Make a Rich Vegetarian Stew

Stews are the classic comfort food - easy to cook and even easier to eat. This recipe is similar to the beef stew recipes, but is suitable for vegetarians and meat lovers alike - the flavour is fantastic. Here's how to make this stew to serve 4

Ingredients

  • 1 medium parsnip,
  • 200g swede / rutabaga
  • 1 medium Carrot,
  • 2 small turnips,
  • 200g Red sweet potato.
  • 1 medium onion chopped.
  • 1 tomato, de-seeded and chopped.
  • 1/2 cup of celery cut in 1cm chunks.
  • 3 cups of rich vegetable stock (or suitable vegetarian grade beef flavour)
  • 3 T balsamic vinegar
  • 3 tablespoons Vegetarian Gravy powder, (or 2 T plain, corn or rice flour - gravy powder has more flavour ingredients than thickener).
  • 1 T olive oil + 1 extra
  • 2 Garlic cloves crushed
  • 1/2 tsp mixed dried herbs.
  • Chopped fresh parsley to serve
  • Optional: 150ml of red wine (deduct the same qty from the stock), a spoonful of mustard for a bit of extra heat.
  • Cheese dumplings (see recipe below) or cooked polenta or mashed potatoes for serving. Green beans, pumpkin, peas or TVP sausages cooked separately also a make it a more hearty meal.

Steps

  1. Prepare the vegetables. Peel and cut them into approx 1 inch or 2cm cubes.
  2. In a large saucepan, or flame proof casserole, heat the olive oil and the garlic, then add the onion, carrot and celery, stirring well until just golden.
  3. Remove them and add the flour / gravy powder to the pan, stir well with the extra oil and simmer for two to three minutes, or until the flour paste takes a rich golden colour.
  4. Add the stock, vinegar and wine (if desired) and stir to make a smooth sauce. It will be a thin gravy at this stage, but it will thicken slightly as it cooks. Stir or whisk well to remove any lumps.
  5. Add the remaining vegetables and the fried carrot/onion & celery batch from earlier and add the dried herbs, stirring well.
  6. In practice, the gravy should just cover the vegetables. Add a little more stock or wine if needed.
  7. Bring to a gentle simmer and cook for 20 minutes or until vegetables have softened, or bake in a preheated 180C oven for 30 minutes.
  8. Taste and season with salt and pepper.
  9. Add the dumplings on top at this stage and simmer with the lid on in the saucepan, or open in the oven (you can cover with foil if you wish). Cook another 10-15 minutes until dumplings have cooked through. If broken open it will resemble a cooked scone- it should not look raw or "doughy".
  10. Serve garnished with the chopped parsley.

Cheese Dumplings

  1. You will need: 1 cup of sifted plain flour, 1/2 tsp salt, 40g butter, 30g grated cheese, 100ml of milk, 1 tsp mustard and fresh (not dried) herbs to taste - chives, rosemary, sage or parsley are good choices.
  2. Mix the flour, salt and butter together until it forms crumbs (you can use a food processor, or your clean hands), add cheese, herbs and stir well, then add the mustard and milk.
  3. Using a table knife, stir the dough using a gentle cutting and folding motion until it resembles a light dough. Make walnut or egg sized dumplings by forming them gently into balls, then adding them on the top of the stew to bake or steam.
  4. To make it vegan, omit butter, cheese and milk. Use 40ml Olive oil and combine the same way to resemble crumbs (food processor is lots easier for oil), then use water or wine instead and use extra flavourings of you choice to compensate for the cheese.

Tips

  • Be gentle with dumplings or they will be tough as the gluten in the flour is overworked and tightens.
  • If baking the dumplings, they act more like bread and take a delicious brown crust.

Things You'll Need

  • Chopping board, knife and vegetable peeler
  • Measuring utensils
  • Large bowl, table knife and sieve (for dumplings)
  • Large saucepan or casserole.
  • Wooden spoon or spatula.

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