(This is a re-post from 2016….but I think it’s so stinkin’ good and quick and easy enough to throw together that it deserved some re-run love.)
I know, I know. Not particularly Instagram ready, is she?
I can’t tell you how much I wish that there was something I could do to make this mess look pretty. To represent how really delicious it is…to draw you in so that you say… “Man, that looks good. I am going to make THAT tonight, and that is all”. To get you all fired up.
Because I gotta tell you, this is just so delish.
Sadly, it’s just not “that” kind of dinner (to anyone out there who eats with your eyes first, look away), so put aside your shallow Hal-ness for this one moment and get out your slow cooker! This stew has such a surprising depth of flavor considering the simplicity of components (pretty much just seven ingredients – yay!) and it is hearty and it is earthy and it is really nice to come home to, especially when it’s cold outside.
BONUS – it’s a snap to pull together. I call it a really ugly bowl of super easy, one pot wonder, stick to your ribs goodness!
And THAT, is truly something beautiful to behold.
Start with a 1 pound package of uncooked sausage (I used sweet Italian sausage but you can use whatever kind you like) and break it up a little into your crock pot (don’t worry too much about this since once it’s cooked it crumbles apart easily with a quick smash/stir). Then just start piling everybody on top. Chop up that onion, dice up a clove of garlic – in they go.
I like the Hunt’s brand of fire roasted tomatoes, so I used two 16 oz cans. You can use one 28 oz can of whatever diced tomatoes you prefer. Slosh those in along with 2 tablespoons of tomato paste (put the remainder from your can into a zip lock baggie and pop it in the freezer for future use – no waste!).
Finish this off with a cup of water, a grind or two of cracked black pepper and a generous sprinkle of kosher salt.
Those potatoes you see? Give them a good scrub down, peel ’em and cut them in half. Nestle them down into that pool of lycopene love. Hot tub party!
Now this is pretty, amirite?
Swiss chard is a leafy green that I am generally unfamiliar with…but what I do know, is that like it’s cousin kale you must strip the leaves from their tough and fibrous stems. Unless of course you have the mastication chops of a dairy cow (and a double stomach to go with them). It’s a simple process, and will take you all of five minutes. Always make sure you wash your greens really well before you do anything else with them. Gritty greens = no bueno.
Now take your de-stemmed greens and after giving them a very rough chop (what you end up with might seem like way too much), pile them on top of the whole she-bang!
I have actually done this with a much smaller slow cooker where they were BUSTING out at the seams and they always cook right on down, so don’t worry about how much you think you have going on there. Lid this up and let her chug away for eight hours on low – or if you’re in a hurry…..(um…..which is sort of incongruent with a S L O W cooker), put it on high for four. And when it’s ready,
gently fish out those potatoes and place them into a bowl that you have at the ready…..
and smoosh those babies up. They will look a little pinkish from the tomatoes but don’t give that a second thought……you won’t even see them once you serve it up.
Add some milk (maybe 1/2 cup? maybe more, you’ll know as you go) a pat or two of butter, some salt and pepper to taste. Squash ’em up with a hand-held potato masher. DO NOT use an electric mixer, or a food processor, or anything else like that, as tempting as it may be. The fast action of any of those “blades” will cause your potatoes to release their starch and basically turn into stretchy wall paper paste. True story.
So, get out your muscles and mash ’em up by hand.
Into your bowl dole out a small portion of those potatoes and then ladle over a generous helping of your sausage swiss chard deliciousness! You can drizzle this with a bit of olive oil if you like. Now get your butt on the couch, and dig in. Simple, happy, yummy comfort in a bowl right here, I tell you what.
Is it pretty? Well, admittedly no.
Just pretty AMAZING!
RECIPE BELOW: This takes about 15 minutes to throw together and I am not even kidding! The actual prep work is simple enough, a little chopping, a little peeling. Easy peasy stuff. The slow cooker does the rest, how nice is that? Makes about 2 cups worth of mashed potatoes, and a whole lotta stew, definitely enough for four to six servings – leftovers if you are lucky. Deceptively yummy considering how easy it is…so once again your mother was right when she told you not to judge a book by its cover. 😝
- 1 pound of sweet Italian sausage
- 1 medium yellow onion, diced
- 1 clove of garlic, finely chopped
- 1 28 ounce can (or two 16 ounce cans) fire roasted chopped tomatoes
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 2 large russet, (baking) potatoes, peeled, well scrubbed and cut in half
- 1 cup of water
- 1 bunch of swiss chard, cleaned and stemmed and roughly chopped
- 1/2 cup of milk (approximately)
- 2 pats (tablespoons) of butter
- Kosher salt and Fresh cracked pepper to taste
- Break up the sausage as best as you can and place it into your crock pot.
- Add the chopped onion, chopped garlic, can(s) of tomatoes, tomato paste and water, a generous pinch of kosher salt and a grind or two of the black pepper.
- Snuggle the potatoes down into the liquid as best as you can. You may not be able to submerge them entirely and that is fine.
- Lay the chopped greens over everything (do not stir) and cover.
- Let this cook for 8 hours on low or 4-6 hours on high.
- Gently remove the potatoes from the pot and transfer to a medium sized bowl.
- With a hand masher, mash the potatoes with the milk and butter. Add salt and pepper to taste.
- Add 1/2 cup or so of the mashed potatoes to a soup bowl.
- Ladle over a generous serving of the chard and sausage stew. Be sure to break up the sausage a little first.
- Dig in!
