Perhaps its the lingering after-effects of my mother's Jewish heritage, but every winter I get an uncontrollable urge to make chicken soup. However, having been raised in the South, this seasonal instinct is channeled into the production of a thicker, richer, and generally more transcendent food: Brunswick stew.

Virginia and Georgia both lay claim to the ubiquitous stew; personally, I favor Virginia's claim, but that's only because I grew up there. In both areas, it is a standard accompaniment to barbecue, although it often finds its way to the table as a stand-alone meal.

Recipes for Brunswick stew tend to be somewhat idiosyncratic. For example, many chefs use potatoes, and others use barbecue sauce to increase the richness of the broth. By that standard, my Brunswick stew (recipe below) will strike some people as blasphemous. I go heavy on the tomatoes, keep out the potatoes, use light olive oil and skinned chicken to keep the fat down, and hold off on the barbecue. Still, regardless of your personal tastes, this should be a pretty good starting point for your own recipe!



Brunswick Stew

5 pounds chicken, skinned
1-2 tablespoons light olive oil
1 cup chopped onions
1 cup chopped celery
3 cups lima beans, frozen
2 cups chopped country ham
1 large (28 ounce) can peeled whole tomatoes
1-2 cups chicken stock, divided
4 cloves garlic, peeled and pressed (or minced)
2 bay leaves
3 cups frozen corn kernels
1 tablespoon Worcestershire Sauce
Red wine vinegar
Hot pepper sauce (I prefer a sharp, vinegar-based sauce like Tobasco or Pickapeppa for this one)
salt
pepper
red pepper

Pull the limas and corn out of the freezer and set aside. Season the chicken with salt, pepper and red pepper. Put the oil in a large pot or Dutch oven and heat over medium heat. Saute the chicken, flipping as needed to ensure that it is browned on all sides. Remove and set aside.

Add the onions and celery to the pot and cook, stirring occasionally and adding more oil as needed, until vegetables are tender. Add the lima beans, country ham, garlic, and chicken, with accumulated juices. Pour in one cup of chicken stock and add the tomatoes, with juice. Break up the tomatoes by hand as you drop them in.

Bring the stew to a boil, reduce to a simmer, cover and cook until chicken is tender. Add more stock (or water, if you prefer) as needed to keep everything wet and soupy. When chicken is tender, remove it from the pot and set aside to cool. Add corn kernels and Worcestershire sauce. When chicken is cool enough to handle, remove the bones and shred it. Add it back into the stew, along with salt, pepper, red pepper, and vinegar to taste (I use about a quarter cup of vinegar to pep up the flavor). Serve with hot sauce.

Another great accompaniment is Tony Chachere's Creole seasoning, which, unfortunately, I can't find in the Bronx. If you know where to get it in the New York area, please let me know!