Goan Wedding Stew

Well, I love this stew, I tend to refer to it as a soup because it's just hearty and can be eaten with a spoon.

One day, very recently, Stanley (that's the husband and the Goan) was craving Goan comfort food; when I say Goan comfort food, I'm talking about sorpotel, orange fish curry + red rice and the goan sausages but with a lot less effort involved.

So, off I went on the internet and stumbled across this blog  http://goan-recipes-n-more.blogspot.com.au/search/label/Goan%20recipes I can hardly, find any details about the blogger or where she lives etc but her recipes are spot on and similar to our in the fact that it's simple and authentic. 

I, subsequently asked Stanley if he's ever eaten Goan Wedding Stew and I think his heart skipped a beat and was transported back to the Goa of his childhood!  "Of course!" he said, "You found the recipe for the stew?"

I nodded, quickly noting it included the 'Holy Trinity' of meats - Pork, Chicken and Beef - "Will you taste all the meats?" that didn't sound too appetizing to me "It will be wonderful!" he said.

He then recanted, how at  traditional Goan weddings, before the 'buffet era', guests would be served with a plate of appetizers which consisted of a prawn cocktail like filling in a crisp pastry,  a chutney sandwich triangle and a beef croquet. Just before dinner was served, a saucer of the Goan Wedding Stew would be served with a single triangle of bread to sop up the gravy. This was followed by Pulao and Sorpotel, leading to the wedding cake served as dessert.

I loved this recipe, because it's a one pot wonder (I used my pressure cooker but you can use any slow cooking pot.) It includes a ton of vegetables and a lot of protein (did I mention the pork, chicken and beef already??!!!) and it is particularly bland, which is good for a 18 month old.

Here's the recipe with my alterations:

Ingredients: 

• 250 grams boneless pork
• 250 grams boneless beef
• 250 grams boneless chicken
• 5 carrots (I used 3)
• 2 potatoes (I used 1)
• 15 green beans
• 1/2 cup green peas
• 1 green capsicum
• 2 big onions, roughly chopped
• 8 pepper corns
• 4 cloves
• 4" piece of cinnamon
• 1/2 glass milk (Lactose free worked fine)
• 1 level tbspn corn flour
• 2 green chillies, slit
• salt to taste
• 3 tspns ginger garlic paste
• 3 tspns salt or as per taste
• 6-8 tbspns of tomato ketchup (I used three tablespoons of tomato paste)
• 1 cup macaroni (I used the shell pasta)
• Chicken or beef stock

Method:

Chop meat into bite sized peaces and set aside separately marinating in the ginger garlic paste. Chop up all your vegetables as well.

Cook your pasta as per the packet instructions and set aside.

Fry the onions until golden, add cloves, cinnamon and pepper corns. 

Seal your pork and cook till done.

Remove the pork, add beef and cook till done.

Remove the beef, add chicken cook till done.

Throw in the carrots, potatoes and capsicum along with all the cooked meats.

In the milk, add the cornflour, stir and add to the mixture.

If required add another glass of water, the green chilies and tomato paste. Cook on medium heat till the carrots and potatoes are cooked (since I was using my pressure cooker, I waited for one steam).

If you would like some extra gravy you could add some chicken stock.

Stir occasionally and cook with lid on until vegetables are done.

Throw in your pasta, green peas, green beans and chicken stock and simmer for about 10 minutes.

And that's it!!!

Since it's just Stanley and I, we stick it in the fridge and eat it in small batches over the week. So I don't need to cook on week days. I just love it, especially with a couple of hits of tabassco sauce!