Gingery Winter Stew
- at least 1 hour
- 4 servings
- #stew
- #pork
- #dinner
A satisfying cold-weather braise with pork, ginger, apples, and winter squash.
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 pound pork shoulder, cut into 1½-inch chunks
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon pepper
- 1 large onion, chopped
- 2 apples, peeled and chopped
- ¼ cup minced ginger
- 2 cups vegetable or chicken stock, or water, plus more as needed
- ¼ cup soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 2 pounds winter squash (butternut, pumpkin, acorn, or kabocha), cut into 1-inch chunks
Steps
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Put the oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. When it’s hot, add the pork, sprinkle with the salt and pepper, and cook, turning the pieces as they release easily from the pan, until they’re well browned on all sides, 10 to 15 minutes. If necessary work in two batches to avoid crowding. As the meat finishes cooking, remove it from the pot.
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Add the onion, apples, and ginger to the pot and cook until they begin to soften, 3 to 5 minutes. Add the stock, soy sauce, and lemon juice and bring to a boil, stirring to scrape up any brown bits from the bottom of the pot. Add the browned pork and adjust the heat so the mixture bubbles gently but steadily; cover.
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After 30 minutes, begin to check the meat every 15 minutes. When the meat is tender enough to fall easily from a fork, stir in the squash. Cook, stirring occasionally and adding enough more stock to keep it from sticking, until the squash is tender but not mushy, 10 to 15 minutes. Taste and adjust the seasoning and serve.
Variations
Gingery Summer Stew: Totally different—and lighter, to mirror the season. If you’d like, use beef chuck instead of the pork. Substitute tomatoes for the apples and zucchini for the winter squash. Add ¼ cup chopped fresh mint or ½ cup chopped fresh basil just before serving.
Garlicky Winter or Summer Stew: Use garlic instead of ginger for a different kind of heat.
More Ideas
- Go green: Substitute chopped chard or kale for some or all of the squash.
- Instead of soy sauce, use half the amount of fish sauce.
- Try lime instead of lemon juice.
- Use a different meat: beef chuck or lamb shoulder or shank.
- Try pears instead of apples.
Source: The VB6 Cookbook, Mark Bittman