Simple Vegetable Stew

I grew up eating a lot of stew so when I went fully plant-based I just had to find a way to make a tasty plant-based version of my childhood dish. It’s a warm, comforting dish packed full of vegetables. It’s also a great meal for batch cooking and freezing for those days you just don’t want to cook. 

For replacing the beef in stew, I used soy chunks and they work perfectly. Soy chunks are full of protein for those looking to boost their protein intake (especially for anyone who trains). However you could use mushrooms if you’re not a fan of soy chunks.

I usually add barley to my stew but I didn’t have any this week so I substituted it with buckwheat and it actually worked perfectly. You can even use either or do a 50/50 split. This is a recipe you can play around with adding different vegetables/grains.

INGREDIENTS

• 1 large white onion, chopped

• 3 garlic cloves, crushed

• 1/2 tsp thyme

• 4 celery stalks

• 1/2 leek

• 3 medium carrots

• 1 parsnip

• 1 litre vegetable stock

• 500ml water

• 1 tbsp soy sauce

• 100g barley or buckwheat (or a mixture of both)

• 100g soy chunks or mushrooms

• 300g baby potatoes (optional)

METHOD:

1. Add 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil to a large pot over medium heat. Add onion, garlic, carrots, celery, thyme and 100ml vegetable stock and cook for 10 minutes.

2. The add the rest of the vegetable stock, soy sauce, barley, soy chunks or mushrooms and baby potatoes & allow to cook for at least 45 minutes on a simmer.

3. Serve up and store leftovers in the fridge.

4. Top Tip* - stew tastes even better the second day!