Thursday, April 26, 2012

Navarin Printanier

Also known as "lamb stew with spring vegetables".  A winner in our kitchens 
and with our spring temperatures going from outright sweltering back down to
downright chilly - stew was a welcome meal.

Per Nana:

What do you call navarin printanier if you do not use lamb?  Beef stew?

I spent a better part of this week searching for lamb to no avail.
The only piece I came across was at Wegman's and that was
 a leg of lamb. At the price they were asking, I certainly did not intend
 to make it into stew.  I can be very frugal sometimes (okay, call me cheap)
 but  since hubby and I are not big lamb eaters, I couldn't do it.  
Lamb chops, well now, that's another story.
Wegman's has the cutest 1" potatoes that I used, as well as the
 tiny white onions.  I have never cooked with these onions before and 
they are really nice, not too strong.  I was a bit apprehensive about 
using that much garlic with the onions, but it all melted away.

One thing I especially liked about this "stew" was the way the vegetables 
were prepared.  I think giving them some color before adding to the meat 
makes a huge difference in flavor. The recipe calls for a lot of prep work,
 and having used so many dishes, I was wondering if it was worth the effort.
Trust me, it was. 
 This was one of the best stews I have ever made, and I make a
pretty good boeuf bourguignon.  (at least that's what hubby said).

I hope someday I will be able to find a good piece of lamb to try this again.
I am anxious to see the results of all the other Doristas, and if they
 were able to find some nice lamb to make this dish properly.

Per Tricia:
Nana had already taken the pressure off when she decided to go with beef.  
Me and my wallet willingly joined her, acknowledging that it would have 
been even better, and certainly more "Spring" like ....had I used the lamb. 
 But a lovely stew it was nonetheless.......even after
 I forgot to add the peas until the first bowl had been served :) 
 I should have known when I took the photo of the ingredients that I 
would forget to add them at the end.  While this was no mean a difficult recipe, 
by the time I had all the items chopped, browned in sugar and combined 
with the meat...I had felt quite "done".  Serving it up I pondered again
 what made this a Spring dish (yes, the lack of lamb did not help) 
and realized I still had the peas to add in.  Even worse was that Nana 
actually dropped off the peas for me as she had picked up an extra box.  
Next time I will simply ask her to stick around to make 
sure the ingredients make it in.........
The onions were fun- believe  it or not I do not recall actually ever 
cooking  tiny onions like this. And definitely not in this manner. Exactly
 as Dorie described,  their skin came away after being blanched.
 They were a wonderful surprise addition.  The other addition
 that I am not used to, but did not yield a "surprise"  was adding 
the sugar when I cooked the veggies.  No shock that it made
 everything taste better.  I felt slightly less guilty since
 Dorie "directed me" to do it :)
My guys thoroughly enjoyed this one.  My younger son initially thought it 
was a bit on the bland side and by the time  he finished his second large bowl 
had uttered the phrase "I take it back..... I take it back" about a half dozen times. 
 My husband also made it quite clear that he would be more than happy to
 see this come across the table again - in any season. 
(Missing something green ??)



Happy French Friday ~

26 comments:

  1. This was definitely better the next day but we just LIKED, not loved it. I was lucky to find a tiny package of lamb chops and made a teeny amount and changed the technique up a lot. Ahem.

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  2. Funny, over here beef is so much more expensive than just about every other kind of meat. My lamb (granted only half a recipe's worth) was €10.

    Both of your stews look lovely. I too don't really see stew as springtime fare, but the temps were pretty low this week so why not.

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  3. I almost forgot to put the peas in mine as well. Both of your stews look so delicious.

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  4. We were on team beef too :-)
    I was happy that I cooked this during a cold snap instead of during the crazy warm spell we just had.
    Everyone's stews look lovely - have a great weekend!

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  5. I didn't have peas on their own so I used a frozen vegetable mix which contained peas amongst them. I nearly used beef because lamb costs a bomb here too, and I'm glad you both reported your lovely beef stews a huge success!

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  6. I used leg of lamb and fresh Holland peas...love this classic stew :) slurrp and yours looks delicious too ! Gread job!

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  7. I have a problem with stews that take up lots of dishes too. Also prep work. But I always seem to forget all the trouble when I sit down to a bowl of it. These look lovely ladies!

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  8. Nana - your beef stew certainly looks delicious. I like the photo with the nice serving dish. Great colors and great post!

    Tricia - the photo of the ingredients is very nice and so is the photo of your stew. It looks very appetizing. Very nice! I am glad you all liked this dish with beef - I was considering that option as well, since lamb is in no way readily available around here.

    Enjoy your weekend!

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  9. Looks great! I wish it was cold enough where I am to properly enjoy it. Ah, well. Next winter, perhaps.

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  10. Both of these stews look yummy! Tricia…I forgot the peas, too! I went with lamb, but I sent my husband to the butcher to get it….he came home with lamb shanks…lesson is...don’t send a man out to do your food shopping! We thought this was an amazing dish…such lovely flavors! Glad you both enjoyed it!

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  11. Added peas at the last minute. Your dishes both look great.

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  12. Ha! I did the same thing with the peas... But I carried the stew next door and took off the top and screamed "oh no - the peas!". No one could touch it til I ran back home and brought them over and stirred them in. Picture time turned me into a crazy woman :-)

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  13. I think it's interesting that so many of you had a difficult time finding lamb. I happened to have a shoulder in my freezer so I didn't even have to look. Lucky me, I guess. Tricia, I also liked Dorie's treatment of the vegetables and never had known the small onion/skin trick either. That's why FFWD and TWD/BWJ are so great - we learn all these nifty little tricks and polish up our techniques. Your stews look fabulous.

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  14. I don 't know what is going on with lamb prices here either. I ended up using both shoulder and shank and simmered them both in the slow cooker, so everything was tender. Both stews look yummy!

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  15. Lamb is not very popular or available in my area either. There is still some around because of Easter. I never cooked it before and really found it delicious, even my kids were open to it.

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  16. I ended up making this the night before I served it, but didn't want to add the peas until the end because I wasn't sure the color would last. I taped a note on top of the container that said "Add Peas" or I would have forgotten too.

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  17. I didn't care for the recipe this week, but seeing your photos is enough to change my mind! I think I'll have to try it again with beef. It really does look delicious.

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  18. Both of your photos look great! We all really enjoyed this dish and will definitely make it again and again!

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  19. Looks good! My kids liked it also. I agree with you about using up so many dishes to make a stew--kinda defeats the purpose of a one pot meal.

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  20. We went with beef too. I just couldn't justify the cost of the lamb! Tricia: I love your serving dish!

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  21. I wish I had used beef, but I've been meaning to make a lamb dish for awhile. Great post!

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  22. LOL you ladies always crack me up! Isn't it funny how we all like to give our veggies personalities at times and call them things like "cute"?? :)

    Alice @ http://acookingmizer.wordpress.com

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  23. I hadn't even thought of going for lamb! What a great idea!

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  24. Glad you both enjoyed this. There was something special about the lamb that made this dish over the top, though I agree the meat can be pricey!

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  25. wow...looks amazingly tasty delicious...
    new to your space..awesome space you have
    happy following you..:)
    do stop by mine sometime
    Tasty Appetite

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  26. I'm so impressed you both peeled those tiny white onions! I'm always lazy and just buy the frozen, already peeled ones. I'm glad you both enjoyed the stew, both of your dishes look beautiful (the peas do add so much color to the dish)!

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