EP021 | Family in a Stew

This editorially independent podcast has been supported by VISITFLANDERS as part of the “Food Group” series of stories. Read more. the Covid-19 pandemic lockdown, 2020 was a difficult year for a lot of families. In this podcast, we share the challenges of family life in Belgium by shopping for, preparing, and cooking the most iconic of family dishes in Belgium: a Flemish Stew. Flemish Stew is a rich and savoury traditional meat and onion stew made with Belgian beer. It’s known in Flemish as Stoverij or Stoofvlees (stoven is the verb to stew) and in French as Carbonnades Flamandes. There are many “sacred cows” in preparing Stoverij, so we talked to a greengrocer, a butcher, and a bottle shop assistant about how they would make it, as well as asking advice from chef and culinary expert Pieter Declercq, formerly of national TV food channel VTM Koken and now owner of Food Studio Coeur De Boef. Should you use pork or beef? Which type of beer should you cook with? What are the essential vegetables, herbs, and spices deployed in Stoverij? What should you spread on bread to thicken the stew, and should that bread be added with or without its crusts? And what accompanies Stoverij in Belgium? In a personal and reflective podcast, we talk about our own family and how Stoverij represents a togetherness that we all hope will return in some form in the coming year. Sit back, listen, and enjoy our podcast about Stoverij.