Here is the recipe for my Winter Warming Veg Stew, Ive put in the Veg I
generally use but basically it is one of those things that you can throw any
veg in and is particularly good if you have any veg that needs using up.
Veg Stew
Prep Time 30 mins-1 Hour
Cook Time 2-3 Hours (It can be done quicker but generally
speaking the longer you leave it to cook the better it is.)
3-4 Medium Onion
Celery
2-3 Cloves Garlic
4/5 Medium Sized Potato
2 Sweet Potato
4 Carrots
16 Sprouts
1 of Swede/Turnip/Butternut Squash
2 Leek
8 Baby Sweetcorn
Peas
Cabbage
Pepper (Green, Red or Yellow)
6 Mushrooms
10 Tomato’s (I tend to use Cherry Tomato’s and pop them in
whole, but you could use other ones and chop them)
Salt
Pepper
Mixed Herbs (You need a good few teaspoons worth)
Smoked Paprika (2-3 Teaspoons adjust to taste)
Veg Friendly Worcestershire Sauce
Tomato Puree and/or Tomato Passata
3-4 Knor Stock Pots (veg)
2-3 Pints of Boiling Water
Broth Mix (Optional)
Bay Leaf (Optional)
Prep the veg, I normally peel the potato but can be thrown
in with skins on, I have used New Potato and Maris Piper and they both work
well.
Rough Chop the Onion and Celery and Finely Chop/Crush the
Garlic. Cut the potato and Sweet Potato into Chunks about 2cm cubes. Cut the
Swede/Carrot etc into chunks the same size and in general try to get most of
the veg to be roughly the same size to allow for an even cook.
I generally use a large stock pot to cook it in.
Fry off the Onion, Finely Chopped Garlic and Celery together
In a little Olive Oil or Frylight (Slimming World Friendly), once they are soft and start to brown add in
the Potato and Sweet Potato and fry with the Onion, Garlic and Clerey. As that
starts to brown slowly start to add the other veg, (in roughly the order I have
listed them in). I have put rough amounts that I think would serve 4 easily,
but it is fairly changeable depending on what you like/have and how big a
portion you require.
The idea is that the veg should just start cooking by being
fried off, but they don’t have to be fully cooked as they will cook fully in
the stew. As you fry the veg, season with Salt, Pepper, Smoked Paprika and
Mixed Herbs and the Worcestershire Sauce, to taste. I have found that add a
little and often as you add more veg works well, but it is best to go with
caution as you can always add more whilst it cooks slowly.
Once all the veg is in the pot, stir in some Tomato Puree
and a Small Carton of Tomato Passata and stir in well. Add the stock pot/cubes,
I personally normal add the stock cubes/pot straight into the pan as you can
stir them in well and mix it through, but you can just make them up straight
into the boiling water. If you mix them into the pot add in 2-3 Pints of
boiling water into the pot. (Again the amount will depend on how much veg you
have in the pot, but the water should more than cover the veg in the pot.)
Bring this to the boil and then place on a low heat with a
lid on the pot and allow to cook down slowly. For the best results leave on a
low heat for a good couple of hours.
You can also add in at this point some Broth Mix to help
thicken the stew and to add some extra flavor, and adding in a bay leaf can
give a nice flavor to the stew, but make sure you remove before serving.
I normally serve this either with some nice bread/Garlic
Bread, a Jacket Potato or some boiled rice.
It can also easily be transformed into a lovely veg curry by
adding in Curry Powder, (a good 3 or 4 of Desert Spoonfuls of what ever curry
flavor you like, Amy loves it with a mix of Madras and Tandoori Powder.)
I normally make it in pretty big batch loads as it works
really well when reheated, for a good couple of days or so after and can also
be frozen and is fine after.
I hope you enjoy and as always please leave me any feedback or suggestions for improvements on the recipe! Thanks for looking! :)
