I had Spain in mind when I made this stew. That and the need to make a one pot meal. I once used to save prawn shells, freezing them ready to make a soup I had read about. It was full of smoked paprika and tomatoes, the shells providing a delicate stock for the bisque. I made it, it was OK, probably because I was paranoid about the shells being free from those deadly poisonous toxins we are always warned about. This stew was my more robust take on the bisque, using the same flavours as an influence: smoked paprika, olives, tomatoes and a little bit of sherry. This was far, far better than OK, having a warm, savoury and slightly spicy taste.
Purple potatoes are my new favourite ingredient. They don't taste any better than your bog standard spud, (some people even saying they have less flavour), but look at them. They turn the most beautiful shade of lilac once cooked, adding a colour rarely seen naturally in food. Also, they seem to get soft much quicker than other potatoes, almost turning to mush whilst the others are barely cooked.
For this stew I started by softening onions, peppers and tomatoes together to create a sauce base before adding a long list of other ingredients. Don't be scared by how many there are, just remember this is one pot cooking, everything literally gets thrown in and then left alone to merrily cook itself.
Recipe : Pork stew with peppers and smoked paprika
1 tbsp olive oil and 1 tsp butter
1 onion, peeled and chopped
2 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped
3 bell peppers, seeded and chopped
6 medium sized tomatoes, chopped
1lb lean pork tenderloin, cut into chunks
1 tsp paprika
1 cup of chicken or pork stock
1/4 cup dry sherry or red wine
1 tbsp smoked paprika
8 small potatoes, left whole
10 olives, whole or pitted (whatever you prefer)
a handful of mushrooms, chopped
a handful of kale, shredded
2 bay leaves
2 tbsp chopped fresh sage
salt and pepper
Heat the olive oil and butter in a large pan over medium heat and add the onion, garlic and peppers. Cook, stirring frequently for about 10 minutes until they have started to soften and then add the tomatoes and about 1 tsp of salt. Stir well, reduce the heat to low - medium, cover and let cook until the tomatoes are collapsing and creating a sauce like consistency.
Meanwhile, heat about 1 tbsp of oil in a small frying pan over medium heat and add the paprika. Stir well until the oil has turned red from the spice and fry the pork in batches until it is dark brown and well seared. Remove from the pan and add to the tomatoes and peppers.
Add all other ingredients, seasoning lightly with the salt and pepper at this point. Put a lid on the pan, reduce or increase the heat to low - medium and let the stew cook for about 45 minutes.
After this time, the pork should be tender, the potatoes should be almost falling apart, the kale will still be a little chewy (that's a good thing) and the sauce should be rich and spicy with the smoked paprika giving the dish a more complex and Spanish - like vibe. Taste the stew and add a little more seasoning at this point if you like.
The beauty of one pot meals is two fold. Not only do you use less cookware and less energy in actual cooking, but also no accompaniments are needed, (so I guess that's three fold). You could cut up some nice, crusty bread to dip into the sauce if you wanted to, or, just use a whole slice straight out of the packet to act as a sponge at the end, turning it over to soak up all the sauce and eating it with a fork, like we do.
More pork recipes
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