Here are the most common mistakes when making a stew - and how to avoid them

Plus - five of our favourite stew recipes to try out

There's nothing like a nice, hearty stew on a cold, wet evening.

It's cold, grey and wet out and we are reaching for anything to get us feeling cosy.

If the weather events of the past week are anything to go by, we are looking at a long winter ahead.

While comfy jumpers and turning up the heat can help in the cold weather, there is nothing more effective than some hearty stew to warm you from the inside out.

We are not the only ones who think so as searches for stew recipes have gone up by 66% since the start of the month.

Before you head into the kitchen, have a read of the most common stew mistakes and how to avoid them. 

Then, why not try your hand at one of our delicious stew recipes below?

Head of Culinary at HelloFresh Ireland, Hannah Duxbury has identified the five most common mistakes people make when cooking a stew.

Searches for stew recipes have gone up by 66% since the start of the month.

Not searing meat 

Many people turn to a stew after a long day as it is an easy one-pot meal.

You can throw all your ingredients in and just let it work away while you thaw yourself by the radiator.

But Duxbury says that adding just one simple step can really enhance your meal.

"Browning your protein before adding it to your stew can enhance flavour by carmelising the meat's surface and creating a more varied texture."

Not simmering long enough 

The best stews are the once that are slow-cooked. It allows the meat to become tender as well as soaking up all of the flavours.

Duxbury recommends simmering your stew for at least one to two hours for the flavours to really meld.

Adding herbs too early 

The addition of fresh herbs such as basil, parsley, coriander and dill is crucial to avoid a bland stew.

But they should not be added until the last few minutes before you take it up.

"Fresh herbs are delicate and therefore have a tendency to lose their flavour if cooked too long," explains Duxbury.

Let your stew rest 

Your stew has been simmering away and the smell is wafting through the kitchen making your stomach grumble.

You just want to get stuck in and we understand but if you rush to serve it immediately you are doing yourself a disservice.

"To allow your flavours to intensify, it's best to allow your stew to rest for a short period after serving," says Duxbury.

Sometimes it can even taste better the next day, she says - assuming you can wait that long! It is a great dish for batch cooking.

Season, season, season 

How you season your stew has the biggest impact on how good the finished product will be.

Just seasoning at the beginning or the end is a very common mistake, says Duxbury.

It should be something that happens throughout the cooking process.

"Regularly tasting and adjusting the seasoning throughout the simmering time allows you to build layers of flavour and ensure that every element of the stew is well-seasoned."

Ballymaloe beef stew

recipe by:Darina Allen

A good gutsy stew that can be made in large quantities – it reheats and freezes brilliantly

Servings

8

Preparation Time

 10 mins

Cooking Time

 3 hours 0 mins

Total Time

 3 hours 10 mins

Course

 Main

Ingredients

• 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

• 1.35kg (3 lb) well hung stewing beef or lean flank

• 4 large carrots cut into 1/2 inch (1cm) slices

• 2 parsnips cut in ¾ dice

• 285g (10 ozs) sliced onions

• 1 heaped tablespoon flour

• 150ml (5fl oz) red wine (or use all beef stock)

• 150ml (5fl oz) brown beef stock

• 250ml (8fl oz) homemade Tomato Purée, otherwise use best quality tinned tomato -pureed and sieved

• 175g (6 oz) sliced mushrooms

• 1 tbsp chopped parsley

• salt and freshly ground pepper

Method

1. Trim the meat of any excess fat, then prepare the vegetables. Cut the meat into 4cm cubes.

2. Heat the olive oil in a casserole; sweat the sliced onions carrots and parsnips on a gentle heat with a lid on for 10 minutes. Heat a little more olive oil in a frying pan until almost smoking.  Sear the pieces of meat on all sides, reduce the heat, stir in flour, cook for 1 minutes, mix the wine, stock and tomato puree together and add gradually to the casserole. Season with salt and freshly ground pepper.

3. Cover and cook gently. Cook gently for 2 ½ - 3 hours in a low oven, depending on the cut of meat, 160°C/325°F/gas mark 3. Meanwhile, sauté the mushrooms and add with the parsley to the casserole, 30 minutes approx. before the end of cooking.  Serve with mashed potatoes or noodles and a good green salad.
   
   Note: If you wish, you can cver the surface of the stew with 8 – 10 whole peeled potatoes laid on top and cooked for about an hour before the end of the cooking. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper and cover with a lid

 

One-pot chicken stew

recipe by:Derval O'Rourke

This stew is done in one big pot. I use chicken legs in this stew because they’re economical and they add a lot of flavour. Try to get free-range if you can

Servings

4

Preparation Time

 10 mins

Cooking Time

 1 hours 30 mins

Total Time

 1 hours 40 mins

Course

 Main

Ingredients

• 2 tbsp butter

• 3 celery sticks, chopped

• 1 onion, finely chopped

• 1 tbsp fresh thyme leaves

• 4 chicken legs

• 4 garlic cloves, crushed

• a glass of white wine

• 2 carrots, peeled and roughly chopped

• 400g tin of chopped tomatoes

• salt and pepper

• baby potatoes, to serve

Method

1. Melt the butter in a very large casserole over a medium heat. Add the celery, onion and thyme and cook for 5 minutes. Place the chicken legs skin-side down in the pan and cook for 5 minutes, until the skin is browned.

2. Add the garlic and cook for 2 minutes. Pour in the wine and cook on a high heat for 2 minutes, until the wine evaporates. Reduce the heat and stir in the carrots and tomatoes. Simmer, uncovered, for 40 minutes.

3. Stir 200ml water into the pan and turn the chicken legs so that they are skin-side up. Simmer, uncovered, for another 40 minutes.

4. Meanwhile, boil the potatoes in salted water for 10–15 minutes, until tender.

5. When the chicken is cooked through and the vegetables are tender, season to taste. Ladle the stew into warmed serving bowls and serve with the baby potatoes.

 

Pork and Green Tomatillo Stew

Green tomatoes work brilliantly in this stew if you can’t find tomatillos. It can be cooked ahead, refrigerated overnight and reheated gently.

Servings

8

Preparation Time

 10 mins

Cooking Time

 50 mins

Total Time

 60 mins

Course

 Main

Cuisine

 European

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

• 700g (1 1/2lbs) boneless pork shoulder or neck, cut into 3-inch chunks

• salt and freshly ground black pepper

• 2 large celery sticks, finely diced

• 175g (6oz) red onion, finely diced

• 2 medium sized carrots (175g/6oz), peeled and chopped into 1cm (1/2 inch) cubes

• 1 red chilli, seeded and finely diced

• 2 garlic cloves, crushed

• 2 teaspoons medium hot chilli powder

• 1 tablespoon roasted and ground cumin

• 1 tablespoon marjoram, chopped

• 450ml (16fl oz) homemade chicken stock

• 450g (1lb) potatoes, peeled and diced

• 1 x 400g (14oz) tin chopped tomatoes

• 450g (1lb) green tomatoes or tomatillos—husked, rinsed and cut into 2.5cm (1 inch) dice

• 1 tablespoon chipotle in adobo, chopped

• chopped coriander, for garnish

• corn tortillas, for serving

Method

1. Heat the olive oil in a medium casserole. Season the pork with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Toss the pork cubes in batches and cook over a high heat until browned all over. Add the celery, onion and carrot and cook over a moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 4-5 minutes.

2. Add the diced chilli, garlic, chilli powder, cumin and marjoram. Cook stirring frequently, until fragrant, about 3 minutes.

3. Add the chicken stock and bring to a boil. Add the potatoes and cook for 15 minutes or until both meat and potatoes are tender. Add the chopped green tomatoes or tomatillos and chipotle en adobo. Cover and simmer over low heat until the pork is cooked through, 25 - 30 minutes.

4. Taste and correct the seasoning. Ladle the stew into bowls. Scatter with lots of coriander and serve with tortillas.

 

Irish lamb stew

recipe by:Darina Allen

Using Michael McGrath’s tender lamb, this hearty, comforting stew is bursting with root vegetables and chopped herbs for added flavour

Servings

4

Preparation Time

 20 mins

Cooking Time

 1 hours 10 mins

Total Time

 1 hours 30 mins

Course

 Main

Ingredients

• 1.35kg lamb chops (gigot or rack chops) not less than 2.5cm thick

• 8 carrots

• 8 onions

• 8-12 potatoes, or more if you like

• salt

• pepper

• 700-800ml stock or water

• 1 sprig of thyme

• 1 tbsp roux

• 1 tbsp freshly chopped parsley, to garnish

• 1 tbsp freshly chopped chives, to garnish

Method

1. Cut the chops in half and trim off some of the excess fat. Set aside. Render down the fat on a gentle heat in a heavy pan (discard the rendered down pieces).

2. Peel the onions, and scrape or thinly peel the carrots (if they are young you could leave some of the green stalk on the onion and carrot). Cut the carrots into large chunks, or if they are small leave them whole. If the onions are large, cut them into quarters through the root, if they are small they are best left whole.

3. Toss the meat in the hot fat on the pan until it is slightly brown. Transfer the meat into a casserole, then quickly toss the onions and carrots in the fat. Build the meat, carrots and onions up in layers in the casserole, carefully season each layer with freshly ground pepper and salt. De-glaze the pan with lamb stock and pour into the casserole.

4. Peel the potatoes and lay them on top of the casserole so they will steam while the stew cooks. Season the potatoes.

5. Add a sprig of thyme, bring to the boil on top of the stove, cover with a butter wrapper or paper lid and the lid of the saucepan.

6. Transfer to a moderate oven, or allow to simmer on top of the stove until the stew is cooked, 60 to 90 mins, depending on whether the stew is made with lamb or hogget.

7. When the stew is cooked, pour off the cooking liquid, de-grease and reheat in another saucepan. Slightly thicken by whisking in a little roux if you like. Check seasoning, then add chopped parsley and chives.

8. Pour over the meat and vegetables. Bring the stew back up to boiling point and serve from the pot, or in a large pottery dish.

 

Chickpea and butternut squash stew

recipe by:Michelle Darmody

This tasty veggie dinner can be made in a slow cooker

Servings

4

Preparation Time

 5 mins

Cooking Time

 20 mins

Total Time

 25 mins

Course

 Main

Cuisine

 Irish

Ingredients

• A dash of rapeseed oil

• 2 red onions, diced

• 6 cloves of garlic, crushed

• 1 small butternut squash, peeled and cubed

• 3 tsp ground cinnamon

• 2 tsp chilli powder

• 3 tsp cumin seeds

• 1 tin chopped tomatoes

• 2 tsp honey or golden caster sugar

• 1 tin chickpeas, drained

• 1 tbsp of golden raisins

• 50 mls stock

• To serve:

• Steamed couscous for four

• 2 scallions, sliced

• 2 tbsp slivered almonds, toasted

• A spoon of natural yoghurt

Method

1. Put all of the ingredients for the stew into a large ovenproof dish. Place it into your preheated over without a lid. Allow to bubble away until the squash is soft. You can add a little more stock as it bubbles if you feel the squash is soaking up all of the liquid.

2. Serve with the couscous, scallions and the yogurt and slivered almonds on top.

3. You could serve it with freshly chopped coriander or some preserved lemons as well if you wish.