Evening Edge
What’s For Dinner?
DEL.ICIO.USVegetarian Stew - from John Kessler
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My sister, who has a gift for assembling tricky dinner parties, called me for advice the other day.
“These are the guests coming this Saturday: One person keeps kosher, another is vegetarian and a third can’t eat any cheese. Help,” she implored.
I sat down and diagrammed the various food groups in interlocking circles to look for subsets, as with a junior high math problem.
"What about your vegetable stew?” she asked.
“I don’t have a vegetable stew.”
“You do. You gave me the recipe a long time ago. People said it didn’t taste vegetarian.”
I asked myself what would happen if I browned every vegetable in sight and combined them in a caramelized onion base. Would the results taste at all meaty?
They did. I had made this stew a few times, published it in the newspaper in Denver where I worked, had three children and completely forgot about it.
But on my sister’s prompting, I looked through my old clips and resuscitated the recipe.
A bowlful tastes good with some crusty bread and even better with polenta and braised greens.
And — onion allergies aside — it’s suitable for all diets. -- John Kessler
Hands on time: 1 hour Total time: 2 hours Serves: 4-6
Ingredients:
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About 1/2 cup olive oil, divided
2 large yellow onions, peeled, quartered lengthwise and thinly sliced
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon dry sherry, divided
1 cup orange juice, divided
3 large carrots, peeled, halved down the center, cut into 3/4-inch chunks
1 large sweet potato, peeled and cut into 1-inch cubes
3 large waxy potatoes (about 1 1/2 pounds) washed and cut into 1-inch cubes
1 medium crown broccoli, cut into florets (about 2 cups)
1/4 cabbage, cut into 1-inch dice
1/2 pound button mushrooms, washed and halved
3 to 4 garlic cloves, minced
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 ( 14 1/2-ounce ) can hominy, drained and rinsed
2 tablespoons soy sauce, plus more to taste
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce, plus more to taste
Pinch cayenne (optional)
Pinch granulated sugar (optional)
Instructions:
Lightly coat a large frying pan with olive oil and heat over a medium-high burner. Add onions and thyme and heat without stirring until bottom of pan is very dark brown. Add 1/4 cup sherry and deglaze pan, scraping it with a wooden spoon to release the caramelized bottom and stirring well into onions. Repeat process with another 1/4 cup of sherry. Allow pan to caramelize 4 more times, deglazing with 1/4 cup of orange juice each time. After cooking down the final addition of orange juice, add 1 cup water, stir to dilute and transfer to a bowl.
Clean pan and use it to sauté carrots, sweet potato and potatoes, separately, in olive oil over medium-high heat for about 7 minutes each. The vegetables should be lightly browned on all sides. Set aside on a plate.
Repeat process for broccoli, cabbage and mushrooms in same pan. Set aside on another plate. Turn down the heat and briefly sauté garlic. Deglaze pan with 1/2 cup water, scraping up any brown bits from the bottom with a wooden spoon. Set aside.
In a saucepan, heat 2 tablespoons olive oil over medium-high heat, add 2 tablespoons flour and whisk together into a roux. Allow roux to brown slightly, then add 2 cups water and whisk vigorously. When mixture begins to bubble and thicken, add the garlic-water mixture and turn it off.
In a large pot, combine ingredients of saucepan, caramelized onions, carrots, sweet potatoes, potatoes and hominy. Add 1 cup water, soy sauce and Worcestershire sauce. Add cayenne and sugar, if desired, and remaining tablespoon of sherry. Bring to a boil and immediately reduce to a simmer. Cook covered for 30 minutes. Add remaining vegetables and cook an additional 5 minutes to meld flavors. Adjust seasoning, if needed.
Clean pan and use it to sauté carrots, sweet potato and potatoes, separately, in olive oil over medium-high heat for about 7 minutes each. The vegetables should be lightly browned on all sides. Set aside on a plate.
Repeat process for broccoli, cabbage and mushrooms in same pan. Set aside on another plate. Turn down the heat and briefly sauté garlic. Deglaze pan with 1/2 cup water, scraping up any brown bits from the bottom with a wooden spoon. Set aside.
In a saucepan, heat 2 tablespoons olive oil over medium-high heat, add 2 tablespoons flour and whisk together into a roux. Allow roux to brown slightly, then add 2 cups water and whisk vigorously. When mixture begins to bubble and thicken, add the garlic-water mixture and turn it off.
In a large pot, combine ingredients of saucepan, caramelized onions, carrots, sweet potatoes, potatoes and hominy. Add 1 cup water, soy sauce and Worcestershire sauce. Add cayenne and sugar, if desired, and remaining tablespoon of sherry. Bring to a boil and immediately reduce to a simmer. Cook covered for 30 minutes. Add remaining vegetables and cook an additional 5 minutes to meld flavors. Adjust seasoning, if needed.
Nutrition:
Per serving (based on 4): 637 calories (percent of calories from fat, 42), 10 grams protein, 80 grams carbohydrates, 11 grams fiber, 29 grams fat (4 grams saturated), no cholesterol, 795 milligrams sodium.
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