Category Archives: stew

Roasted Tomato, Chorizo & Tepary Bean Stew

23 October 2015 by local kitchen

We had a killing frost last weekend. We were away, of course (the theme for 2015, it appears, is “Away“), this time in Bucks County, PA (with a quick side-trip to Hackettstown, NJ to see our friend Joe’s new brewery, Man Skirt Brewing – you should go!) to visit friends. Morning temps dipped below freezing there as well, and we woke up to bright blue skies, brisk wind, and a touch of frost on the grass. I knew this frost was coming: my […]

Categories: beans, fall, main course, pork, sausage, stew, tomatoes • Tags: beans, cooking, fall, food, local, pork, recipes, stew

Downeast Beef Chili

4 December 2012 by local kitchen

As you might have heard, I’ve been staying with Tai’s grandmother Louisa, in Downeast Maine, since before Thanksgiving. Louisa is awesome: she is bright, warm, and generous, and has always made me feel welcome and an important part of this big, wacky family into which I married. But Louisa is 88 years old, and while she has maintained an amazing amount of independence and vitality throughout her ‘golden years,’ in the last six months or so she has suffered some […]

Categories: 100% local, beans, beef, bell pepper, carrot, heirloom beans, hot chile peppers, main course, stew, winter • Tags: beans, beef, chiles, cooking, food, local, recipes, winter

Superstew Sandy

5 November 2012 by local kitchen

Seven days. Seven days since Sandy visited the East Coast with her high winds and devastating storm surge. Seven days that I, and hundreds of thousands of others in the tri-state area, have been without electricity. Seven days: and we are still without power Chez Local Kitchen, and our estimate for power restoration is the feels-oh-so-far-away Wednesday night at 11 pm. In some ways it feels much longer: while we are very lucky, with no damage to our property, despite […]

Categories: 100% local, bell pepper, chicken, corn, disaster, fall, main course, sausage, stew, thyme, winter • Tags: chicken, cooking, food, hurricane, local, recipes, sandy, sausage, stew

Kale & Potato Curry

9 July 2012 by local kitchen

Tai had two of his four wisdom teeth extracted a few days ago. Given that most people have their wisdom teeth removed in their teens or early 20’s, it was not an easy procedure: Tai’s adult teeth and jaw did not give up easily. But give up they did, and though it’s been a painful few days for my poor husband, he’s enjoyed the side benefits of root beer floats, chocolate-cherry butter shakes and yogurt-blueberry-maple breakfast drinks. Of course, after […]

Categories: basil, kale & leafy greens, main course, oregano, potato, stew, summer, vegetarian, year round • Tags: cooking, food, local, main course, recipes, vegetarian

100% Local: Brazilian Feijoada

7 January 2012 by local kitchen

I am an ornery cuss. Not only do I give you a hearty, wintry, braise-all-day-long meat & bean stew on a 60-degree Saturday in January, but I got dozens of great black bean ideas from you folks following my call for inspiration on the Facebook page, yet I ignored them all to try feijoada. Like I said: ornery. (Which must always be pronounced “orn-ree” for maximum authenticity.) Feijoada is a traditional meat and bean stew: according to Hank Shaw, black beans […]

Categories: 100% local, beans, main course, pork, sausage, stew, winter, year round • Tags: beans, cooking, food, local, main course, pork, recipes, stew

Chicken & Sausage Gumbo

24 September 2011 by local kitchen

Hands up, who likes okra? <cricket, cricket> I thought so. Me either. I mean, it looks like something the Star Trek crew would have spray-painted orange and pretended was exotic, alien fruit; it’s skin is hairy and kind of spiky; fresh okra seems to get limp and slimy after 10 minutes in the fridge; and let’s not even talk about the snot that oozes out once we slice it, hmm? Yet, despite my lack of love for the spiky green […]

Categories: bell pepper, celery, fall, main course, parsley, rice, sausage, stew, year round • Tags: cooking, food, gumbo, local, main course, new orleans, recipes

Cajun Sausage & Flageolet Stew

27 January 2011 by local kitchen

Because clearly what this blog needs is another stew recipe. And I don’t have enough to say about heirloom beans. Because my personal Spice Rack Challenge is to use the free sample spice mixes from Penzey’s for something other than pumpkin seeds. Because I haven’t been to the farmer’s market in three weeks and I’m down to one lonely carrot, 4 pumpkins and a few Trader Joe’s onions (she hangs her locavore head in shame) in the kitchen larder. Or maybe […]

Categories: beans, heirloom beans, main course, pork, sausage, stew, tomatoes, winter, year round • Tags: Cajun, cooking, flageolet, food, local, main course, recipes, sausage, stew

Vaquero Bean & Chorizo Stew

6 January 2011 by local kitchen

Vaquero beans are so beautiful, I wish I had photographed some for you before I soaked them. They do, however, maintain their lovely markings even after cooking, along with their shape and a toothsome texture. This is a pretty classic bean stew: tomatoes, sausage, aromatic vegetables and a little cilantro or parsley to finish things off. Truly, any bean will work in this recipe, so why not take the opportunity to explore an heirloom varitety that you’ve never tasted? Rancho […]

Categories: 100% local, beans, heirloom beans, main course, pork, sausage, stew, tomatoes, winter, year round • Tags: beans, chorizo, cooking, food, local, main course, pork, recipes, sausage, stew, tomatoes, winter

Dark Days: Chicken & Sweet Potato Stew

27 December 2010 by local kitchen

Snowpocalypse 2010 dumped about a foot and a half of snow on us, as we snuggled cozy and warm in our little cottage, snacking on popcorn and watching cheesy movies in day-after-Christmas bliss. Today, although the winds still howled, the sun appeared along with bright blue skies, and we forced our way out the door against 3-foot snow drifts in order to shovel out. A couple of hours later, with a clear deck, stairs and driveway, lunch was definitely in […]

Categories: 100% local, chicken, Dark Days Local, hot chile peppers, kale & leafy greens, main course, potato, stew, tomatoes, winter • Tags: chicken, cooking, dark days, food, local, recipes, winter

Turkey Vindaloo

8 December 2010 by local kitchen

New World bird meets Old World spice: film @ 11. Well, it’s not the most attrative dish I’ve ever made. It certainly isn’t authentic; while turkey is common in the Americas and Europe, it’s a rarity in India, and I’m pretty sure they aren’t making vindaloo with pre-made spice packets from Penzeys. Despite those knocks against it, this dish was simple to prepare, easy on the wallet (helpful in these holiday-cash-strapped times), satisfyingly filling, and warming, for a nippy December night, and a great […]

Categories: cauliflower, main course, potato, quick & easy, stew, turkey, winter, year round • Tags: budget, cooking, food, local, main course, quick & easy, recipes, stew, turkey, vindaloo

Traditional Pork Chile Verde

4 June 2010 by local kitchen

Summer is in full swing here in New York and while it doesn’t seem like you would want a pot bubbling on the stovetop for hours, Chile Verde always strikes me as a quintessential summer dish: bought at a roadside stand in some dusty, hot, Mexican town on the way from one surf spot to another, ladeled into piping hot, homemade tortillas and liberally sprinkled with fresh cilantro. Heaven. This version is nearly as good (although the lack of surfing-inspired appetite may […]

Categories: 100% local, cilantro, pork, stew, summer, tomatillos, year round • Tags: cooking, food, local, pork, recipes

Spicy Mexican Red Beans & Rice

1 February 2010 by local kitchen

My girlfriend Christina gave me the best Christmas present – Rancho Gordo beans and popcorn. She lives in San Francisco now, so while I don’t get to see her very often these days, the (albeit tiny) silver lining is that she is local to the fabulous Ferry Market and when she comes home to visit, she can bring me Rancho Gordo goodies and I can consider them ‘local.’ Because it’s local to her. And she flew to me. And just happened […]

Categories: 100% local, beans, celery, heirloom beans, hot chile peppers, main course, pork, rice, sausage, stew, year round • Tags: beans, chorizo, cooking, food, local, Mexican, pork, recipes, red beans and rice

Black Bean Veggie Chili

27 December 2009 by local kitchen

As a nice respite from all of the rich, heavy holiday food, as well as a warm bowl of comfort food against the chill and dreary 39-degree rainy day, yesterday I made a big pot of chili. Packed full of veggies and protein-laden black beans, this dish is winter locavore cooking at its best: peppers chopped and quick-frozen back in August only need pouring into a measuring cup; sweet corn, blanched and cut off the cob, frozen at the peak of […]

Categories: 100% local, beans, carrot, celery, cilantro, corn, garlic, hot chile peppers, main course, parsley, stew, tomatoes, vegetarian, winter, year round • Tags: black bean, cooking, food, local, recipes

Sunday Spring Cleaning: Curried Pumpkin & Kale Stew

6 December 2009 by local kitchen

I’ve long been of the belief that, if you add enough curry to something, it’s bound to be good. This stew upholds the belief: nothing spectacular, just good, tasty, warm and comforting stew for a snowy New York Sunday. The bonus is that this was a freezer-clearing special: I used some cooked cranberry beans that were hanging out in the fridge, frozen pumpkin cubes leftover from this soup, frozen kale put-up this summer, plum tomatoes that I stuck in the freezer, whole, […]

Categories: beans, fall, heirloom beans, kale & leafy greens, main course, quick & easy, stew, tomatoes, vegetarian, winter, winter squash, year round • Tags: cooking, food, local, quick & easy, recipes, vegetarian

Easy Chicken Vindaloo

2 December 2009 by local kitchen

I love me a good vindaloo. Vindaloo is always spicy, but I like it really spicy: make me cry, but give me a flavor profile beyond just “hot,” and I’ll call it a success. I can rarely get vindaloo spicy enough in Indian restaurants (I suppose I can’t blame them when they look dubiously at my pale, freckled face and fuzzy red head, ordering my vindaloo “really spicy.” They just assume that I am not used to “Indian-spicy.” Little do they know!). But the […]

Categories: chicken, hot chile peppers, main course, potato, quick & easy, rice, stew, year round • Tags: chicken, cooking, food, Indian, local, quick & easy, recipes, spicy