as a verb, to simmer in a closed vessel; as a noun, the resulting dish.
The cuisines of most countries include some well-known stews, e.g. Irish stew and the Spanish cocido, since these dishes have many practical advantages. Meat (of fish or poultry or game) can be combined in one dish (see one-pot cookery) with vegetables; so there is no wastage of fuel and less washing up. The mixture of ingredients in a thick and opaque sauce casts a veil of uncertainty over the proportions of expensive ingredients to cheap ones. The slow steady cooking enables the cook to be away from the kitchen before a meal.
See also for example pepper pot; sonofabitch stew; waterzooi.
Alan Davidson was a distinguished author and publisher, and one of the world's best-known writers on fish and fish cookery. In 1975 he retired early from the diplomatic service—after serving in, among other places, Washington, Egypt, Tunisia, and Laos, where he was British Ambassador—to pursue a fruitful second career as a food historian and food writer extraordinaire. Among his popular books are Seafood of South-East Asia, North Atlantic Seafood, and Mediterranean Seafood. In 2003, shortly before his death, he was awarded the Erasmus Prize for his contribution to European culture.
