Stews have been around almost nearly as long as humans have been cooking. All you need is a vessel to hold your ingredients and water and a means of heating that vessel. It can be as simple as a leather bag with stones heated in a fire dropped into it. So stews were almost certainly prepared during the Paleolithic and Neolithic periods, if not earlier. Once you have clay or metal pots you can prepare stews next to or set directly over a fire. Stews are low-maintenance cookery, generally not requiring that the cooking pot be observed continuously. The slow cooking is also ideal for tenderizing tougher cuts of meat (neck, shin, tail etc). As these also tend to be the most flavoursome parts of animals, this also means that stews can be extremely flavourful. Stews also pair well with the local staple: potatoes, rice, bread, yams, cassava etc.

Even in hunter-gatherer societies stews are useful in that the slow cooking can make the most of tough meat and it can be combined with foraged grains, leafy greens, nuts and starchy tubers to yield a flavourful, low maintenance and nutritious meal. With the advent of agriculture almost all grains are amenable to stewing and combining grains and legumes in a stew provides a ready way to gain all the essential amino acids that humans (particularly children) require.

The boiling process of making stews also helps sterilize the ingredients, killing harmful bacteria and viruses. It can also help neutralize harmful chemicals, such as the cyanogenic compounds in bitter cassava and helps reduce bitterness in leafy greens, making the food both safer to eat and more palatable. The addition of flavouring ingredients (fruit, spices, herbs) during the cooking process can also alter the flavours of stews, making them more palatable and more appealing. This is particularly the case when adding components with high umami content (certain fish, seaweed, cruciferous vegetables, beans, soy sauce, mushrooms etc).

It is little wonder that, taken globally, the list of stews presented on this site is a long one.

Some stews border on soups and the definition of whether a dish is a soup or a stew. A good example of this is Welsh cawl which can be served with more liquid as a soup or can be thickened as a stew and served with bread and/or potatoes. Most curries, due to their long, slow cooking and blend of ingredients can also be considered a subtype of stew.

Pretty much every culture on earth has a classic stew that's a major part of its cultural culinary repertoire. I have viewed and collected recipes for many of these on my travels. These and other classic stews from around the world are collected and presented here.

The alphabetical list of all the stew recipes on this site follows, (limited to 100 recipes per page). There are 2305 recipes in total:

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In Vulva [et] Sterili ([Sauce] for Sterile Sow's Womb)      Origin: Roman	Jamaican Rum Prawns      Origin: Jamaica	Kaninchengeschnetzeltes (Liechtenstein-style Rabbit Stew)      Origin: Liechtenstein
Indonesian Peanut Sauce      Origin: Indonesia	Jamaican Seafood Soup      Origin: Jamaica	Kansiyé      Origin: Guinea
Inyama Yenkukhu (South African Chicken Casserole)      Origin: South Africa	Jamaican Spicy Okra      Origin: Jamaica	Kansiyé avec 'Mafe' (Smoked Chicken in Peanut Sauce with Mashed Plantains)      Origin: Guinea
Irio      Origin: Kenya	Jambo (Okra Soup)      Origin: Bonaire	Kansiyé de Poisson (Fish Kansiyé)      Origin: Guinea
Irish Beef In Guinness      Origin: Ireland	Jambo (Okra Soup)      Origin: Curacao	Kansiyé de Poulet (Chicken Kansiyé)      Origin: Guinea
Irish Beef Stew      Origin: Ireland	Jarret de Boeuf      Origin: Chad	Kansiyé      Origin: Guinea-Bissau
Irish Cabbage Parcels      Origin: Ireland	Jasha Maroo (Minced Chicken Tshoem)      Origin: Bhutan	Kaoteriad (Breton Fish Stew)      Origin: France
Irish Carbonnade      Origin: Ireland	Java Chicken      Origin: Fusion	Kapenta      Origin: Zambia
Irish Coddled Pork with Cider      Origin: Ireland	Jollof Rice with Chicken, Beef, and Ham      Origin: Ghana	Kapr na černo (Carp in Black Sauce)      Origin: Czech
Irish Farm Broth      Origin: Ireland	Joues de porc confites au cidre (Confit of Pork Cheeks in Cider)      Origin: France	Kapuska z Kielbasa (Sauerkraut and Kielbasa)      Origin: Poland
Irish Fisherman's Stew      Origin: Ireland	Joutes of almannd mylk (Herb Pottage with Almond Milk)      Origin: England	Karē Raisu (Japanese Curry Rice)      Origin: Japan
Irish Hot Pot      Origin: Ireland	Judd mat Gaardebounen (Smoked Pork with Broad Beans)      Origin: Luxembourg	Karabakh Loby (Broad Beans in Sour Cream and Tomato Sauce)      Origin: Azerbaijan
Irish Lamb and Potato Curry      Origin: Ireland	Jugged Pigeons      Origin: Britain	Karahi Machhli (White Fish Curry)      Origin: Pakistan
Irish Lamb Stew      Origin: Ireland	Kabaro au Carry (Malagasy Curried Beans)      Origin: Madagascar	Kare Kare      Origin: Philippines
Irish Lamb Stew      Origin: Ireland	Kabritu Stoba (Stewed Kid Goat)      Origin: Aruba	Kari Ikan (Fish Curry)      Origin: Malaysia
Irish Stew      Origin: Ireland	Kabritu Stobá (Goat Meat Stew)      Origin: Saba	Karjalanpaisti (Karelian Stew)      Origin: Finland
Iron Age Pork and Beans      Origin: Ancient	Kabritu Stobá (Goat Meat Stew)      Origin: Curacao	Karko Stobá (Queen Conch Stew)      Origin: Aruba
Isi Ewu (Spiced Goat Head)      Origin: Nigeria	Kachumbari      Origin: Rwanda	Karko Stobá (Queen Conch Stew)      Origin: Bonaire
Isidudu      Origin: Zimbabwe	Kadala Curry      Origin: India	Karko Stobá (Queen Conch Stew)      Origin: Curacao
Isombe      Origin: Rwanda	Kadhai Gosht      Origin: Pakistan	Karni Stobá (Curaçao Stewed Beef)      Origin: Curacao
Isophu      Origin: Southern Africa	Kådun Pika (Spicy Chicken)      Origin: Guam	Karni Stobá (Sint Eustatian Stewed Beef)      Origin: Sint Eustatius
Israeli Chicken and Aubergine Shakshuka      Origin: Israel	Kådun Pika (Spicy Chicken)      Origin: Northern Mariana Islands	Kashmiri Chicken Curry      Origin: India
Israeli Chicken and Rice Pilaf      Origin: Israel	Kafta with Argan Oil (Syrian Meatballs with Argan Oil)      Origin: Syria	Katakou au Poisson Frais (Palm Soup Base with Fresh Fish)      Origin: Cote dIvoire
Israeli Shakshuka      Origin: Israel	Kajaik (Sudanese fish stew)      Origin: South Sudan	Katami Satsabeli Baga (Duck in Georgian Walnut Sauce)      Origin: Georgia
Istrian Jota      Origin: Croatia	Kakrar Jhal (Bengali Crab Curry)      Origin: India	Katogo (Beans with Cassava)      Origin: Uganda
Ius Album in Assum Leporem (Hare's Blood, Liver and Lung Ragout)      Origin: Roman	Kalia II (Meat and Potato Curry II)      Origin: Bangladesh	Kebab Halla (Stewed Beef)      Origin: Egypt
Ius in lacertos elixos (Boiled Mackerel with Sauce)      Origin: Roman	Kaluun iyo Bariis (Spicy Fish Sauce with Rice)      Origin: Somalia	Kebbeh Kunda Benachin      Origin: Gambia
Iwuk Efere      Origin: Nigeria	Kalya de Poulet (Chicken Kalya)      Origin: Mauritius	Kede in Bokenade (Kid Goat in Sauce)      Origin: England
Jackfruit Kofta Curry      Origin: India	Kamuna      Origin: Sierra Leone	Kedgeree 2      Origin: Fusion
Jamaican Curried Jackfruit      Origin: Jamaica	Kanda (Beef Meatballs with Pumpkin Seeds)      Origin: Central African Republic	Kedjenou      Origin: Cote dIvoire
Jamaican Jerk Jackfruit      Origin: Jamaica	Kanda ti Nyma      Origin: Central African Republic	Kedjenou II      Origin: Cote dIvoire
Jamaican Mutton and Lime Leaf      Origin: Jamaica	Kang Ped Pla-dook (Red Curry with Catfish)      Origin: Thailand	Kefta dyal Ghriba (Synagogue Koftas)      Origin: Tunisia
Jamaican Pimento Tripe Curry      Origin: Jamaica	Kangchu Tsoem (Pig's Trotter Tshoem)      Origin: Bhutan
Jamaican Prawn Curry      Origin: Jamaica	Kangué (Ragout of Beef)      Origin: Mayotte

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