Thursday, March 17, 2011

Hearty Irish Lager Stew

You probably don't think "vegetarian" when you think of Irish food, but this dish is not only vegetarian, it's vegan. This recipe for Hearty Irish Lager Stew from the March, 2011 issue of Vegetarian Times magazine is made with no animal products at all so it's super healthy. That might not have you smackin' your lips, but this stew is very tasty and since it's made of mostly veggies, you can eat a huge amount and it won't go to your hips. And, it's made with beer! So that's kinda fun.

Make sure you cut your veggies on the small side. Ours were a bit large and with the cooking times listed in the recipe we found that the potatoes were still hard. We cooked it an extra 15-20 minutes and some of it was still al dente. It was good anyways; I don't mind chewing my vegetables. I'd rather that than have them be too mushy. And we munched on some Salt and Vinegar Potato Bites while we were waiting for the stew to finish so we had no complaints.

Hearty Irish Lager Stew
Serves 8

1 Tbsp. vegetable oil
8 oz. button or shittake mushrooms, halved
2 cloves garlic, minced (2 tsp.)
1 medium leek, white part only, diced (1 cup)
2 medium carrots, peeled and sliced (2 cups)
2 small parsnips, peeled and sliced (1½ cups)
1½ tsp. tomato paste
1 15-oz. can crushed tomatoes
1½ cups low-sodium vegetable broth
2 sprigs fresh thyme, tied in bundle, plus 1 tsp. chopped fresh thyme, divided
½ lager beer
1½ Tbsp. quick-cooking tapioca
1 cup shredded cabbage
1 Tbsp. white miso
2 Tbsp. chopped parsley

Heat ½ Tbsp. oil in large pot over medium heat. Add mushrooms and garlic; saute 8 minutes, or until mushrooms are browned. Remove from pan. Add remaining ½ Tbsp. oil to pot. Add leek, and cook 5 minutes. Add potatoes, carrots, parsnips, and tomato paste. Cook 2 minutes. Add tomatoes, broth, and thyme sprigs; bring to a boil. Reduct heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer 40 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Add lager, tapioca, and mushrooms. Simmer 10 to 15 minutes, or until thickened, stirring often. Remove thyme sprigs, stir in cabbage and miso, and simmer 4 to 5 minutes, or until cabbage softens. Stir in chopped thyme and parsley, and season with salt and pepper, if desired.

Nutritional Information as provided in magazine:
Per 1-cup serving: 118 CAL; 4 G PROT; 2 G TOTAL FAT (<1 G SAT FAT); 23 G CARB; 0 MG CHOL; 204 MG SOD; 5 G FIBER; 5 G SUGARS




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