Soups and Stews

Cowboy stew is a perennial of the American Old West originating from Texas. This is a delicious and hearty stew that you can enjoy whether you're on the trail or at home.

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Ingredients - 1 brown onion, chopped - 2 chillis, sliced - 6 slices bacon, thick cut - 250g keilbasa, kransky or other continental sausage, cut into 1/2 to 1 inch slices - 500g minced beef - 3 garlic cloves or equivalent - 3 tablespoons white flour - 1 tablespoon cummin - 1 tablespoon chilli powder - 1 teaspoon salt - 1 teaspoon black pepper - 500ml liquid chicken stock - 500g ranch-style or chili beans with liquid - 500g sweet corn, drained - 500g diced tomatoes - chopped parsley for garnish - optional: cornbread for the side

Instructions 1. In a heavy cast iron pot, cook the bacon over medium heat until it begins to crisp and brown (5 to 7 minutes). 2. Add the sausage and cook further until it begins to brown. 3. Add the beef, onions, chillis and garlic, and continue to cook until the beef begins to brown. 4. Add the flour, cummin, chilli power or flakes, fresh chillis, salt and pepper, and cook until the flour begins to crisp. 5. Add the chicken stock, beans, diced tomatoes and corn. Increase to a high heat until the stew begins to boil. 6. Reduce to a simmer, put the lid on, and cook for an hour. 7. Serve in a bowl with parsley garnish. Optionally pair with cornbread or some other good bread.

Servings Four

Storage Keep the soup in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 48 hours.

The humble Cottage Pie is a perennial of economical cooking dating from the 18th century in Ireland and Great Britain. Made from easily sourced ingredients and easy to prepare, it fed laborers and peasant farmers on a budget. For a traditional Shepherd's Pie, use lamb instead of beef.

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Ingredients - 1 brown onion, chopped - 1 kg mashed potato (see below) - 500 g beef mince - 500 g mixed vegetables (such as carrots, peas, corn, celery) - 500 ml beef stock - 2 tablespoons plain flour - 1 tablespoon tomato paste - 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce - butter or oil for cooking

Instructions 1. Heat oil or butter in pan on medium-high heat. 2. Add vegetables and chopped onion and cook for 5 minutes. 3. Add mince, mix together with vegetables, and cook for another 5 minutes. 4. Add the flour, tomato paste, Worcestershire sauce, and beef stock. Stir thoroughly. 5. Bring to a boil, then reduce to medium-low heat and cook for 30 minutes. 6. Meanwhile, pre-heat over to 200 C. If you intend to make your own mashed potatoes, follow the steps below now. 7. Once the beef sauce is cooked, spoon it into an oven dish, then cover it with the mashed potato. Bake for 20 minutes. 8. Serve immediately.

Mashed potato Mashed potato can be bought pre-made or as a powder. Alternatively, you can make it yourself for a truly authentic meal. Take 800 grams potatoes, cook in salted boiling water for 15 minutes, drain, return to pan and add 40 grams butter and mash with a potato masher or fork. Add 125 ml milk and stir until combined.

Servings Four.

Storage Keep the soup in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 48 hours.

This easy to make recipe for beef and potato soup with green beans is a great example of peasant food from Central Europe, especially Germany and Austria. Known as Grüne Bohnensuppe, it's a functional and seasonal meal which serves as a great winter warmer.

In rural German farming communities, the soup was designed to utilise whatever was fresh in the home garden during the late summer and early autumn harvest. Because it was peasant food, the baseline ingredients were cheap, carbohydrate-dense, and easily accessible.

The base is green beans paired with potatoes and onions. For protein, farmers would throw in scraps of smoked bacon (Speck), ham hocks, or leftover beef chunks that were available to give the broth depth and fat.

In this recipe, we'll be using casserole beef, which is cheap and commonly available from supermarkets, along with thyme and peppercorns for additional flavour.

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Ingredients - 1 kg braising or casserole beef - 2 onions, chopped - 1 litre vegetable stock - 2 large potatoes (or several smaller ones), peeled and diced - 500 g green beans, trimmed and cut into small pieces - 2-3 sprigs of thyme - salt and pepper - cooking oil - (optional) parsley - (optional) dark bread such as rye

Instructions 1. Heat the oil in a pan. Add the beef and season with salt and pepper. 2. Cook until the beef begins to brown then add the onions and cook until the onions begin to soften. 3. Add the thyme and stock. Bring to a boil, then simmer over medium heat for 40 minutes. 4. Add the potatoes, bring back to the boil, then cook for a further 15 minutes. 5. Add the green beans and cook for a further 5 minutes.

Serving Dish the soup into a bowl and sprinkle with parsley. Serve with a dark bread such as rye.

Servings Four.

Storage Keep the soup in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 48 hours.

Hello and welcome to our very first recipe here at the Bachelor Kitchen. To kick things off, I'm making a mixed seafood gumbo from deep south Cajun country, Louisiana, USA.

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Cajun cuisine is a rustic, deeply flavourful style of cooking developed by the Acadians who were exiled from Canada in the swampy, fertile bayous of Luisiana. Characterised by a rich blend of French, African, and Native American culinary traditions, the foundation of the cousine relies on a "holy trinity" of chopped onion, capsicum, and celery, which is slowly cooked down with fat and flour to form a dark roux.

This hearty stew contains seafood and sausage spiced with cayenne, paprika, oregano, and parsley.

Ingredients - 1 cup rice - 1 clove garlic - 1 onion, peeled and chopped - 1 capsicum (red preferred, green is okay) sliced - 2 celery sticks, washed and chopped - 250g chorizo sausage sliced into 2cm sections - 250g mixed seafood - 400g diced tomato - 400g sliced okra - 500ml fish stock - 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper - 1 teaspoon oregano - 1 teaspoon black pepper - parsley to garnish

Instructions 1. Begin by making the rice. Let it cook while you make the gumbo. 2. In a saucepan with a lid add cooking oil and put it on medium heat. 3. Add the onion and celery. Let it cook until the onions begins to soften. 4. Add the garlic, black pepper, and cayenne. Optionally add paprika. 5. Cook for two minutes then add the capsicum and oregano. 6. Mix thoroughly. Bring to boil. Then reduce heat to low and simmer for 40 minutes. 7. Add seafood and simmer for further 5 minutes. 8. Serve rice and gumbo garnished with parsley.

Servings Three to four.

Storage The gumbo will keep for 48 hours in the fridge or can be frozen for up to two months. The rice should be made freshly each time.