Butter Beans, Mushroom, Kale & Potato Stew

There’s something so wholesome about a winters stew, being a vegetarian, I do find it hard to find a stew on the menu in most restaurants, so I have come up with my own version of what I love to feast on. This butter bean stew offers numerous vitamins and minerals along with satiating your appetite.

Arguably the most versatile vegetable of them all, the potato is one of my favourite foods, this stew uses the pink potato (skin on) with its waxy skin it stays firm throughout the cooking process, as long as you do not over cook it. However, you can substitute for other potato varieties.

prep time: 10 minutes

cooking time: 35 minutes

Serves 4

Ingredients

1 – 2 tablespoons olive oil

1 x Brown onion diced

1 x Russian garlic clove finely diced

6 x Pink potatoes – skin on, kept chunky

8 x Button mushrooms – cut in ½

1x Zucchini diced

2 x Kale leaves – chopped finely

½ Teaspoon thyme

1 Teaspoon smoked paprika

½ x Litre organic vegie stock or broth – or chicken broth

2 x Tins butter beans

Salt & pepper to taste

Alternatively, I do sometimes add in vegan sausages to the stew too, just to mix it up from time to time. (you do need to find a good quality vegan option to ensure you are not eating anything too processed)

Method

In a large pot, start by heating olive oil and slowly cooking onions so that they become translucent and soft, add thyme stir in for 1 minute allowing the aroma to come through the onions.

Now start adding the vegetables, I normally place these in order of what takes the longest to cook thorough, so starting with the potatoes, allow them to cook a bit longer than the other ingredients, place in zucchini, mushrooms followed by the finely chopped kale, garlic, beans and stock, stir through, place lid on pot until all comes to the boil and then remove lid.

Cook until vegetables are tender, but not over cooked.

This stew is meant to be a chunky consistency, it is not a soup, so we are not using as much stock that you normally would for a soup, however you can play around with the liquid levels if you would like more or less soupiness to your dish.

Season with S&P.

Serve with a crusty bread of choice.

It is also a lovely addition to top with a delicate grating of Parmigiano cheese.

Bon Appetit!