Cream Stew

Cream stew is a homey Japanese dish comprising of meat and vegetables cooked in a creamy roux-based gravy.  I would think that it was influenced by the French ‘blanquette de veau‘.  I remembered my parents would occasionally purchase the prepared blocks of roux from the Japanese supermarket when I was a kid and I would look forward to the dish as the gravy was really luxurious and tasty, though my parents found it far too overwhelming for their tastes and would dilute it down much to my dismay!  On hindsight the store bought roux was filled with loads of ingredients engineered to make it tasty, and now that I’m on the AIP, these prepared gravy mixes are a thing of the past.  Thank goodness!

I had just experimented with making AIP pasta (will cover this in another post soon) and wanted to make a goulash to accompany it.  I didn’t particularly feel like going the traditional route and with tomatoes being excluded, that would have made it rather sorry.  Then I remembered cream stew and decided to make an AIP version using my Instant Pot Pressure Cooker.  It should also be easy to make either in the oven or simmered on the stove.

Since wheat flour is an important component in roux to provide the creamy white colour and thickening effect of the stew, I had to replace that to make it AIP-friendly.  So I decided to make a coconut milk-based stew instead, and I’m pretty pleased with the outcome.  I used a plantain to provide some starch but feel free to omit it.  In fact, I had wanted to use butternut squash instead but I went along with plantain as I had one sitting in my fruit basket.  On hindsight, squash would have been more suitable as it’s more delicate.  If you wish to keep with the white theme of the dish, stick to pale ingredients like chicken, parsnips, daikon, turnip, cauliflower, celery root, etc.

Coconut flour helps to provide texture and thicken the stew without having to use wheat flour and sweetens the stew ever so slightly, along with the addition of honey.  You may wish to omit the honey if desired.

Ingredients (Serves 4-6) 

• 6 cups water
• 1lb/ 450g beef/ veal, cubed
• 2 cups veal bone broth
• 1 cup or 1 Vidalia/ white onion, diced
• 2 cups or 2 white turnips/ rutabagas, chopped into 1″/ 2.5cm chunks
• 1 cup or 2 carrots, chopped into 1″/ 2.5cm chunks
• 2 cups or 1 medium-ripe plantain, peeled and halved lengthwise and cut into 1″/ 2.5cm chunks
• 1 tbsp or 2 garlic cloves, peeled and chopped
• 1 tsp sea salt, divided
• 1 bay leaf
• 1/2 tsp dried basil
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon (or a stick of cinnamon)
• 500mL coconut milk
• 1/4 cup coconut flour
• 1 tsp honey
• 2 cups or 1 broccoli, cut into large florets

Method (using Instant Pot Pressure Cooker)

• Select ‘Sauté’ function and adjust to ‘more’
• Add 6 cups water and bring to boil
• Add meat and allow to boil for 3 minutes before draining and setting aside
• Rinse inner pot and return meat to pot
• Add veal bone broth, vegetables (except broccoli), 1/2 tsp sea salt, herbs and cinnamon
• Stir to combine, cover, set valve to ‘sealing’ and select ‘Manual’ function for 15-20 minutes
• Once cooking time is up, unseal lid by quick release and remove meat and vegetables from the pot and set aside, leaving broth in the pot
• Select ‘Sauté’ function and add coconut milk, coconut flour, and honey stirring to mix
• Add broccoli florets and allow to simmer until cooked and gravy is thickened
• Discard bay leaf and cinnamon stick (if using)
• Return meat and vegetables to gravy and stir gently to mix
• Season with remaining 1/2 tsp sea salt or to taste and serve hot