Although it may be Spring, there are still the odd evenings where I fancy something warming and homely for dinner. This week, I made a stew in honour of that fabled other newspaper, the OxStu (hence the name – there are no products of oxen in this recipe though I’m sure you could add some if you so desired). I suppose I thought being a former editor might give me the magic ability to make this OxStew, but it turns out this was not the case.
After throwing together some mushrooms, onions, tomatoes, leeks, potatoes and herbs, my efforts yielded a distinctly sloppy-looking dish which was rather more watery than I had hoped.
The moral of the story is that a modicum of planning is required in most cooking, even for completely made-up, journalism-related recipes. Fortunately I could count on my favourite two things to rescue this meal: alcohol and carbohydrates. Whilst simmering the stew, I added an unreasonably large dash of red wine, which just always improves the flavour. Then I served it alongside a big piece of crusty bread, which soaked up the excess nicely, and more red wine. Less of an OxStew, more of an OxSoup, but tasty nonetheless. Next time I make it, I may even add more wine.
