Stews

I keep finding different cuts of beef in my freezer that I purchased at the farmers’ markets last fall, and as it’s only March, it’s still stewing season.  Today it is a sirloin tip cut from the round, and I’m going to make a beef stew…the only question being, which beef stew recipe to use. 

Cooking meat and/or vegetables in water, or other liquid medium such as stock, wine, beer, milk or pureed fruits or vegetables, has many advantages.  The liquid imparts its heat rapidly and evenly, its temperature can be easily adjusted, it carries flavor from the item being cooked, and ultimately it becomes the sauce when the cooking is complete.  In stewing, the liquid should be maintained at a low temperature (i.e. 150-180 degrees) for a relatively long time to allow the breakdown of the meat’s collagen into gelatin, which aids in the thickening of the resulting sauce.  This low temperature method also prevents the meat from exuding all its juices and becoming dried out. which occurs around 150 degrees.  However, all the collagen won’t be dissolved until 160 degrees plus, so close attention to the doneness of the meat is important for a succulent stew.  One way to help achieve this result is to place the cooking vessel in an oven at 225 degrees, uncovered or with the top askew.  If covered, the liquid will come to the boil and you risk drying out the meat.  It is advisable to allow a stew to cool before serving to not only allow the meat to reabsorb some of the liquid lost during its cooking, but also to allow all the flavors to meld together.  As we all know, stews always taste better the next day.

While there are blanquettes and fricassees that are “white” stews, if using beef or lamb one should brown the meat quickly and thoroughly before introducing the cooking liquid.  Through the Maillard reaction, which differs from caramelization as sugar is not the primary element changing color, meats brown as a chemical reaction between their carbohydrate molecules (which include sugars) and amino acids occurs, resulting, as one of its by-products, in a brown color and intensification of flavor, and brown food tastes best.

While a stew can be as simple as meat and sauce, it more frequently includes a number of diced aromatic vegetables like onions, carrots and celery sautéed into a mirepoix or soffrito.  These become one of the flavor bases of the stew when cooked in the same fat as the meat was browned in.  In addition, many meat stews include vegetables like potatoes, carrots, turnips, parsnips and the like which braise along with the meat, and a can of Italian style tomatoes is always a welcome addition.  Sometimes flour is introduced after the meat has been browned and the mirepoix cooked to add body to the final sauce, but a slow reduction in the liquid cooking will also produce a lightly thickened sauce just through evaporation.

PS Since writing this bit on stews, I cooked this beef at a low oven temperature for 2 hours with the top of my Dutch oven ajar, and found the beef to be tough.  Additional cooking at a lazy simmer tenderized the beef, but didn't seem to materially dry it out.

Chowder

We had a wonderful piece of cod from the Holy Mackerel fish store in Fairlee the other night, but the whole fillet was more than we could eat in one meal.  I dutifully removed the thickest pieces for dinner and reserved the balance to make a fish chowder the next day. 

Chowder is a New England tradition, although we can’t lay exclusive claim to it, as its origins were probably European, given that the word “chowder” is a derivation of the word chaudiere, an iron pot French settlers brought to New England and the Maritime provinces of Canada.  Upon arriving in the new world, the settlers soon met the local Micmac Indians, one of whose main sources of protein was the local clams, which were ubiquitous.  With an appropriate cooking vessel and an abundance of clams, the origins of chowder were set, and logically onions and potatoes were soon added to the pot, and milk followed shortly thereafter.

While one can concoct a chowder from any variety of fish, shellfish, or vegetables, usually the only meat would be some sort of cured pork, like bacon or salt pork, although ham hocks or even minced ham is are sometimes used.  In New England it is traditional to include sautéed salt pork, onions, diced potatoes, thyme, bay leaf, hard shell clams (be they quahogs, cherrystones or little necks) and milk and/or cream, with a parsley garnish.  I don’t advocate the use of flour to thicken the chowder, although a lot of places make a roux as part of the chowder-making process and produce a chowder that is so thick it’ll hold a spoon upright.  In my recipe, the broth is thickened by the starch given off by the boiling of the potatoes, and the addition of crushed saltines, or Vermont hard crackers, when the soup is served.

As one proceeds south from Boston, however, the chowder starts to change.  In Rhode Island they don’t add milk or cream, but they do add some tomatoes (part of their Portuguese culinary tradition), thus they have a reddish clear broth.  Further south in New York, Manhattan clam chowder includes not only tomatoes, but also herbs and no milk.  To New Englanders, this concoction “is only a vegetable soup, and not to be confused with New England Clam Chowder, nor spoken of in the same breath.” 

One can make their chowder with their clams either in their shell or not.  If you are using large hard shell clams like quahogs or cherrystones, it is probably best to steam them in their shells and, after the shells open, remove the clams and chop them up before adding to the chowder, along with their juices.  If using little necks or count necks, they can be steamed open right in the chowder and make an attractive presentation in a large soup bowl.

Chowder doesn’t have to include clams, as there are fish chowders, corn chowder and vegetarian chowders, with the latter often featuring beans and/or corn.  In the summer, fresh corn and Maine lobsters make a fantastic chowder, and a recipe is posted on the blog under the corn articles from last summer. 

Three Onion Fish Chowder

Serves 4

3/4 lb fresh cod, cut into 1' pieces

6 oz. salt pork, cubed

1 onion, chopped
1 leek, washed and cut into rounds
1 shallot, chopped fine

1 Tbl olive or canola oil

3/4 lb red Bliss potatoes, cut in half if small. cubed in larger
1 sprig fresh thyme
2 bay leaves

1 cup milk

1/4 cup heavy cream

Freshly ground black pepper

2 Tbl minced parsley

Vermont crackers or saltines

Saute the salt pork in the oil until crisp.  Add the chopped onion, leek and shallot and saute 5 minutes until soft, but not colored.  Add the potatoes and stir them around in the fat before just covering with water.  Bring to a boil and cook, uncovered, for 10 minutes, or until the potatoes are cooked through.  Add the fish cubes and cook gently for 5 minutes.  Add the milk and cream and bring back just to the simmer.  Remove from the heat and garnish with the parsley.  Give each serving a sprinkling of the black pepper.  Serve with the crackers.