Kettle Stew

[John Harrelson]

For those of you who know what a "Black Cauldron" is.. here is a recipe that is designed to be cooked in a cast iron cauldron over an open fire ..(camp fire).. like our great grandparents did a hundred or more years ago.

For you city slickers, a crock pot can be used.. but it takes all the fun out of it..

And yes you can use a dutch oven also.... but once again, where is the fun in that ?

Many hardware stores sell 2 gallon and 5 gallon cauldrons.. They range in price from $20 to as high as $50.... depending on what part of the country you live in..

Give it a try and come back here with a report on what you did and how it came out.. also, if you change the recipe, tell us what you did..

As a retired restaurant owner and professional chef, I have always made up recipes to test on my old time customers and close friends.

If they were successful with them, I would then offer it on my restaurant's menu..

Enjoy,
John
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Kettle Stew

Into a two gallon cauldron..( or a large Crockpot ** ).. place the following ingredients :.................

1 Medium Cabbage ...........................coarsely chopped
6 White Potatoes .............................. peeled & cubed
1 Large Onion.................................. coarsely chopped
6 Italian or Polish Sausage ................... sliced into 1"� pieces
4 Carrots ......................................... sliced into 1"� pieces
1 Can diced Tomatoes
3 or 4 tbsp Instant Potatoes ****
1 tbsp Pepper corns
1 tsp Salt ***

Fill cauldron with enough water to cover contents. Bring to a roiling boil and then reduce heat and simmer until carrots are tender.

** Turn Crockpot on HIGH until cooking temperature is reached and then turn it to LOW and cook until carrots are tender.

*** After finished cooking and BEFORE cooling off.... Taste and adjust salt to desired flavor.

**** The instant potatoes are to make sure that the cabbage and sausage flavors do not over power the other ingredients.

[John Harrelson]

For those of you who know what a "Black Cauldron" is.. here is a recipe that is designed to be cooked in a cast iron cauldron over an open fire ..(camp fire).. like our great grandparents did a hundred or more years ago.

For you city slickers, a crock pot can be used.. but it takes all the fun out of it..

And yes you can use a dutch oven also.... but once again, where is the fun in that ?

Many hardware stores sell 2 gallon and 5 gallon cauldrons.. They range in price from $20 to as high as $50.... depending on what part of the country you live in..

Give it a try and come back here with a report on what you did and how it came out.. also, if you change the recipe, tell us what you did..

As a retired restaurant owner and professional chef, I have always made up recipes to test on my old time customers and close friends.

If they were successful with them, I would then offer it on my restaurant's menu..

Enjoy,
John
************************************************** *****************
Kettle Stew

Into a two gallon cauldron..( or a large Crockpot ** ).. place the following ingredients :.................

1 Medium Cabbage ...........................coarsely chopped
6 White Potatoes .............................. peeled & cubed
1 Large Onion.................................. coarsely chopped
6 Italian or Polish Sausage ................... sliced into 1"� pieces
4 Carrots ......................................... sliced into 1"� pieces
1 Can diced Tomatoes
3 or 4 tbsp Instant Potatoes ****
1 tbsp Pepper corns
1 tsp Salt ***

Fill cauldron with enough water to cover contents. Bring to a roiling boil and then reduce heat and simmer until carrots are tender.

** Turn Crockpot on HIGH until cooking temperature is reached and then turn it to LOW and cook until carrots are tender.

*** After finished cooking and BEFORE cooling off.... Taste and adjust salt to desired flavor.

**** The instant potatoes are to make sure that the cabbage and sausage flavors do not over power the other ingredients.

[John Harrelson]

Someone asked the question about using potato flakes, so I thought I would come back here and explain ..
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Whats the potato flakes for ?...I figured all you RVer's already knew that... heh heh heh..

Nahhhh.. I'm just teasing... actually the potato flakes do the same thing as putting a chopped up potato in a soup or stew that accidentally got too much salt dumped into it..

The potato "Absorbs" the excess salt and then it can be removed from the pot if potatoes are not part of the recipe..

You know, of course, that when you cook some things like sausage and cabbage, the oils or grease from them will float on top of the water..

While you want to remove any "Excess" grease and oils,, you also want to leave some of it because the grease and oils contain a lot of a soup or stew's flavor..

Same thing with this recipe... because of the cabbage and sausage producing oil and grease, you need to "Capture" it and distribute it evenly throughout the stew instead of letting it float on top of the water..

The little bit of potato flakes will absorb the oil and grease and then "Disappear" into the body of the stew where it holds that flavor.

Without the potato flakes, the oil and grease would be ladled into your bowl and every time you take a mouthful of stew the cabbage and sausage taste would over power the flavor of the other ingredients..

I forgot to say that the potato flakes should be sprinkled on top after the stew has finished cooking but is still hot... just like adjusting the salt content to fit your individual taste.

The potato flakes are optional of course.. thats the beauty of cooking... each of us does it a little different..

So try it several different ways and then come back and tell what you did and how it changed the flavor of the stew..

Remember... the most important ingredient in any food dish is the fun you have making it...