Latvian Stew

Latvian Stew

Inspired by Amor Towles and a Latvian Stew recipe from the website, A Little and A Lot

Ingredients:

4 lbs (48oz) boneless pork shoulder

salt and ground black pepper

¼ cup (60ml) extra virgin olive oil.

1 large yellow onion, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces

5 cloves garlic, minced

2 tablespoon tomato paste

6 large carrots, peeled and cut into 1 inch pieces

1 tablespoon paprika

4 tablespoon all-purpose flour

5 cups (1183ml) water

1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

7 oz dried apricots

7 oz prunes (dried plums)

½ cup (about 1oz/ 13g) chopped fresh Italian parsley

Directions:

Cut pork into 2-3 inch pieces.

Trim any excess fat.

Lay the pork on a plate or baking sheet that has been lined with paper towels. Blot the pieces of pork on all sides with another paper towel to dry.

Sprinkle the pork on all sides with a generous amount of salt and pepper.

Preheat oven to 450 degrees F (232 degrees C).

Add oil to a large, heavy bottom, ovenproof saucepan or dutch oven.

Set it over medium high heat until the oil is very hot and shimmering.

Add the pork and cook, turning the pieces in the hot oil every so often, until the pieces are browned on all sides.

Remove the pork from the pan with tongs or a slotted spoon.

Add the chopped onion to the pan and cook over medium heat until soft and translucent.

Add minced garlic, tomato paste, and 1 teaspoon of salt.

Cook, stirring constantly, for 2 minutes.

Add carrots and browned pork to the pan, stirring to combine.

Remove the pan from the heat.

Stir together the paprika and flour, sprinkle it over the meat and vegetables, and toss everything around in the pan to coat.

Put the pan in the preheated oven, uncovered, and let bake for 5 minutes.

Remove the pan from the heat, stir, and then bake uncovered for an additional 5 minutes.

Remove pan from the oven.

Reduce the oven temperature to 350 degrees F (176 degrees C).

Add 5 cups of water and worcestershire sauce to pan.

Stir, being sure to scrape up any brown pieces from the bottom of the pan.

Set it over medium-high heat and bring to a boil.

Stir in the dried apricots.

Cover the pan and place back in the oven.

Let cook for 1 ½ hours.

Remove pan from the oven and stir in prunes.

Cover, place back in the oven, and cook for 1 hour longer - OR, until the meat is very tender. (NOTE: Although the original recipe says to cook for another hour, it was tender much before the second hour was over, and bubbling a lot, so I lowered the temperature to 200, added a little more water and let it cook for another hour at the lower temperature, waiting for my guests to arrive. It was perfect.)

Remove the pan from the oven and taste; add more salt if needed.

Sprinkle with chopped parsley and serve.