My Favorite Stew

Lamb Stew in the Slow Cooker

On cold, frigid days like the one we’re experiencing right now in New York City, what a perfect day to stay inside, keep warm and cook up something in the trusty ol’ crock pot.  They’ve modernized the name these days to slow cooker — maybe crock pot is just too Betty Crocker® for the manufacturers.

I have been using my slow cooker for quite awhile to prepare meals on a weekend.  No effort, and they last me throughout the week.  And, not necessarily just in these cold months.  It works any time of the year.

I have a favorite recipe that I use from Weight Watchers® that is just fabulous, for a lamb stew with garbanzo beans.  Yum yum.  A note about WW recipes these days: it used to be that they were chock full of artificial this and lite that – but those days are long gone.  They use good solid whole food ingredients with lots of spices and other flavors that make for wholesome, healthful meals without the junk.  You should check them out.  Whether you buy a magazine (recently I purchased  a Foods in 15 minutes mag at Whole Foods market) or get the recipe books at a WW meeting, or subscribe to weightwatchers.com, I highly recommend you check out their recipes.  I swear by them.

So, here’s my fave crockpot recipe using lamb stew bits.

Middle Eastern Lamb Slow Cooker Stew

  • 1 pound lean leg of lamb, stew meat, cut into 1-inch chunks
  • 15 oz canned chickpeas
  • 14.5 oz canned diced tomatoes, undrained
  • 1/2 c. beef broth
  • 1 large onion, chopped
  • 1 large clove garlic, minced
  • 2 tsp ginger root, freshly grated
  • 1 tsp. salt
  • 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
  • 1/4 tsp. black pepper
  • 1 T. fresh lemon juice

Place lamb in a 5-quart slow cooker. Add remaining ingredients, except lemon juice; stir well. Cover and cook on low for 7 to 8 hours.

Stir in lemon juice and let stand for 5 minutes for flavors to blend. Yields about 1 1/2 cups per serving.

From Weight Watchers® website

It couldn’t be simpler.  And it is delicious.