Recipes: These slow-simmered stews are rich concoctions for fall

"A rich, cold weather stewed concoction remains a favorite. Later, my culinary training would teach me new names for stews. Fricassees, stews bound with creamy sauces. Blanquettes, white stews enriched with cream or egg yolks. Etouffees, stewy mixtures served over rice whose name is derived from the French word for smothered. They're fancy names for comfort food that uses common slow-cooking processes producing scrumptious tidbits surrounded with sauce."

"It bathes each morsel of meat and vegetable in enticing flavor. To produce an authentic stew, first sear the meat on all sides, to a rich brown. One of the tricks to doing this properly is leaving space between the pieces of meat in the pan. Resist the temptation to jam them all in at once. Instead, brown in two or three small batches, adding more oil if the pan goes dry."

"They are great make-ahead dishes. Prepare them a day in advance, and the flavors develop even more. Here are three stew recipes. Surprise, only one requires a substantial amount of beef; one requires only 12 ounces of beef to yield about 6 servings, and one showcases chicken rather than beef. Ina's Ultimate Beef Stew, from Ina Garten's cookbook "Modern Comfort Food," is made with boneless short ribs, pancetta, fennel, onion, Cognac and red wine."

Slow-simmered stews evoke childhood comfort through rough-cut vegetables, meat and gently bubbling broth. Culinary terminology identifies variations: fricassees are stews bound with creamy sauces, blanquettes are white stews enriched with cream or egg yolks, and étouffées are smothered, rice-served stewy mixtures. A proper stew features a velvety sauce made from natural juices and stewing ingredients, sometimes thickened with flour, which bathes each morsel. To build depth, sear meat on all sides to a rich brown, avoiding crowding by working in small batches and adding oil as needed. Stews develop flavor overnight and make excellent make-ahead meals. Several recipe approaches showcase beef and chicken options.

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