Lows around 20

[ Hearty Cold-Weather Stew — Ox-tail and/or short-ribs (well-seasoned and well-browned, seasonings and oil of your choice). Any combination of potatoes, carrots, onions, celery, leek, parsnip, fresh and sun-dried tomatoes, garlic, aromatic herbs. Water (add wine or stock if you're royalty). Gentle fire. Three hours (skimming). A bowl and a chunk of bread.]

Comments

[Nanette]

Yum... and it sounds so simple to make too. Well, I don't know about the ox-tail part... are there millions of oxen running around without their tails or something? Cuz one never sees things like "ox steak" or "ox roast" or anything at the market. At least, not at mine.

Also, it's been in the low 30's here at night, but since this is California that actually qualifies as being colder than the 20s is in the east, cuz we are not used to it.

[Eli]

Mmm... ox-tails...

Lamb shanks are also really tasty when they're all tender and practically falling off the bone.

Sadly, I can't make anything more ambitious with spaghetti with, um, proximity-warmed sauce.

[Eli]

"...more ambitious *than*..." Der.

[Dantae]

Nice! That looks really tasty. I was just thinking that I should make a stew this weekend. The idea seems to be deep in the collective consciousness. If I can make it out of work at a decent time today I'm going to give it a whirl...

[Kai]

Hehe, actually ox-tail is just beef; I guess "cow-tail" doesn't sound as cool so it's marketed as "ox-tail". But you don't need to use ox-tail or short ribs, this stew works just as well with chuck steak or lamb shoulder, basically any tough cheap cut of (organic) red meat with a bone in it. Obviously this rustic stew is inappropriate treatment for any of the tender or lean cuts.

And Nanette, yes the 30s in California is darn cold. When I was living in LA, the warm weather softened me up to the point where 50 seemed cold. Now that I'm settled back in the Northeast, I go jogging when it's 30. However, once you get below 20, the air starts getting really painfully snappy, so we all have our limits. Then again, I was once trapped in a blizzard while camping in the Laurentian mountains in Canada and the temperature got down to minus 40; so really, 20 above zero isn't so bad. Fortunately on that occasion, I was with my boy scout troop (yes, I was one, and an enthusiastic one), so we built snow huts and waited out the storm, and walked away with some minor frostbite on our toes. And we got to miss a week of school. As Chris Clarke has recently written, surviving comes down to knowing enough fundamentals to make good decisions.

Anyway, bon appetit, folks. Enjoy your stews and soups and other hearty cold-weather fare. And be safe.