Deep December Ragout
from The Passionate Vegetarian by Crescent Dragonwagon, p. 218-219
Ingredients:
- Cooking spray
- 1 T olive oil
- 1 large onion, cut vertically into thin slivers
- 1/4 c. unbleached white all-purpose flour
- 3 1/2 c. vegetable stock
- 1/4 c. nutritional yeast
- 1/4 c. tamari or shoyu soy sauce
- 1 c. hearty, full-bodied, tannic red wine such as Cabernet, Barolo, or Barbaresco
- q c. canned diced tomato in tomator puree
- 1 T umeboshi vinegar
- 1 T honey
- 1/4 tsp Dragon salt (see recipe)
- A major grinding of black pepper (1/2 to 1 tsp.)
- 8 to 10 cloves garlic, quartered or thickly sliced
- 6 to 8 shitake mushrooms, broken roughly into quarters
- 1 package (8 oz.) traditional style dark seitan, well drained, diced into beef-stew size squares (1 to 1 1/2 in.)
- 4 small potatoes, scrfubbed, peel on, cut into large pieces
- 2 carrots, scrubbed, peel on, sliced crosswise into 1/2 in. rounds
- 1 parsnip, halved lengthwise, sliced crosswise into 1/2 in pieces
- 2 c. green beans, stemmed and slliced into 2 to 3 in. piees
- 1 zucchini, halved lengthwise and sliced crosswise into 1/2 in. pieces
- Minced Italian parsley
Directions:
- If using a conventional Dutch oven, spray it with cooking spray, but youwill have better results with a nonstick one. Heat the oil in the Dutch oven over medium -high heat. Add the onion and saute until it starts to brown but is still a little crisp, about 6 minutes.
- Sprinkle the onion with the flour and, lowering the heat to medium, continue to saute for 4 minutes. Add about 1/2 cup of the stock, stirring to blend it into the flour. When the liquid is free of any flour lumps, add a little more stock. When it is well incorporated, add the remaining stock, stirring. Add the nutritional yeast, stirring as the flakes dissolve. Add the tamari, wine, tomatoes, umeboshi plum vinegar, honey, Dragon Salt, and pepper. Stir in the garlic and bring the mixture to a boil. Immediately lower the heat to a simmer.
- Drop in the shitakes along with the seitan, potatoes, carrots, parsnip, and green beans. Lower the heat slightly. Cover and cook, stirring every so often, ata bare simmer until the potatoes are nearly done, about 35 minutes. Uncover and add the zucchini. Cover and cook until the vegetables are tender but still holding their shape, 10 to 15 minutes. Serve hot, with a sprinkle of parsley, if desired.