A perpetual stew, also known as hunter's pot[1][2] or hunter's stew, is a pot into which whatever one can find is placed and cooked. The pot is never or rarely emptied all the way, and ingredients and liquid are replenished as necessary.[1][3] The concept is often a common element in descriptions of medieval inns. Foods prepared in a perpetual stew have been described as being flavorful due to the manner in which the foodstuffs blend together,[4] in which the flavor may improve with age.[5]

Examples [ edit ]

Perpetual stews were common in medieval cooking, often as pottage or pot-au-feu:

Bread, water or ale, and a companaticum ('that which goes with the bread') from the cauldron, the original stockpot or pot-au-feu that provided an ever-changing broth enriched daily with whatever was available. The cauldron was rarely emptied out except in preparation for the meatless weeks of Lent, so that while a hare, hen or pigeon would give it a fine, meaty flavour, the taste of salted pork or cabbage would linger for days, even weeks. – Tannahill[4]

The San Francisco bistro Le Central has kept its cassoulet this way for over 43 years.[6][7] Between August 2014 and April 2015, a New York restaurant served broth from the same perpetual stew (a master stock) for over eight months.[8][10]

Ingredients [ edit ]

Various ingredients can be used in a perpetual stew, such as root vegetables and tubers (onion, carrot, potato, garlic, parsnip, turnip, etc.) and various meats and game meats.[3][5]

See also [ edit ]