Stews — From the COOKS.COM Culinary Archive.

STEWS

  When the object of cooking is to have the nutriment partly in the meat and partly in the water, the dish is called a stew.

  Use a small quantity of water, — less than in making soups, — and cook at a moderate heat for a long time.  The word stew means a slow, moist, gentle heat.  As some of the nutriment is to be in the meat cut it into pieces convenient for serving.  Put the bones, gristly portions, and the poorer parts of the lean meat into cold water.  This draws out enough nutriment to enrich the broth.  When the water boils, add the tender portions that their juices may be kept in them.  By this slow, steady simmering, rather than by fierce boiling, the fibres are softened, and the coarsest and cheapest kinds of meat are made tender and nutritious.

  Any meat that is juicy and not tough may be first browned on the outside to retain the juice and improve the flavor; but should you have any cold pieces of roast beef or steak, these may be used and will have the same effect.  Some proteids are soluble in vegetable acids, such as those in vinegar and lemon juice.  If coarse, tough pieces of meat are soaked in vinegar, the fibres will be softened and the meat made more tender.  Meat containing much gristle should be put into cold water.  Meat from the upper part of the shin, the aitch bone, flank, neck, and shoulder, — the less expensive parts, — are suitable for stews.

  Fowls, tough game, the tougher parts of mutton, lamb, or veal, any meats which have been previously cooked, and any kind of large white fish may be stewed.  Meat that has some bone and fat makes a richer stew.  A great variety of economical, wholesome, and palatable dishes may be prepared as stews, and there are many names given to this form of cooking.

  A stew usually has vegetables and dumplings cooked with the meat.
  A haricot of mutton or any other meat is a stew with the meat and vegetables cut fine, — into bits, the size of a haricot bean.
  A ragout is a stew highly flavored with wine.
  A salmi is a stew of game.
  A chowder is a stew of fish.
  A fricassee is a form of stewing where the meat is sauted or browned in fat, either before or after stewing, and is usually served without vegetables.
  A pot-pie is a stew with the dough put on as a crust instead of in the form of dumplings.
  Braising is a form of stewing usually done in a covered pan in the oven.  The slow, uniform heat from the confined hot air in the oven gives a richer, stronger flavor than that obtained by stewing over the fire.

  Onions, carrots, turnips, and potatoes are often used in a stew.  Onions may be put in with the meat, but the other vegetables should be cut small, and added about half an hour before the stew is done.  The kettle should be drawn forward, that the water may boil, not simmer, while the vegetables are cooking.  This will not harm the meat as it would if boiled rapidly at first.  Remove the bones and fat before adding the vegetables.

  A dumpling is a small biscuit-like portion of dough dropped or dumped quickly into the boiling liquid.  There should be only liquid enough to come nearly to the top of the meat and vegetables, that the dumplings may rest on them and not sink into the liquid.  The steam from the savory broth will cook the dumplings and impart a richer flavor than if cooked in a steamer over the stew.  Cover the kettle closely, as soon as the dumplings are in, and let the stew boil steadily ten minutes, without lifting the cover.  Serve them at once.  As they are to be eaten with meat they require no shortening.  The same dough may be cut into small cakes and baked as biscuit.

BEEF STEW

  1/2 lb. beef
  1/2 onion
  1/4 c. turnip, cut in half-inch dice
  1/4 c. carrot, diced
  2 potatoes
  Salt and pepper
  Flour
  Water to cover

  Wipe the meat, cut it into small pieces, and remove all the fine crumbly bones.  Put the larger bones and tough meat into the kettle and cover with cold water.  Melt the fat in a frying-pan, dredge the tender meat with salt, pepper, and flour, and brown it in the hot fat.  Brown the sliced onions also, and then put the meat and onions into the kettle.  Cover with boiling water.  Simmer from two to three hours, or till the meat is tender.  Half an hour before serving remove the fat and bones and add the other vegetables.  Pare the potatoes, cut them into quarters, parboil them five minutes, and put them into the stew.  Cook twenty minutes.  When ready to serve, skim out the meat and potatoes, put them on a dish, thicken the gravy if needed, add more seasoning, and one half cup of strained tomato if desired.  Pour the gravy over the meat.

DUMPLINGS

  1 pt. flour
  1/2 tsp. salt
  2 tsp baking powder
  1 scant c. milk

  Mix the dry ingredients and stir in the milk gradually to make a soft dough.  Drop quickly by the spoonful into the boiling stew, letting the dumplings rest on the meat and potatoes.  Cover closely to keep in the steam, and cook just ten minutes without lifting the cover.  Serve at once.

VEAL FRICASSEE

  The ends of the ribs, the breast, the neck, and the smaller part of the knuckle may be utilized in a stew or fricassee.

  Cut the meat, two pounds, in small pieces and remove all the fine crumbly bones.  Dredge with flour and brown it in dripping or salt pork fat.  Cover the meat with boiling water, skim as it begins to boil, and add two small onions, one teaspoon salt, and one half teaspoon pepper.  Simmer until tender.  Remove the larger bones; add a flour thickening and more seasoning if necessary.  Cook ten minutes; add one half cup of milk and two tablespoons of butter.

  Potatoes and dumplings may be cooked with the veal if a stew be desired.

VEAL CUTLETS

  Use slices from rump, loin or ribs; remove bones, tendons, and skin; cover them with cold water and stew for the gravy.  Cook veal fat in the spider until brown and crisp; pound and shape meat into pieces for serving; cover them with fine stale bread crumbs, then with beaten eggs, again with the crumbs, and brown them in the hot fat, adding salt pork fat if own fat is not sufficient; then cook more slowly until done, with no trace of pink color, for veal should never be rare.  Remove meat and crisp fat; add dry flour to the hot fat and stir until brown, adding gradually the boiling water from the bones.  Season with salt, pepper and lemon if you like, and serve as gravy.  If lean meat from the leg or some tough part, has been used, put it into a stew-pan when browned, and pour gravy over it and let it simmer for half an hour.