RFCJ RECIPE ARCHIVE
Posted by : Karen Selwyn Chicken Stew, Argentine: Cazuela Gaucho - meat
Here's a recipe for a Jewish dish which was originally designed to be cooked over a campfire. You might want to try cooking this the original way in a round pot if your Lag B'Omer picnic includes a campfire rather than a grill. My adapted instructions are for the stovetop. This stew is a dish typical of the cooking of a group of Jews who left Russia in the late nineteenth century to form an agricultural community in Argentina. Their arrival pre-dates Baron de Hirsh's formal attempts to colonize that territory. Some of the early pioneers became gauchos and would have cooked this stew over a camp fire in a clay pot called a cazuela, from which the dish takes its name. Karen Selwyn * * * * * * * Argentine Chicken Stew (Cazuela Gaucho) 2 chickens, cut up flour for dredging olive oil for sauteeing 3 large carrots, cut into chunks 8 potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks 1 lb. pumpkin or Hubbard squash, peeled, seeded and cut into chunks 2 large parsnips, cut into chunks 3 onions, sliced 1-2 cloves garlic, minced 1 teaspoon paprika (preferably Hungarian) 1 bay leaf salt and pepper 1/2 cup white wine chicken stock 1/2 cup barley 2 ears yellow corn, sliced into 1 1/2-inch slices 1 (10 oz) pkg frozen peas, thawed 1/2 lb green beans, cut 1 egg, beaten Heat some oil in a Dutch oven. Dredge the chicken pieces in seasoned flour. Saute the chicken until golden brown on all sides. Remove chicken and set aside. If necessary, add addtional oil to the pan and saute the carrots, parsnips, potatoes and squash until golden brown. Remove vegetables and set aside. Saute onions until limp and translucent. Near the end of the onions'cooking time, add the garlic and paprika and saute 2-3 minutes. Return chicken and sauteed vegetables to the pan. Add bay leaf, white wine, salt and pepper and chicken stock to barely cover the stew. Bring to a boil, cover, and reduce the heat to a simmer. Cook for 20 minutes and add barley and corn cob slices. Cover and continue cooking for 30 minutes. Add green beans and thawed peas and cook for 10 additional minutes. Beat the egg. Add a little of the hot liquid from the pan and beat the egg vigorously. Add the egg to the pot and stir. Cook for an additional 5 minutes. Taste the stew and correct the seasoning, if necessary. Serve the stew in soup plates or deep dinner plates with a rim. Adapted from Malvina Liebman's JEWISH COOKERY FROM BOSTON TO BAGHDAD.
