'Tis the season for soups and stews, and I'm so glad. In the first place, I love that most soup and stew recipes yield enough to make 8 to 10 servings. It's great because it gives you enough to be able to make ahead and freeze. That way you have a meal at the ready. Just heat and eat. Second, I love the warm comfort that a bowl of hearty soup or stew provides. It's like a hug, and who couldn't use one of those.
This stew does take some time to make, but not much effort. Most of the effort is expended in the chopping of the vegetables, and you can always do that ahead of time. You do not need to do that the same day you make the stew. I like to chop my veggies a couple days ahead and store them in the refrigerator until needed. Also, I like to keep a jar of minced garlic in my fridge at all times. It really comes in handy, and I use it for so many recipes that it doesn't have time to get stale. Also, I hate chopping onions so I buy bags of frozen chopped onions and keep those in my freezer. It works for most recipes that call for chopped onions. I hope these tips help you.
This delicious chicken and sausage stew is certainly a worthy contender to be a permanent addition to your recipe box. I hope you will give it a try soon!
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Chicken and Sausage Stew
Ingredients
- 1 lb dried great Northern beans You can also use navy, cannellini or flageolet beans
- 6 oz thick-sliced bacon chopped
- 12 oz Andouille sausage
- 2 lbs bone-in chicken thighs You can also use drumsticks
- ½ tsp salt
- ½ tsp pepper
- 2 cups chopped onions
- 1-½ cups peeled and chopped carrots
- 1-½ cups chopped celery
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 8 cups chicken broth
- 1 6 oz can tomato paste
- 8 sprigs fresh Italian parsley and/or thyme
- 2 bay leaves
- fresh Italian parsley for garnish
Instructions
- Rinse beans. In a large pot over high heat, combine beans and 8 cups water. Bring to boiling. Reduce heat. Simmer, covered, for two minutes. Remove from heat and let stand for one hour. Drain and rinse.
- In a large Dutch oven, or oven-safe pot, cook bacon over medium heat for 8 minutes or until crisp. Use a slotted spoon (in order to leave as much grease behind as possible for added flavor) transfer bacon to a large bowl.
- Add sausage to pot and cook 6-8 minutes, or until browned on all sides. Transfer to bowl with bacon.
- Sprinkle chicken all over with salt and pepper, then add to pot. Cook 8-10 minutes over medium-high heat until well-browned all over. Transfer to bowl with bacon and sausage and refrigerate until later.
- Add carrots, celery and onions to pot and cook 8-10 minutes. Add garlic and cook 1 minute. Stir in drained beans, broth, tomato paste, herbs, and bay leaves and bring to a simmer over high heat. Reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, 40-45 minutes or until beans are almost tender, stirring occasionally.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Cut sausage into 1-inch pieces and add to stew along with bacon. Place chicken on top of stew with the skin exposed. Bake, uncovered 1 hour. If the chicken skin is not yet browned, broil under high heat until skin turns brown.
- Ladle into bowls. Garnish with parsley and enjoy!
Nutrition Facts
Nutritional information provided is for one serving and is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
