One-Pot Meal: The Easiest Stew You’ll Ever Make

One-pot cooking is very much a part of my upbringing and something which I still do a lot to this day. My parents made a lot of stews and casseroles like beef stew, chicken and vegetable curry, afritada and other hearty dishes because they were tasty and easy to make. Whenever my siblings and I had one-pot meals, we knew that we would always get a decent helping because there’s enough meat, vegetables and sauce for everyone.

Weekly meals for my family are all about nutritious, delicious and fuss-free recipes that are easy to prepare and cook. One-pot cooking is easy because you basically just dump all the ingredients in the pot then cover with a lid and cook it for a few minutes. It also enables me to create dishes using pantry and refrigerator ingredients which makes me feel frugal, thrifty, and resourceful. At least for an hour or so. LOL

I’m sharing with you the easiest stew you’ll ever make because the ingredients are readily available and there’s minimal cooking involved plus, it’s delicious!

Chicken, Veggies & Tomato Stew

Ingredients:

6-8 pieces chicken legs or thighs (dark meat gives more flavor to the dish)
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 can (28 ounce) diced tomatoes
1 tablespoon tomato paste (optional)
2 carrots, chopped
3 potatoes, chopped
1 onion, diced
8 cloves garlic, minced
1 1/2 tsp. dried basil
1 1/2 tsp. dried oregano
2 dried bay leaves
a pinch of cayenne pepper
1 tbsp. sugar
Salt and pepper, to taste

Step 1: Season the chicken with salt and pepper

Step 2: Heat the pot or dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add olive oil.

Step 3: When oil is hot, add chicken thighs/legs to the pan. Using tongs, brown on all sides, about 2 minutes. You don’t need to cook the chicken all the way through, you just want to get a golden color on each side.

Note: You can skip “Step 3” and just dump all of the ingredients in a pot and cook it for 30-45 minutes in medium heat (I’ve done this many times before especially when I’m busy and I have to cook lunch or dinner ASAP). Browning the skin just gives the dish more dimension in flavor. Otherwise, you’ll still have a very tasty stew.

Step 4: Once the chicken thighs/legs are brown, add the garlic and onion. Cook for a minute on so.
Step 5: Add all the veggies.
Step 6: Dump the canned tomatoes and add the tomato paste.
Step 7: Add all the dried herbs.
Step 8: Add the sugar and season it with salt and pepper.

Step 9: Stir and scrape the bottom of the pot to loosen any bits.

Step 10: Put lid on the pot and cook for 30 minutes on the stove top, in medium heat. Be sure to set the timer on your phone or use a kitchen or range timer.

In the meantime, feel free to check your Instagram and upload a video of you cooking on Snapchat (while you’re at it, follow me: jenniepperson).

Step 11: Lift the lid of the pot…  and dance for joy because OMG, your beautiful creation!!! Stir and taste it. This is the time to adjust the seasoning (add if needed, sugar, salt, pepper) and leave it simmering without the lid for another 10-15 minutes to thicken the sauce. SAUCEMARYOSEP!

Tip: Don’t overcook the chicken and veggies. You want the meat juicy and the vegetables aldente. If you want to thicken the sauce even more, set aside the chicken and veggies and simmer the sauce for a few more minutes.

I would love to show you the plated Chicken, Veggies & Tomato Stew but we were so hungry we inhaled it before I could photograph it. You probably have more discipline than I do so be sure to take a photo and post it on Instagram. Tag me because you know it’s the right thing to do—haha!

You can eat the stew on it’s own or spoon it over cooked pasta or serve it with rice. So good! Hashtag: sarapeachy