Chicken and Pork Stew

I came across the basis for this recipe a couple of years ago on the King Arthur Flour blog flourish. I made it as they suggested and found it a bit bland. A bit of cayenne pepper helped however I thought I could do more with it.

On this retry I used the remainder from a pack of bacon plus an odd bit of kielbasa we had sitting in the fridge to boost the meatiness. The celery went in to add a bit of bulk.

Chicken and Port Stew on toasted potato bread

Chicken and Pork Stew
Servings: 8
Prep time: 30 minutes
Total time: 1 hour

Ingredients:

• 5 lb. chicken pieces/parts
• 1 Tbsp. olive oil
• kosher salt and cracked black pepper
• 1 Tbsp. ground cumin
• 1 Tbsp. chili powder
• 1 19 oz. can cannellini beans, undrained
• 4-5 pieces of bacon
• 1/2 lb. kielbasa, quartered and cut into 1/2″ pieces
• 1 large onion, chopped (~3 cups total)
• 4-5 celery sticks, cut int 1/2″ pieces
• 1 red bell pepper, seeded and 1/2″ dice
• 1 small jalapeño pepper, seeded and finely diced
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 lb. frozen peas, thawed
• 2 cans (4 oz. each) chopped green chiles, undrained
• 3-ounce package cream cheese, cut into small pieces

Directions:

1. Heat the oven to 450°F. Line the tray of a broiler pan with aluminum foil to aid in clean-up.
2. Trim excess fat from the chicken. Rub with 1 tablespoon olive oil, sprinkle generously with salt and pepper.
3. Bake for 20 minutes, rotating the pan half way through cooking. Temp. the chicken; breast should reach 160°F and thighs/drumsticks should be 175°F. Remove pan to a cooking rack and allow to cool until they can be handled.
4. While the chicken cools put the beans, cumin and chili powder in a food processor and give them a whirl until smooth.
5. When the chicken can be handled remove the skin, then remove the meat from the bones. Cut into 1/2″ pieces. Set aside.
6. Cook the bacon in a large Dutch oven over medium heat until cooked to your liking. Remove (and set aside) the bacon, drain (and set aside) most of the fat, leaving about 2 tsp. behind. Add the kielbasa until lightly browned. Transfer kielbasa to a plate and hold for later.
7. Look at the fat in the Dutch oven; add reserved bacon fat to reach ~1 tablespoon. When hot add the onion, celery and peppers. Sprinkle with kosher salt and black pepper. Cook until the veggies have softened, ~10 minutes.
8. Add the garlic, stir in and cook until aromatic; about 30 seconds.
9. Add the peas, chiles, cut up chicken, kielbasa and spiced bean puree to the pot. Stir until combined and allow to warm through, 15-20 minutes. If it looks a bit dry add maybe 1/4 to 1/2 cup of water. It won’t seem like much however as the stew heats more liquid will appear as if by magic.
10. Add the cream cheese to the pot, stirring until combined. Taste and adjust seasoning as desired. Serve with hot corn bread.

Notes:
You can use all chicken breasts, thighs or drumsticks if you like.

I added about a cup of water to this in the next to last step because it looked so dry. It ended up being soupy after 10 minutes and I spent the next 20 minutes trying to reduce it back to a stew.