Stew facts for kids

Lamb stew with vegetables and spices

A bowl of Irish stew

Dubu jjigae, a Korean tofu stew

A stew is a yummy meal cooked slowly in liquid. It's a type of dish where ingredients like meat and vegetables are simmered for a long time. This slow cooking makes the food very tender and creates a delicious sauce, often called gravy, which is served with the meal. Stews are great for tougher cuts of meat, like mutton or beef, because the long cooking time makes them soft and easy to eat.

To make a stew, you often start with a simple sauce. Sometimes, this sauce is a "roux," which is a mix of fat and flour. Other times, people use flour and a stock cube (a small block of concentrated flavor) mixed with milk and water. Usually, the meat is cooked first, and then the vegetables are added later so they don't get too mushy.

Stews and casseroles are quite similar, but they have a few differences. Casseroles often have a topping, like breadcrumbs or cheese, while stews usually don't. Also, stews are typically cooked on a stove or over a fire, with heat coming from the bottom of the pot. Casseroles, on the other hand, are usually baked in an oven, where heat surrounds the cooking dish.

The Long History of Stews

Stews have been enjoyed by people for thousands of years! They are one of the oldest ways to cook food.

Ancient Stews Around the World

People have been making stews since ancient times. One of the earliest mentions of stew is in a Roman cookbook called Apicius, which dates back to the 4th century AD.

The ancient Scythians, who lived around 800 to 400 BC, had a clever way to make stew. They would put meat and water into an animal's stomach and boil it over a fire made from bones. The bones burned well, and the stomach held all the meat. This way, they could cook a whole ox!

In the Amazon, tribes used turtle shells as cooking pots. They would boil the turtle's insides and other ingredients in these shells. Other cultures used large clam shells for cooking. Archaeologists have found proof of these cooking methods from over 8,000 years ago.

Stews in Europe

The Roman cookbook Apicius has recipes for lamb and fish stews. Later, in France, one of the oldest French cookbooks, Le Viandier, written by chef Taillevent, included many types of stews called "ragouts."

The famous Hungarian goulash stew has a very old history, going back to the 9th century. It was first made by Magyar shepherds, long before Hungary even existed as a country. The spicy paprika was added to goulash much later, in the 18th century.

The first time "Irish stew" was mentioned in writing was in a poem by Lord Byron in 1814. He wrote about the Devil dining on "a rebel or so in an Irish stew."

Related Dishes

• Casserole

Images for kids

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  Cocido montañés or Highlander stew, a common dish from Cantabria, Spain

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  Ohaw, a fish and vegetable stew made by the Ainu people of northern Japan

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  A traditional Irish stew

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  Karelian stew from Finland

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  A hearty beef stew

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  A traditional bouillabaisse from Marseille, France, with fish served separately

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  Goulash cooking in a traditional "bogrács" (cauldron)

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  Pichelsteiner, a German stew

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  A delicious pork stew (ragoût de porc)

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  Cochinita pibil, a Mexican pork stew, cooling after cooking

See also

In Spanish: Estofado para niños