Although many people see Spain as a country of endless sun, it gets seriously cold in the winter! To fight off the chill, there’s nothing quite like a Spanish ‘plato de cuchara’ – hearty comfort food. This rib and potato stew is cheap, easy and just what you need on a cold winter’s day.
If you prefer your stews a little soupier, add more water or stock at step 6. We’ve kept our version quite dry, so that it’s easier to grab onto the ribs! Make sure to place a bowl on the table for the bones!
Ingredients (Serves 4)
3-4tbsp olive oil
500g pork ribs
2 small onions
3 small cloves of garlic
2 red peppers
a bay leaf
2 carrots
2 large potatoes
1 glass of white wine – approx 250ml
200g of chopped tomatoes (half a tin)
salt
- Heat 3-4 tbsp of olive oil in a wide, deep saucepan over a medium heat. Cut the ribs into large chunks (around 2 ribs per chunk) and add to the hot oil. Fry for around 5 minutes , stirring occasionally, until the ribs are golden brown. Remove the ribs from the saucepan and put to one side. Leave the hot oil in the saucepan.
- Cut the onion into small pieces and mince the garlic. Add both to the saucepan with the oil that you cooked the ribs in. Cook over a medium heat for 5 minutes until soft, stirring to stop from sticking or burning.
- While the garlic and onion are cooking, cut the red pepper into small 1/2cm chunks. When the onion and garlic have softened and turned translucent, add the chopped red pepper and bay leaf. Keep stirring so that it cooks evenly. This mixture of garlic, onion and pepper is known as a sofrito.
- While the sofrito is cooking, peel and slice the carrots. Add to the sofrito.
- Peel the potatoes. Slice into the potato with your knife and snap a large piece off. This is a popular Spanish technique. Potatoes cut in this way release a lot more starch, and will help to thicken your sauce. Add the potato and browned ribs to the saucepan, along with the white wine and a pinch of salt. Stir well and leave to cook on a medium heat for several minutes.
- Add the chopped tomatoes and half a glass of water to the saucepan and mix well. Cover and cook on a medium heat for 30 minutes.
