Amish-Style Pork and Vegetable Stew

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...Even bad cooks have good days. My mother was not known for her cooking, but every so often she would make something that we all enjoyed. This Amish-style stew is based on one she occasionally made for us. It is a slightly sweet, mildly spiced dish that one might expect to find on an Amish table. If you are deft with a vegetable peeler, the stew can be made in about 15 minutes. It requires an additional hour to cook, but this is a dish that is really easy on the cook. I lost my mother's recipe ages ago, but came on one that is quite similar to it in the Land O' Lakes recipe collection. I used sirloin chops to make the stew because pork steaks were not available, but other than that, I followed the recipe exactly as it was written. This is a great dish to prepare for small families. It will comfortably feed four adults, but leftovers, if there are any, will be scant. If you generally enjoy Amish cooking, I know you'll love this stew. I hope you'll give it a try. Here is how it is made.

Amish-Style Pork and Vegetable Stew...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite inspired by Land O' Lakes

Ingredients:
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour, divided use
1 teaspoon salt
1 pound pork steak, trimmed, cut into 1-inch pieces
2 tablespoons butter
2-1/4 cups water or stock, divided use
1 (14 1/2-ounce) can stewed tomatoes with garlic, herbs and onions, undrained, chopped
2 cups cubed peeled red potatoes
2 medium (1 cup) carrots, sliced 1/2-inch
1 rib (1/2 cup) celery, sliced
1 small (1/2 cup) onion, chopped
1 teaspoon dried oregano leaves
1 bay leaf
Chopped fresh parsley, if desired

Directions:
1) Place 2 tablespoons flour and 1/2 teaspoon salt in large resealable plastic food bag. Add pork cubes. Seal bag and turn several times to coat pork cubes.
2) Melt butter in 4-quart saucepan until it sizzles. Add pork cubes and cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until lightly browned, about 7 to 10 minutes. Add remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt, 2 cups water, stewed tomatoes, potatoes, carrots, celery onions, oregano and bay leaf. Bring mixture to a full boil over medium-high heat, about 3 to 4 minutes. Reduce heat to low and continue cooking until vegetables are fork tender, about 30 to 40 minutes. Remove bay leaf.
3) Combine remaining 1 tablespoon flour and remaining 1/4 cup water in small bowl. Stir into stew. Continue cooking, stirring occasionally, for 3-5 minutes, or until slightly thickened. Garnish each serving with parsley, if desired. Yield: 4 to 6 servings.

                    

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