Rosemary-Scented Stew

Dear Folks,

I've wanted to do something with barley for a while and I was inspired to try using a bit of Worschestshire sauce while watching a cooking show by Ming Tsai the other day. I prefer using chicken and sausage without any additives. There are several grocers or local suppliers who make sausage without junk. See below for ways to find local suppliers in Arizona and around the country.

1 cup of barley
3 cups of water
pinch of salt

1 1/2 pounds of boneless chicken - cut into 3 inch chunks
1 1/2 pounds of mild Italian sausage
1 white or yellow onion, chopped or sliced in coarse pieces
3 sprigs of fresh rosemary, rinsed
1 small handful of fresh thyme, rinsed (These herbs will be removed after cooking so, tie with string or in a cheese cloth bag for easy removal)
1/4 cup of Worschestshire sauce
2 tablespoons of fresh lemon juice
1 quart of chicken stock
1 cup more or less of water
2 potatoes
2 sweet potatoes (can substitute carrots for some of the potatoes - you want about 3-4 cups of these vegetables)
Olive oil
2 grinds of black pepper
1/4 cup of flour or corn starch

1. Cook barley by bringing water and salt to boil, add barley, stir, cover, reduce heat to simmer and cook for 50 minutes. Set aside after cooking.

2: Make the stew

In a large stock pot heat oil and add onion, stirring over medium high heat for 1 minute. Add rosemary and thyme, continue stirring for 2 minutes. Add Worschestshire sauce and lemon juice. Stir for 2 more minutes, add pepper, and a bit of chicken stock stir. Begin nesting in chicken and sausage adding broth to keep it covered. Add potatoes last, on top of meat. Add enough broth and water if needed to cover everything. Bring to boil, cover, reduce to gentle simmer, and cook for 30 minutes.

Remove meat and vegetables to a bowl, discard herb bundle. Cool a bit of stock and stir flour into it, then while stirring, add back into stock to thicken. Cook for 3-4 minutes until thick. Cut meat and vegetables into large bit-size pieces. Add reserved barley to stock and bring back to a boil. Add meat and vegetables back in and heat for 2 minutes. Serve and enjoy. This hearty stew usually needs no additional salt.

ABOUT barley.

My mother cooked with barley frequently to extend the nutrition of soups. An old grain, barley is more nutrient dense than brown rice (higher fiber of the good kind). While it takes a little longer to cook, it is worth while to cook up several cups at a time and freeze in 1-2 cup packages for easy additions to soups and stews or to make a variation on fried rice. One nice thing about cooked barley is that it does not have the extra-gelatinous starch rice does.

. . .

GARDENING: My e-reminder service is applicable to areas other than the Phoenix Metro valley, including some other states. Click here to find cities whose gardeners can use the same planting and growing help.

. . .
Locavore - Local Suppliers of foods:

In Arizona go to http://www.localfirstaz.com/index.php to find local producers and sellers of not only food but everything your need .

All over the country, you can also find local farmers and producers of all types of foods at localharvest.org

And in Arizona you can find farmers markets at foodconnect.org - foodconnect.org also helps the community with the guiding principle of their mission statement "...to grow strong communities, healthy food, healthy families and healthy farms."


Have a great day,

-- Catherine, The Herb Lady