I used to make the best vegan seitan stew, modified from several recipes I used to use for regular beef stew.

Now that I am back to being an omnivore, I was looking to make a more seasonal stew using local meat. The store started carrying stew beef from Nooherooka Natural farm (90 miles) and I have a bunch of carrots, leeks and cabbage from Robb’s fall CSA. I have never used cabbage in the stew before.

1 – Brown one pound of stew beef in a little oil or bacon grease.

2 – Add several leeks, a few cloves of garlic, two teaspoons of salt, 1/2 teaspoon of paprika (if you have it), 1/4 teaspoon pepper (again, if you have it), four cups of water and a bay leaf.

3 – Bring the mixture just to boiling, reduce the heat and simmer, covered, for thirty minutes.

4 – Stir in lots of carrots, potatoes, green beans and a few cups of shredded cabbage. You can add pretty much any vegetable that is in season or anything you have frozen including corn, celery and peas.

5 – Add a quarter cup of rice, return to a boil.

6 – Reduce heat and simmer for another thirty minutes or so or until all the vegetables are tender.

7 – Remove the bay leaf.

8 – In a jar, combine a half cup of water with a quarter cup of flour. Shake the mixture until it is combined.

9 – Add the flour and water mixture to the stew. Cook and stir until thickened.

10 – Season to taste with salt, pepper, cayenne pepper or whatever you like. Enjoy with a few slices of hot no knead sourdough bread.