Wright - The best stews in the world : 300 satisfying one-dish dinners, from chilis and gumbos to curries and cassoulet

For my darling daughter,
Dyala Katri Kattan-Wright

The Harvard Common Press
535 Albany Street
Boston, Massachusetts 02118
www.harvardcommonpress.com

Copyright 2002 by Clifford A. Wright
Illustrations copyright 2002 by Neverne Covington

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.

Printed in the United States of America
Printed on acid-free paper

The Library of Congress has cataloged the original edition as follows:

Wright, Clifford A.
Real stew : 300 recipes for authentic home-cooked cassoulet, gumbo, chili, curry, minestrone, bouillabaisse, stroganoff, goulash, chowder, and much more / Clifford A. Wright.
p. cm.
Includes index.
ISBN 1-55832-1985 (hc : alk. paper)1-55832-1993 (pbk : alk. paper)
1. Stews. I. Title.
TX693.W75 2002
641.8'23dc21
2002017290

Reprint ISBN: 978-1-55832-747-4 (pbk.)

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C OVER DESIGN BY D EBORAH K ERNER
C OVER PHOTOGRAPH BY S TEVEN N EEDHAM /E NVISION
I LLUSTRATIONS BY N EVERNE C OVINGTON
B OOK DESIGN BY K ATHLEEN H ERLIHY -P AOLI , I NKSTONE D ESIGN

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There are many people who have helped me with the recipes in this book, and they are usually mentioned in the recipe itself. But there was a steadfast group of people who would on a moment's notice help eat all these stews either by coming over to my house or by allowing me to arrive at their doorstep, stew in hand (or pot, I should say). Without Martha Rose Shulman and Bill Grantham, Barbara Shulgasser-Parker and Norman Parker, Russ and Kathy Parsons, Bill and Laurie Benenson, Heidi Mage Lloyd, Anne Troutman, Alex Istanbuli, Kimba Hills, Steve Monas and Maggie Megaw, Najwa al-Qattan, Liz Marx, Katina Shields, Simeon Pillich, Sarah Pillsbury, Stuart and Helen Garber, Pauline Lord and David Harlow, Lois Fishman, and my children, Ali, Dyala, and Seri, there would have been a lot of leftover stew. Once you read this book, you'll see that that is not a bad thing. Nevertheless, my freezer wasn't that big.

I would also like to thank Pam Hoenig, my editor, and Doe Coover, my agent, for once again providing the guidance and support that makes my books not only fun to write but, I hope, fun to read. Thanks also go to Bruce Shaw, publisher, Deborah Kops, copyeditor, and everyone else at The Harvard Common Press for making this book what it is. Special thanks go to Brian J. Maynard, Christopher E. Hubbach, and the KitchenAid Corporation for their assistance.

As the crisp, cold New England air descends in late September, the rusty leaves fall, sweaters are donned, and you can see your breath, thoughts turn to the first stew of the cold days ahead. I lived in Massachusetts for fifteen years and those cold, enveloping winters gave birth to many a piping hot, rib-sticking stew chock-full of long-simmered meats, hearty root vegetables, and other flavorful foods. Stews gave rise to many a warming thought and an even warmer kitchen, whose aromas would entice us all day long.

Making stews is an enjoyable activity filled with great expectation. When you think of comfort food, when you think of hearth and home, when you think of good cookin', you are undoubtedly thinking of a stew. Every step of stew making is inviting, from tossing chopped onions and celery into the stewpot and listening to the sizzle, to dissolving the tomato paste in water and stirring in the red wine, and, of course, hearing someone in another room yell, "What's cook-in'? It smells so good."

I have a broad conception of what a stew is and, technically, I suppose, some of the stews in this book are not stews. Perhaps they are ragouts and braises. But if there is one thing that distinguishes a stew, it is that it cooks gently for a long time and so do ragouts and braises and that's why I include them. One of the things I love most about stews, in addition to their taste, is the fact that the aromas permeate the house for hours. There is something else I love about them: you can never make too much because stews are wonderful the second time around. Many of the stews in this book actually ask you to cook them several times, because each new stage of cooking adds yet another level of flavor complexity. Not all stews cook gently, though; take, for instance, fish stews, which cook quickly in some cases.

I speak of braises, ragouts, and stews in the same breath. A braise involves cooking meat slowly in some fat in a covered pot with very little liquid, which then becomes the final sauce. A ragout also involves cooking well-seasoned meat and vegetables slowly, but with a thicker sauce, a gravy really. Stew is the catchall word to describe the process of cooking at a simmering heat, and for that reason I think it covers everything. Some people use the word braise to be that catchall phrase.

Stews are as old as the invention of the first pot. M.F.K. Fisher notes in How to Cook a Wolf that making stew is a "satisfying procedure and can give no harm to man or beast. There is a different recipe for everyone who has thought of making one, but in general the rules are simple." In culinary terms, one reason for stews, and there are many, is to break down the connective tissue in cheaperthat is, toughercuts of meat so that it is palatable. This can only be done through long simmering. For this reason, one would never stew filet mignon, because there is little connective tissue and the meat is already tender. On the other hand, one cannot quickly grill a brisket because it would not come out tender. The muscles of the animal that get a good workout, such as the foreleg or rump, are surrounded by very thick sheets of connective tissue. That is why these cuts of meat are tougher. But that slow cooking also make them moist and tender too. According to Russ Parsons, food editor of the Los Angeles Times, it takes extended moist heating to break down the connective tissue of tougher cuts of meat, typically raising the internal temperature of the meat to 180 to 185 degrees Fahrenheit, as opposed to most red meats, which are considered cooked at 130 to 140 degrees.

Tureen

Stews begin in different ways. Some cooks like to brown the meat first by sauting it in a little fat and then adding liquid and other ingredients. Other cooks start braising or stewing without the initial browning. These are called blanquettes and are often made with chicken or veal. In the initial browning of the meat you should remember that you're also cooking it, so don't overbrown it. The meat should be crispy golden brown on the outside, and that should be accomplished over not a very high heat but rather a medium-high heat.

What do you cook a stew in? Throughout the book I will almost always call for stewing in a stew pot or a casserole. When I say casserole, I mean the one I use very often, which is a large enameled cast-iron casserole made by Le Creuset that can be used on the stove top and in the oven. There are other kinds of stew pots and casseroles, including earthenware, which I recommend highly because it truly provides another level of flavor. There is the