If you didn't see, Mystery Fanfare has a wonderful list of "Summertime Mysteries," including STILL LIFE IN BRUNSWICK STEW (A Cherry Tucker Mystery book 2). In honor of that mention, I thought I'd share my recipe for Brunswick Stew that was added to the book's second edition.
“The hilariously droll Larissa Reinhart cooks up a quirky and entertaining page-turner! This charming mystery is delightfully Southern, surprisingly edgy, and deliciously unpredictable.”
— Hank Phillippi Ryan, Mary Higgins Clark, Agatha, Anthony, and Macavity winning author
A Southern Classic Recipe for a Southern Cozy Mystery
Living in Georgia, I, of course, learned to make Brunswick stew with my husband’s leftover pulled pork. (I make a lot of things out of leftover pulled pork.) The best meals, I think, are made from the ingenuity of using what you have. But then that’s most Southern cooking.
And I do love to eat Southern. So do my characters. They’re Southern women, but they’re too busy sleuthing to cook. They use their ingenuity to get others to cook for them. I wish I were that smart!
Brunswick stew will taste different at every establishment. Fiddle with this recipe to meet your taste. Use your favorite BBQ sauce. If you don’t like okra, try lima beans or a 16 oz bag of frozen mixed stew vegetables. No pulled pork? Use leftover chicken, stew meat, or even ground beef. Just make sure it’s cooked first. You can make it vegetarian with meatless crumbles and veggie stock.
Brunswick Stew Recipe
4 T butter (1/2 stick)
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 large onion, finely chopped (I use Vidalia or sweet onion)
1 15 oz can fire-roasted tomatoes with their juice
4 c chicken stock
1 1/2 c BBQ sauce (in Atlanta, we're partial to Fox Brothers BBQ but use your favorite)
2 T Worcestershire sauce
1 T light brown sugar
1/4 t cayenne pepper
1 1/2 lbs smoke pulled pork OR another kind of cooked meat, chopped or diced
1 c frozen corn (or other veg)
1 c frozen okra (or other veg)
salt and ground pepper to taste
hot sauce to taste
Directions
Melt the butter in a large Dutch oven or other deep pot over medium-high heat. Add the onions and sauté about four minutes, then add the garlic and cook until both are soft. Stir in the rest of the ingredients.
Bring the mixture to a boil, reduce to a simmer and continue to simmer over medium-low heat until thick, about 1 1/2 hours.
Note: At the point when the mixture boils, I’ve transferred it to a crock pot and set it on low for 8 hours or 4 hours on high.
Serve it with your favorite BBQ, cornbread, and other fixings!
You can find this recipe in my ebook, paperback, and hardcover copies of STILL LIFE IN BRUNSWICK STEW!
STILL LIFE IN BRUNSWICK STEW, a Cherry Tucker Mystery book 2, by Larissa Reinhart
"Reinhart's country-fried mystery is as much fun as a ride on the Tilt-a-Whirl at a state fair. Her sleuth wields a paintbrush and unravels clues with equal skill and flair. Readers who like a little small-town charm with their mysteries will enjoy Reinhart's series.”
— Denise Swanson, New York Times Bestselling author of the Scumble River and Devereaux's Dime Store mysteries
Cherry Tucker’s in a stew. Art commissions dried up after her nemesis became president of the County Arts Council. Desperate and broke, Cherry and her friend, Eloise, spend a sultry summer weekend hawking their art at the Sidewinder Annual Brunswick Stew Cook-Off. When a bad case of food poisoning breaks out and Eloise dies, the police brush off her death as accidental. However, Cherry suspects someone spiked the stew and killed her friend.
Caught between helping Eloise’s family and an ongoing investigation, Cherry finds herself in hot water with her deputy boyfriend, who doesn’t appreciate her style of sleuthing. As Cherry calls on cook-off competitors, bitter rivals, and crooked judges, her love life steams. Meanwhile, the killer prepares to cook Cherry’s goose.
A Night Owl Reviews Top Pick and part of the best-selling and award-winning Cherry Tucker Mystery series.
Comments