Equipment
Ingredients
Aromatics & Base
- 30 ml olive oil, cold
- 1 yellow onion, diced
- 3 garlic, minced
Root Vegetables & Greens
- 300 g butternut squash, peeled and cubed
- 300 g sweet potato, peeled and cubed
- 150 g swiss chard, chopped, stems and leaves separated
Liquids & Bulk
- 800 ml vegetable broth
- 400 g canned diced tomatoes, undrained
- 240 g canned cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
Seasonings
- 3 g smoked paprika
- 2 g dried thyme
- 1 bay leaf, whole
- salt
- black pepper
Nutrition (per serving)
Nutrition is estimated per serving. Nutrients without complete source data are omitted.
Full nutrition
- Calories
- 376 kcal
- Protein
- 16 g
- Carbohydrates
- 69 g
- Fat
- 10 g
- Fiber
- 14 g
- Sugar
- 12 g
- Sodium
- 1488 mg
- Saturated Fat
- 1 g
- Monounsaturated Fat
- 6 g
- Polyunsaturated Fat
- 1 g
- Potassium
- 1317 mg
- Calcium
- 196 mg
- Iron
- 6.3 mg
- Magnesium
- 160 mg
- Phosphorus
- 239 mg
- Zinc
- 2.5 mg
- Vitamin A
- 1116 mcg
- Vitamin C
- 53 mg
- Vitamin E
- 3.3 mg
- Vitamin K
- 328 mcg
- Vitamin B6
- 0.4 mg
- Thiamin
- 0.22 mg
- Riboflavin
- 0.14 mg
- Niacin
- 1.9 mg
- Folate
- 43 mcg
- Water
- 389 g
Sources: Aggregated Public Data, USDA FoodData Central
Method
Prepare all vegetables. Dice the onion, mince the garlic, and peel and cut the butternut squash and sweet potato into uniform 2cm pieces. Chop the Swiss chard, keeping the tough stems separated from the tender leaves.
Heat the olive oil in a Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the diced onion, minced garlic, and chopped Swiss chard stems. Sauté for 5 to 7 minutes until the onions are translucent and the stems begin to soften.
Stir in the cubed butternut squash, sweet potato, smoked paprika, and dried thyme. Cook for 3 minutes, stirring frequently to toast the spices and coat the root vegetables in the aromatics.
Pour in the vegetable broth and the diced tomatoes with their juices. Add the whole bay leaf. Bring the liquid to a rolling boil at 100°C/212°F, then immediately reduce the heat to low. Cover and let simmer gently at 90°C/195°F for 20 minutes.
Remove the lid and fold in the drained cannellini beans and chopped Swiss chard leaves. Continue to simmer uncovered for an additional 5 minutes, or until the chard leaves are completely wilted and the squash and potatoes are fork-tender.
Remove the pot from the heat and discard the bay leaf. Taste the stew and season with salt and freshly ground black pepper as needed. Let the stew rest for 5 minutes before ladling into bowls to allow the broth to slightly thicken.
Chef's Notes
- Uniform knife work is crucial here. Cutting the butternut squash and sweet potato to the exact same size guarantees they finish cooking at the same time.
- Swiss chard stems are often discarded, but they pack immense flavor and great texture. Treating them like celery and sautéing them early in the cooking process builds a fantastic base.
- For an even richer broth, you can add a piece of parmesan rind along with the bay leaf, though this will remove the vegan dietary flag.
- Stews like this benefit heavily from resting. If you have the time, making this a day in advance allows the starches to settle and the smoky flavors to fully permeate the vegetables.
Storage
Refrigerator: 5 days — Store in an airtight container. Flavors will marry and deepen overnight, making this excellent for leftovers.
Freezer: 3 months — Freeze in individual portions. Root vegetables may become slightly softer upon thawing.
Reheating: Reheat gently on the stovetop over medium-low heat until bubbling, or in the microwave in 1-minute intervals.
Troubleshooting
Root vegetables are falling apart and turning to mush
Cause: The vegetables were cut too small, or the stew boiled too vigorously instead of simmering.
Fix: Mash some of the overly soft vegetables into the broth to create a thicker, creamier soup base. The dish will still be delicious.
Prevention: Ensure squash and potato are cut into uniform 2cm pieces, and maintain a gentle simmer rather than a hard boil.
The broth tastes flat or lacks depth
Cause: Insufficient salt, or the spices were not toasted long enough in the oil.
Fix: Add a splash of apple cider vinegar or lemon juice at the end to brighten the flavors, and adjust the salt incrementally.
Prevention: Allow the smoked paprika and thyme to bloom in the hot oil before adding the liquids.
Cultural Context
Root vegetable stews have served as fundamental winter sustenance across countless Northern Hemisphere cultures for centuries. By relying on cellar-stable items like squash and potatoes alongside robust winter greens like chard, this dish represents a modern, plant-based evolution of traditional cold-weather survival cooking.
