Spice up Brunswick stew

Southwestern-style recipe will hit the spot

The past few winters in the Carolinas have been different. I can recall winter breaking sometime during February and March, being spring-like, even if not particularly warm. It was always a good lead-in to a warmer April.

The past few years, however, March has had just about as many cold days as warm ones, and they weren’t always loaded on the front end of the month. Thinking of this, the March’s featured recipe is one that can be used to warm up on cold days, but also isn’t too much for when the temperature swings to the warm side of the thermometer.

March is a sort of in-between time for hunters and fishermen, with deer and small-game seasons long gone and turkey season on the horizon. On the fishing side, bass and crappie might be biting, but the bream bite is a ways off and saltwater fishing is just beginning to get going again for the year.

On the plus side, Daylight Savings Time begins on Sunday, March 13, and spring officially arrives a week later on March 20. Unfortunately, the weather may or may not agree, and temperatures may range from freezing to 80. Yep, March is definitely an in- between time for sportsmen.

The lure of the range or workshop may be too strong, but March is a good time to cross a few things off the Honey-do list. While you are spending time around the house fixing that shelf or painting the storeroom, it’s a good time to get your freezer straight. Hopefully, you just restocked the deer, duck and quail side of it, and it’s time to use the last of 2014’s game so it doesn’t get mixed up.

Whenever you cook game, it seems like there is always just a little leftover, or there are a few small packages that aren’t really enough for a meal on their own. This month’s recipe is a way to deal with them. It really came about as a way to combine leftovers, but it can also be used to combine small amounts.

Just about everyone has heard of Brunswick stew. There is a debate whether it was invented in Georgia or Virginia;  Georgia has a monument in the town of Brunswick, while Brunswick County, Va., says it was first made in a legislator’s hunting camp 70 years earlier. I was introduced to the hunting-camp version and thought of it as a way to prepare game, but have since learned it also tastes pretty good made with chicken and domestic pork.

This version uses some chipotle seasoning and spicy vegetables to give it that smoky, slightly spicy and rich, southwestern flavor. It isn’t hot, but it can be jacked up a few notches if that is desired. It can also be made using almost any meat from those original Virginia squirrels and Georgia feral pigs to upland birds, rabbits, venison and even domestic chicken, pork and beef.

Southwestern Brunswick stew

This is an original recipe, so I’ll take the blame if you don’t care for it. However, I also get the credit if you like it. It started one day while I was cleaning out the refrigerator, where I found part of a pork roast, two leftover quail and a few uncooked dove breasts in a Ziplock bag. None was enough for a meal, so what was I going to do?

I boned the meat off the doves, rubbed the pieces in a secret southwestern style rub and quickly browned them in a skillet. Looking through the pantry and freezer, I found packs of corn, beans and a can of Rotel tomatoes with chilies, and the chase was on. It all wound up in a big saucepot, with some other southwestern and Tex-Mex ingredients, and it was edible.

That first batch was actually good enough I decided on the spot to try it again. The next time, I thought about Brunswick stew but remembered the Rotel tomatoes and chilies were good, so I added fiesta corn, a small can of green chilies and some chipotle ketchup. Subsequent versions involved different ingredients, friends made suggestions, and it evolved to where it is now.

I have to warn anyone cooking this that it is a man’s recipe and requires tasting and adjustment. The way the meat was cooked originally affects the taste — mostly just a little, but sometimes a lot. You need to taste it and adjust accordingly. I list salt and pepper and brown sugar and apple cider vinegar as ways to change the taste and caution you to use them sparingly. A little goes a long way.

This is a whole lot like refrigerator stew in using what you have instead of buying a lot. You may have an ingredient — like a spicy ketchup or southwestern or chipotle barbecue sauce — that has a different taste than what I’m using, and you have to decide to go with it or change it. I say go with it, as the idea is simply to make a Brunswick stew with a savory, smoky, slightly sweet flavor that makes you forget you just mixed up a bunch of leftovers.

Feel free to experiment and vary the recipe. This is freestyle cooking, and your ideas can be added to the recipe. I have one friend who wouldn’t consider making this unless he added some jalapeno peppers. I tasted some of his and thought it was pretty good; those peppers added a little edge I liked.

This version isn’t hot, but can be made hot if that’s your preference. If you don’t like southwest or Tex-Mex flavors, this might not be for you, but a lot of people like it that didn’t think they would.

I hope to add you to that list. Enjoy!

INGREDIENTS:

5 cups shredded cooked meat — any combination of feral pork, venison or upland wildfowl

1 cup stock, beef preferably, but chicken will work

1 medium sweet onion

2 cans diced new potatoes

1 small package frozen butter beans

1 small package frozen cut green beans

1 medium or large package frozen fiesta style corn

1 can Rotel diced tomatoes with green chilies

1 small can roasted, skinned and diced green chilies

1/4 cup mild chipotle ketchup, chipotle barbecue sauce or southwest barbecue sauce

Several good shakes of Worcestershire sauce

2 tsp chipotle or southwest steak

seasoning

1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

Salt, pepper, brown sugar and apple cider vinegar to taste

PREPARATION:

Chop the onion coarsely. Combine the stock, vegetables, meat, ketchup, Worcestershire sauce, steak seasoning and cayenne pepper in an appropriate-size pot over low heat. Stir often to prevent sticking until it begins a lazy, slow-bubbling simmer. Cook for about 15 minutes, while stirring every couple of minutes, to combine the flavors.

Taste the stew. Any seasoning in the meats may alter the flavor a little. Add salt and pepper in small amounts to taste. Add brown sugar or apple cider vinegar in small amounts to taste.  Sugar makes the stew sweeter and vinegar calms it down.

Cook for 15 minutes on low, stirring occasionally. Taste the stew again and adjust sweet/bitter if needed. If changes are made, simmer on low for another 10 minutes to combine the flavors. When the flavor is suitable, reduce heat to warm and serve. Many people like to add some hot sauce to this, but I believe it is best with Texas Pete Cha Sauce sprinkled on. The Cha sauce might be a little spicy for some folks, but it has a sweet, smoky flavor that compliments the southwestern Brunswick stew.

This is a pretty complete meal. The only thing I would consider adding is some hearty, fresh, hot bread or corn muffins to help get the last drops out of the bowl.