3 Hearty Stews to Warm You Up This Winter

4. Add beef back to pan. Add two cups of red wine, using a spatula to scrape bits sticking to bottom of pan. Bring wine to a boil and cook until wine is reduced by half.

5. Move everything to a slow cooker or Dutch oven, except for potatoes and cornstarch. Add fresh thyme sprigs. Cook on low for 3 hours in slow cooker or at 190°F in Dutch oven with the top on.

6. Add potatoes, making sure they are submerged in liquid.

7. Cook for 30 minutes, then take a cup of stew liquid and add a tablespoon of cornstarch to it. Mix thoroughly back into pot and continue to simmer.

8. Serve after 4 hours of total cooking time, removing thyme sprigs before ladling into bowls.

An aromatic vegetarian stew

Your kitchen will fill with enticing aromas as soon as you start sizzling the initial ingredients of this vegetarian stew, allowing the lentils, fresh ginger and curry to intermingle as they gently simmer away on your stovetop. Depending on how strong you like your flavors, feel free to add more ginger, garlic and curry powder than the recipe calls for. The stew is a meal on its own, but it's also delicious with a side of warm focaccia or naan on a cold winter’s night.

Spiced Red Lentil and Coconut Stew

Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, finely chopped 
• Knob fresh ginger, finely chopped
• 1 tablespoon mild curry powder
• 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
• 1 cup red lentils
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 1/2 cups vegetable broth or water
• 1 14.5-ounce can tomato sauce
• 3/4 cup cilantro, chopped fine
• 1 13.5-ounce can unsweetened coconut milk
• Lime wedges

Instructions:

1. Heat oil in a saucepan over medium heat and sauté onion until it just begins to brown, roughly 8 minutes.

2. Add finely chopped garlic, ginger, curry power and red pepper flakes and cook, stirring, for 2 minutes.

3. Add lentils, tomatoes, 1/2 cup cilantro, salt and 2 1/2 cups vegetable broth.

4. Stir coconut milk thoroughly and add 3/4 cup to pot, reserving rest for garnish.

5. Bring ingredients to a boil then reduce to simmer and cook 20 to 25 minutes, until lentils are soft.

6. Ladle into bowls and top with fresh cilantro, a drizzle of coconut milk and a squeeze of lime.

A hearty smoked salmon and tomato stew

Fish stew recipes tend to vary regionally. This one, borrowed from the church cookbook of the Skagway First Presbyterian Church in Alaska, is easy to prepare no matter where you live, with canned tomato soup and fresh and smoked salmon as a base. “Every time we make it, it’s a little different, because my wife has been experimenting with different combinations of seasonings when preparing smoked salmon,” says the church’s reverend, Ryan Mandeville. “But a creamy tomato soup taste is always at the core.”

Skagway Smoked Salmon Tomato Stew

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup butter
• 1/2 cup chopped yellow onion
• 1 cup mushrooms, sliced thin
• 1 tablespoon minced garlic
• 3/4 pounds salmon filet, chopped into small cubes
• 2 to 4 ounces smoked salmon, chopped
• 2 cups diced tomatoes seasoned with pinch of basil, garlic and oregano
• 2 cans tomato soup
• 2 tablespoons chopped parsley
• 1/4 cup chopped cilantro
• 2 tablespoons chopped dill
• 2 cups cream
• Pinch black pepper
• Pinch crushed red pepper
• Salt to taste

Instructions:

1. Melt butter in a medium stockpot over medium heat.

2. Add onions, mushrooms and garlic and sauté for 7 to 10 minutes.

3. Add tomato soup, smoked salmon, tomatoes, parsley, cilantro, dill, black pepper and red pepper flakes. Cook until heated through.

4. Slowly add cream to the soup.

5. Stir in fresh salmon and simmer for 5 minutes.

6. Salt to taste and garnish with fresh dill.

Terry Ward is a contributing writer who covers food, drink and travel. Her work has appeared in National Geographic Traveler, The Washington Post and on CNN.