Description
A comforting and hearty vegetable stew enriched with chestnut mushrooms, leeks, and carrots, topped with soft suet dumplings, and served alongside creamy mashed potatoes. This warming stovetop dish combines rich flavors and textures perfect for a cozy meal.
Ingredients
Scale
Stew
- 25g butter, plus a little extra
- 300g chestnut mushrooms, halved
- 1 leek, roughly chopped
- 2 large carrots, thickly sliced at an angle
- 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
- 1 tsp dried thyme
- 1 tbsp plain flour
- 300ml vegetable stock
- 400g can cream of mushroom soup
- Large handful of parsley, chopped
Dumplings
- 150g self-raising flour, plus extra for dusting
- 70g vegetable suet
- ½ tsp salt
- 3 tbsp cold water (plus a little more if needed)
To Serve
- Mashed potatoes
Instructions
- Prepare the base: Melt 25g of butter in a deep flameproof casserole over medium-high heat. Add the halved chestnut mushrooms and fry for 3-4 minutes until they begin to brown.
- Add vegetables: Reduce heat to medium and add the roughly chopped leek and thickly sliced carrots. If the pan looks dry, add a little extra butter. Cook for 5 minutes until the vegetables start to soften.
- Add aromatics and seasoning: Stir in the finely chopped garlic, dried thyme, and season with a large pinch each of salt and freshly ground black pepper. Cook for another 3-4 minutes to combine flavors.
- Thicken and simmer stew: Sprinkle in 1 tablespoon of plain flour, stir well, then gradually pour in the 300ml vegetable stock while stirring. Add the 400g can of cream of mushroom soup, stir, and bring to a gentle simmer over low heat. Adjust seasoning as needed and simmer for 10 minutes.
- Prepare dumpling dough: In a bowl, combine 150g self-raising flour and ½ tsp salt. Stir in 70g vegetable suet. Make a well in the center and add 3 tablespoons of cold water. Mix until a firm but pliable dough forms, adding a little more water if necessary.
- Shape dumplings: Divide the dough into eight equal pieces and roll each into a ball on a lightly floured surface.
- Cook dumplings on stew: Arrange the dumpling balls evenly on top of the simmering stew. Cover the casserole and cook for 20 minutes on low heat, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking. Remove the lid for the last 5 minutes to allow dumplings to firm up slightly.
- Finish and serve: Stir chopped parsley into the stew, serve hot with mashed potatoes on the side for a hearty meal.
Notes
- You can substitute vegetable suet with butter or a vegetarian suet alternative if preferred.
- For a gluten-free version, use gluten-free flour and ensure the mushroom soup is gluten-free.
- Adjust seasoning at the simmering stage according to taste.
- The dumplings cook fully on top of the stew, absorbing flavorful steam.
- Serve immediately for best texture and taste.
- Prep Time: 15 mins
- Cook Time: 45 mins
- Category: Stew
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: British
Keywords: vegetable stew, mushroom stew, dumplings, vegetable suet dumplings, vegetarian stew, hearty stew, comfort food
