Cholent, the meatless version

Image courtesy of Creative Commons

Cholent is a Jewish stew that was made for the Sabbath. Traditionally, Jewish people did not cook on their Sabbath and this stew was simmered overnight to be eaten at noon on Saturday.  Originally, this would have been done in a big community baker's oven. The "Crock Pot" itself was invented by Irving Naxon to replicate this process in the home. Although this dish is frequently made with a tough cut of beef, like brisket, it is also frequently done without meat. This recipe was adapted from Judith Finlayson's great cookbook  -- The Vegetarian Slow Cooker. It's really a great book for anyone wanting to explore meatless cooking.

Ingredients:

1 cup dried white navy beans

1 Tbsp vegetable oil

2 onions, finely chopped

2 stalks celery diced

2 parsnips, peeled and diced

6 cloves garlic, minced

1 Tbsp minced ginger root

2 tsp paprika

1 tsp salt

1 tsp cracked black pepper

4 cups vegetable stock

2 potatoes cut into cubes

4 large (12 oz/375 g) Portobello mushroom caps, cut into large pieces

1 cup pearl barley rinsed.

Directions:

  

1. Soak beans either overnight or put in a pot with at least 3 cups of water, bring to a boil, turn off heat and allow to sit for 2 hours. Drain, rinse
2. In a skillet, heat oil over medium heat. Add onions, celery, carrots, and parsnips. Cook until softened.
3. Add ginger, garlic, paprika, salt, pepper corns and cook for about a minute.
4. Put half the contents of the skillet in slow cooker.
5. Spread potatoes over the mixture.
6. Layer the cut mushrooms
7. Spread barley over the mushroom layer
8. Spread the presoaked beans over the barley layer
9. Top with the remaining onion/vegetable mix.
10. Pour vegetable stock over the contents.
11. Cover and cook on Low for 10-12 hours or high for 5 to 7 hours.