There are few stews as plate-licking good as Brunswick stew. Those who realize it, like it—and people who do not in all probability have not tried it but. This tomatoey stew is a long-simmered pot of acidic tomatoes, starchy potatoes, candy summer time veggies, and a young, fall-off-the-bone barbecue meat.
This tomatoey stew could be traced to each Brunswick, Georgia, and Brunswick, Virginiatwo Southern cities which have each loved the legacy of the title. Cookbook author Carrie Helms Tippen means that standard narratives about its “genuine” origin usually overlook the legacy of Brunswick stew in African American and Native American meals historical past particularly. In so some ways, variations of Brunswick stew replicate a shared, numerous vary of data of delicacies throughout communities the South: They incorporate combos of native produce, meats primarily based on accessibility and affordability, and intelligent adjustments in preparation that carry out the most effective of every.
One factor is for sure: There isn’t any “proper” technique to make Brunswick stew. While some outdated recipes use barbecued squirrel for the meat, that is not as widespread right this moment—and different outdated recipes do not incorporate tomatoes in any respect. Still, it follows the same formulation: savory broth, greens that embody, usually, tomatoes, and a sensible and savvy use of leftover meat.
What Makes Brunswick Stew Great As Leftovers
Historically, Brunswick stew was ready out of necessity to stretch a hearty meal over the course of a number of days. In different phrases, it is made to be reheated repeatedly. It’s exhausting to determine what makes it so good the second time round, but it surely’s doubtless the mixture of a wealthy tomatoey broth with leftover barbecue meat: The acidic tomatoes mix with the flavorful spiced fats of the meat, putting a steadiness of flavors that makes it even higher the subsequent day (particularly if the meat was leftover to start with)
Many Allrecipes members use store-bought or home made barbecue sauce. Simultaneously a thickener and a seasoner, it is a conventional preparation of Brunswick stew, a vestige of its historical past.
How To Make Brunswick Stew
Brunswick stew is simple and adaptable by design—it is a throw-everything-in-the-pot recipe that begins with a liquid base, like water or inventory, and is thickened by veggies like potatoes, corn, and beans. It’s additionally simply tailored to all types of barbecue meat, from hen and beef to pork, making it an excellent possibility for utilizing up leftovers.
- Prepare the meat. While our hottest recipe requires cooking hen and salt pork collectively in eight cups of water till the meat is cooked, you may as well omit this step and use rotisserie hen, leftover hen, or any kind of leftover barbecue meat like ribs, pulled pork, and even floor beef.
- Add the veggies. Bring water, inventory, or hen broth (if utilizing leftover meat) to a boil. Add the cooked shredded or chopped meat, potatoes, onions, corn, tomatoes, lima beans, Worcestershire sauce, salt, and black pepper.
- Summer, summer time, summer time. Reduce to a low simmer and let all of the substances prepare dinner within the pot, low and sluggish, till the stew is thickened and veggies and meat are completely tender.
Many Brunswick Stew followers add barbecue sauce or ketchup instead of Worcestershire sauce. This thickens the soup and likewise balances the flavors for extra sweetness and tang.
Tips, Tricks, and Praise From the Allrecipes Community
Allrecipes members chimed in with their favourite additions, mix-ins, and ideas for an ideal pot of Brunswick stew. From leftover barbecue meats—a traditional—to additions like tomato paste and ketchup, their recommendation is value heeding if you happen to embark on brewing up a pot of your personal.
- “We used pulled pork and pork from ribs… Added some barbeque sauce as properly, and the can of tomato paste, as instructed. It is great! Quick and straightforward. Will positively make once more.” —Kim Johnston
- “Y’all, rising up, Brunswick Stew was a once-a-year deal with made by our native Ruritan Club in Disputanta, Virginia. People would line up and stand within the freezing chilly, rain, and snow ready to purchase quarts for dinner that evening and to freeze for later. I moved away from Virginia about forty years in the past and although I’ve tried Brunswick Stew provided in lots of areas…it was by no means pretty much as good as what I bear in mind from childhood. This recipe is de facto good. I’m preserving this recipe and making it once more.”
- “I’ve made this recipe a few instances and have acquired clear plates each time. This gem at the moment resides in my recipe guide.” —HumblDragn
- “I made an enormous pot of this for a dinner I cooked on the church final evening. I had a bunch of [barbecued] hen left from a earlier dinner and I boiled this to make it simpler to take away from the bone. I used this liquid as the bottom for my stew… Everyone raved about it and your complete pot was consumed. I elevated the recipe to feed 50 folks. I’ll [definitely] be making this once more.” —CHARLOTTE
Get the recipe: Brunswick Stew
