Pumpkin Pork Stew

=== Description ===
Pumpkin and Pork "chili" recipe
Main course pumpkin recipes seem few and far between. I used to go to an Afghan restaurant (now closed) that served Kadu (pumpkin) in some form of a meat stew. The following was inspired by that Afghan cook. The spice profile below is chili-like (Americans have called this stuff “chili”) and is quite good. I have tried a curry spice profile with less success. There is much opportunity to experiment with spices if you like a different flavor (how about black pepper, cumin, coriander, turmeric and cardamom?).
* Total Preparation Time: 30 minutes plus several hours cooking time
== Ingredients ==
* cubed pork
* flour
* spices (ground cumin, paprika, onion powder, garlic powder, salt, pepper, bay leaves)
* onions
* green peppers
* celery
* garlic
* cubed skinned cooking pumpkin (no, canned pumpkin won’t really work in this recipe)
* large can diced tomatoes
* hot ancho or other pepper, browned over the gas burner and cut up
== Directions ==
# Dredge cubed pork (could be any cut, probably the cheaper the better) in seasoned flour (1 cup of flour plus a tablespoon or so each of salt, ground pepper and ground cumin).
# Fry in canola oil until brown on each side (turn the pork cubes a couple of times while browning).
# Remove browned pork, add cut up onions, peppers, celery and garlic and fry until soft.
# Place sautéed vegetables, browned pork, and cubed pumpkin (cut up a sugar pumpkin, peel off skin and cube) plus 1 large can of diced tomatoes into a slow cooker or cast iron dutch oven.
# Add some ground hot pepper (like ancho, browned over the stove burner, outer skin removed and then very finely chopped).
# For spices add more ground cumin, ground pepper, a dash of cayenne, maybe some basil or thyme, perhaps a dash of cinnamon, and a couple of bay leaves.
# Add some chicken broth or water to make a stew consistency.
# Cook all day in the slow cooker or several hours in the dutch oven placed in a 350°F oven, adding more broth or water as necessary.
# Taste and adjust the seasonings (usually you need to add salt but it depends on how salty the chicken broth is if you use broth) 20 minutes before serving.
Category:Afghan Meat Dishes
Category:Stew Recipes
Category:Tomato Recipes
Category:Pork Recipes
Category:Green bell pepper Recipes
Category:Celery Recipes
Category:Garlic Recipes
Category:Pumpkin Recipes
Category:Chicken stock and broth Recipes
Category:Ancho chile Recipes