Make | A warming winter vegan stew

A warming stew made for comfort and community, this is the perfect one-pot meal to cook outdoors over an open fire.

Southern Wild Co founder Tania was gifted the recipe from a West Indian flat mate while living in London years ago. The dish has been on repeat ever since and has become a solid element of her cool season repertoire.

Perfect for batching up into portions for those times when dinners for one or on the run are needed, we love nothing more than wrapping ourselves in warm layers, gathering ingredients and finding a sheltered spot in the bush to cook with mates over a camp fire. The fire imbues the beans with a moreish smokey flavour. Yum!

Camp Fire Bean Stew

The quantities below make a large camp oven or slow cooker full. Enough to feed an army of hungry friends. Vegan.

Ingredients

• 2 large onions, diced
• 4 or 5 cloves of garlic, crushed
• 1 tsp Chilli powder (we like it hot)
• 1 tsp turmeric
• 1 tbs dried oregano leaves
• 2 cans chickpeas, rinsed
• 2 cans red kidney beans rinsed (or sometimes we use the spicy Mexican kidney beans for added kick)
• 3 x 400g cans diced tomatoes (or 2 bottles of passata)
• Salt & pepper
• Couple of pinches of sugar to taste

Method #1 Stove or campfire

1. Saute garlic and onion in a little olive oil. When translucent add in turmeric, chilli powder and oregano, cook till fragrant.
2. Add chickpeas, kidney beans and tomatoes and mix together.
3. Season with salt and pepper and a dash of sugar to taste.
4. Slowly simmer for at least an hour, the longer the better.

Method #2 Slow cooker

1. Saute garlic and onion in a little olive oil. When translucent add in turmeric, chilli powder and oregano, cook till fragrant.
2. Add chickpeas, kidney beans and tomatoes to slow cooker
3. Add onion mix to slow cooker
4. Season with salt, pepper and a pinch of sugar to taste.
5. Set to low and cook overnight or all day (check occasionally to make sure there is enough liquid. If not, add a little bit of water).

Finishing alternatives

• Serve with fresh spinach stirred through
• Add a dollop of soft goats cheese or creme fraiche on top
• Sprinkle with crumbled feta
• Sprinkle with grated parmesan (or whatever gooey cheese you have around)
• Top with pan fried chorizo
• Add slices of cooked sausage and mix through
• Serve with fried eggs for brekky
• Serve on toast for brekky
• Serve with crusty bread to mop up all those juices.