Did you know that January is National Soup Month? Neither did I until this year. I love that we live in a world where food gets a full month to celebrate! This year, we’re doing something a bit different. We’re going to share a bunch of soup recipes a la Houseful Of Soups style. The good thing is, you’ll get soups AND stews, because it’s getting cold in the northern hemisphere and that’s where everyone is located. Anyhoo, I’m presenting you with Neckbone Stew, a dish that I became familiar with as a child.

Thus I present to you…a story! You will hear about how this recipe came to be in my house, so buckle up! Thinking about a pork stew recipe doesn’t automatically give you the warm fuzzies, but that’s what this dish gives me. Because of Lula Mae Blackburn.

Early summers were spent with my Granny Blackburn in Memphis, and this soup often made the dining room table because she had four of us to feed, and limited income – which I wasn’t aware of, because, kids. She’d put the pot of neckbones on and then she and I would sit down and talk about whatever we fancied. Sometimes, talking was accompanied by shelling peas, or even going into the living room and watching wrestling. My Granny Blackburn loved wrestling. That’s something that passed on to my brothers, while the joy she got (I think) from her backyard garden certainly passed on to me.

Anyway, I often make this soup when I’m short on money, time, or both. I also tend to make it when I’m thinking about her in a deep way. It connects me and calms me. And yes, it’s a soup, even though the ingredients make you think of stew because it’s so hearty. The difference between soup and stew has to do with the amount of liquid you have in the cooking vessel. That’s it. More liquid equals soup. Less liquid equals stew.

Here are the tools you’ll need for sure – a large pot. That’s about it. Oh, and a fork to remove the pork stew meat from the neckbones. This is important.

How to Make Neckbone Stew

12 servings

Neckbone Stew

Name: Neckbone Stew
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 1 h 30 min
Total time: 2 h 10 min
Yield: 12
Cuisine: Main Dishes
Ingredients: 6 lbs of pork neckbones - rinsed; 2 cans tomato paste; 2 bags frozen mixed vegetables; 1 bag of frozen chopped okra; Granulated Garlic (not garlic powder); Seasoning Salt; Pepper; Smoked Paprika

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 1 hour 30 minutes

Additional Time: 20 minutes

Total Time: 2 hours 10 minutes

A thick and hearty tomato-based stew made from little ingredients with big taste! The slow cooked neckbones provide the meat while simple frozen vegetables bring it all together.

Ingredients

6 lbs of pork neckbones - rinsed
2 cans tomato paste
2 bags frozen mixed vegetables
1 bag of frozen chopped okra
Granulated Garlic (not garlic powder)
Seasoning Salt
Pepper
Smoked Paprika

Instructions

Place neckbones into the pot and top with cold water.
Season with granulated garlic, seasoning salt, smoked paprika, and pepper. You'll want to season liberally because the pork will soak up the flavor as it cooks.
Bring water to a boil and then turn heat to medium. Top off the pot of neckbones if the water level becomes too low while cooking.
Cook until the neckbones are tender - and meat can be removed from the bone - about 1 hour.
Remove neckbones from the pot and set aside
Remove meat from the neckbones and discard the bones. Reserve meat until step 10
Open both cans of tomato paste and scoop into the reserved water
Stir tomato paste until it fully dissolves into the leftover liquid.
Add all bags of frozen vegetables and bring pot back to a simmer.
Mix reserved neckbone meat into pot, and stir until meat has been warmed through.
Serve hot.

Notes

We like to make hot water cornbread to go with this stew, although a skillet of buttermilk cornbread will work just fine.

Stew can be stored in an airtight container for up to 7 days in the refrigerator.

Stew can be frozen for 1 month

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

Serving Size:

1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 584Total Fat: 32gSaturated Fat: 11gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 17gCholesterol: 203mgSodium: 185mgCarbohydrates: 8gFiber: 2gSugar: 4gProtein: 63g

We are not dietitians or nutritionists. Please consult your doctor to make sure that you are using the best diet for your health

Houseful Of Soups

Houseful of Soups is something that I’ve been thinking about for a while, and it was only confirmed that I should do it when talking to my twin Derrick from This Worthey Life (who is a participant by the way) we’ll also have a Houseful of Cupcakes and Pasta for you later this year, but you’ll have to wait on that. Either way, here’s the list of participants.