Brunswick Stew by the Gallon

When it comes to talking about Southern foods, any list that’s fit’n will include Brunswick stew. And if not, you need a better list!

The “Battle of the Brunswicks” has gone on for centuries. Much debate has ensued as to the origins of this hodge-podge of meats and vegetables. Depending on who you ask, folks in Georgia declare being first, and have even memorialized it with a “first pot” monument in Brunswick, while those in Brunswick County, Virginia, make the case for themselves. Then, there are those who proclaim it was a favorite of Queen Victoria of England and they got it from Germany! This battle will likely live on forever in culinary history books. No matter where it was born, the fact is, some of the best Brunswick stew can be found right here in North Carolina — where you can go to 10 different barbecue restaurants and have it cooked as many different ways as a side, or a bowl unto itself with hushpuppies. There are as many recipes as there are stars in the sky, and there’s just no “right” way to cook it.

Knowing our readers, we feel certain many of y’all have your own recipe and stand firm about what should and should not go in it. Perhaps we can all agree on the basics: There’s meat, it’s tomato-based, and it has vegetables. It should be thicker than soup and juicy — but not so thick you’d eat it with a fork.

As for the meat(s), perhaps the hunters in your life have been remiss in bringing home fresh rabbit or squirrel for stew cooking, the originals. Most folks spare those critters and use chicken and pork. Some just use pork barbecue from local restaurants.

Here in the South, stew is oftentimes cooked to celebrate some sort of event. Back in tobacco days, it was common for there to be a big old wash pot of stew cooked for farmhands to celebrate culmination of the harvest.

Mr. George is an NC Brunswick stew cookin’ legend and has helped so many garner much-needed funds for their communities. You may have enjoyed some of his stew and not even known it.

Communities had and many still have stew cookin’s, and in the fall especially you’ll be able to get some from your local church or fire department. Some cook their own and pre-sell tickets, leaving behind the communal sit-down fellowship I remember “back in the day.” While others get to sell from expert cookers.

One such a fellow, Mr. George Wooten — a member of Edgecombe-Martin County EMC — came to me by personal reference from several friends. From my first call, he felt like an old friend and welcomed me to spend a few hours, commencing in the dark of night, joining him and his stew crew.

White-fisted during peak deer season driving at 4 a.m. on unfamiliar backroads, I made my way through the fog to his stew cookhouse on the outskirts of Macclesfield in Edgecombe County. Upon arrival, my headlights caught his “stew today” sign at the road alerting passersby of stew day and saw the neon “OPEN” light glowing from his cookhouse.

The stew crew would arrive soon. George puts the chicken on to boil in his ginormous cooking vats about 1 a.m., so when the crew arrives, it’s time to start adding the vegetables and stir — for hours!

(For food safety reasons, the non-profits George cooks for get one permit per month.)

Helpers arrived, and before stew making commenced, Mr. George gathered us all around to begin in prayer. Then, cans started getting opened, dumped and everyone took turns stirring the pots for about three hours. The stew is stirred with cherry wood paddles with holes like those used for making apple butter. They reach to the bottom of the pots to keep the stew from burning, and the holes offer less resistance. Stirring never stops.

Once finished and packaged by 8:30 a.m., the morning’s efforts yielded 848 quarts of stew — I’ve never seen anything like it!

People, that is A LOT of Brunswick stew — 57,000 gallons, to be exact! The most he’s cooked in one batch is 1,200 quarts, or 300 gallons.

On this day, he cooked for the Macclesfield Fire Department to sell at the town’s fall festival and United Church of Jesus Christ (Princeville), both who had presold tickets. Once quarts were picked up by the preacher and firemen for delivery, the pots were cleaned and the cookhouse put back as when we started, ready for the next cookin’.

Mr. George grew up helping his mama cook stew for their church. In 1988, he started cooking Brunswick Stew for others. Fascinated at all that stew made at this one cookin’, I asked him if he has any idea how much stew he has cooked in all these years? Without batting an eye he said, “Oh I sure can tell you. I keep up with that in notebooks and can tell you who I cooked for, when and how much. I’ve cooked 230,000 quarts.”

People, that is A LOT of Brunswick stew — 57,000 gallons, to be exact! The most he’s cooked in one batch is 1,200 quarts, or 300 gallons.

Mr. George is an NC Brunswick stew cookin’ legend and has helped so many garner much-needed funds for their communities. You may have enjoyed some of his stew and not even known it.

We are grateful for folks like him, keepers of our culinary heritage, and for Brunswick stew — no matter where it came from.

Wendy’s Tummy Tingling Brunswick Stew

Gather friends and cook in a big old pot over fire, or make a smaller batch inside on a cold winter’s day. This recipe can be easily scaled up or down.

Wendy’s Tummy Tingling Brunswick Stew