Autumn, the season when we begin thinking of comfort food.
I picture a log cabin with a large hearth in the kitchen, with a black iron pot simmering a soup or stew. Of course, this fills the home with the aroma of mouth-watering goodness.
Well, the hearth isn’t any part of things in my home today, nor is the cabin in the woods, but I have the smell of wholesomeness going on.
On the stove is Rustic Chicken Stew. I found this recipe in the HEB flyer. For those of you that are non-Texan, HEB is our main, and much-loved, Central Texas (and more locations) grocery store. I did some tweaking to the recipe, which I will tell you about after the instructions.
Rustic Chicken Stew
1 tbsp olive oil
1 lb chicken, diced
1 tsp dried thyme
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp granulated garlic powder
1 small onion, chopped
1 can sliced carrots, drained
1 32 oz can diced tomatoes, drained
1 can (14.5 oz) great northern beans, drained
32 oz can low sodium chicken broth
1. Heat olive oil in large pot on medium-high. Add diced chicken and herbs to hot oil and brown thoroughly. Remove from pan and set aside.
2. In the same pan, add the onion and simmer until tender.
3. In the same pan, add the carrots, tomatoes and beans. Cook for 3 or 4 minutes.
4. Pour in chicken broth and simmer on medium heat for at least 20 minutes.
These are the revisions that I made to the original recipe:
- I used bone-in chicken. The recipe called for boneless. I boiled the chicken, allowed it to cool, then deboned and diced the meat. I used part of the fresh chicken broth as a substitute for canned chicken broth.
- I used granulated garlic powder instead of 3 cloves garlic, chopped.
- I left out the 5 oz of baby spinach, chopped. My dear husband does not know what is good for him! If you opt to include spinach, add it when you add the carrots, tomatoes and beans.
- The original recipe also called for 4 tomatoes, chopped, added after the fresh carrots are simmered until tender (yes, 2 of them, chopped – instead of canned).
- The original recipe did not call for adding the herbs until after the chicken was browned. I am the type of cook that does not follow directions, and I love the taste of meat that has browned with herbs. Either way, the recipe works beautifully. Browned herbs add a certain type of flavor to any dish – compared to herbs added to the liquids after browning of the meat or vegetables.
- I simmer this stew on low heat for several hours, and stir as needed.
Cook time: 2 hours
Prep time: 20 minutes
Makes 6 servings, approximately 180 calories and 4.5 grams per serving
Hot homemade cornbread anyone? I believe that would top this off. Don’t forget the real butter!
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