetable oils, pork fat was used to first fry the meat and gave the stew more flavor and depth. This technique is still used today with the addition of pork fat or bacon in many classic stew and soup recipes. To make a great stew, beef is first seasoned with salt and pepper, and the pieces are lightly coated with flour. Pork fat is cooked in a heavy pot over medium flame until it renders its fat. The large pieces of pork fat are removed, and the beef pieces are browned in the remaining fat in the heavy pot. The browned beef is set aside. Now onion, garlic, carrot and celery are added to the pot and cooked until soft. Next bay leaves, tomato paste and red wine are added to this, and stirred to dissolve the tomato paste. Beef chunks are then added, and salt and pepper are added to taste. The pot is covered and the contents allowed to simmer for a couple of hours, till the meat is tender. Never add all of the vegetables with the meat as you’ll end up with a gooey mess that will look like a mushy aloo baigani curry at an Indian wedding! Once the meat is tender, add potatoes, remaining celery and carrots. The mixture is allowed to simmer again, until the potatoes are just cooked.
Health benefits of stew
Stew is an ancient health laden food. It contains meat or legumes including beans and lentils, which are rich in protein, amino acids and phosphorus. Phosphorus in meat is much more easily absorbable by the human body than that present in vegetarian dishes. The liquid content of stew, along with the herbs and spices used in stew recipes, and the warm temperature at which it is consumed, makes it very agreeable for the digestion system. It also has a heating effect on the body to warm the tummy and is one of the most ideal foods in cyclone weather, and to suit the big Fijian appetite.
* Lance Seeto is the executive chef, author and food writer based on Castaway Island, and culinary ambassador for Fiji Airways and Tourism Fiji.
