How to make quick and easy stew

This article is not a recipe, but more of a lesson on how to get creative and make a stew using ingredients you love!

This is a quick and easy version of stew using canned or frozen veggies. This is a stew that you can heat and serve for when you are in a hurry.

To make your quick and easy stew, you will need the following ingredients:

broth (beef or chicken)
cornstarch
meat of choice
veggies of choice
seasonings of choice

START WITH THE BROTH -- Decide how many people you will be feeding and plan on one two cups of broth per person. Check the unit price on the broth. Usually the smaller cans are less per quart or gallon than the big containers. Big is not always cheaper. You can buy chicken or beef broth or you can even mix the two!

ADD THE BROTH TO THE POT AND THICKEN IT -- Pour you broth into a soup pot. You will need to add 1 tablespoon of cornstarch per cup of broth. Put the cornstarch in the pot of cold broth and stir with a whisk until well mixed. Then heat the broth on high just for a few minutes until it just starts to bubble. Then turn the heat down to medium or medium low so it just simmers. Leave uncovered because you will be adding your meat and veggies.

ADD YOUR MEAT -- This is a quick stew so you will be adding cooked meat to your stew. You can use any leftover cooked meat you have in the refrigerator. If you do not have cooked meat, you can always use convenient canned meat like canned chicken, canned ham (yes ham is awesome in stew) or even canned spam! Plan on adding 1/4 cup of meat per cup of broth, give or take. There are no rules.

ADD YOUR VEGETABLES -- You will be adding either frozen or canned vegetables because this is a quick stew. If you have cooked leftover vegetables in the refrigerator, by all means, use the in the stew! Stew is a great way to use leftovers. Plan on using 1/4 cup of vegetables per 1 cup of broth, give or take. Ideas: potatoes (canned or you can microwave a potato and cube it and toss it in the pot), corn, peas, carrots, dried onion, garlic from a jar, mushroom, broccoli, mixed vegetables, etc. Just look at the canned veggies and frozen veggies and pick what you like!

ADD SOME SEASONINGS -- You do not need a ton of expensive spices to season your soup. The broth really is enough flavor! But you can always add a bit of pepper and specks of something green is always nice, like dried basil or parsley. You may also want to try a sprinkle or two of allspice. It gives the stew a robust flavor. Just experiment with the seasonings of your choice.

COOK YOUR STEW -- Once you have added all the ingredients just keep simmering until the stew has thickened a bit and the ingredients are hot all the way through. Serve with bread and you have a complete meal!

Local Shopping Tip! If you live in Sanford, you can find the ingredients you need to make this quick and easy stew at any of the following stores.

Super Walmart (website) (location)
Hannaford (website) (location)
Shaw's (website) (location)
Roger's Supa Dolla (location)
Jerry's Market (location)
Marden's Surplus (website) (location)
Save-A-Lot (website) (location)
Dollar Tree (website) (location)
Family Dollar (website) (location)