Southwest Chicken and Pumpkin Stew

Here’s a cheap, delicious and original dinner perfect for a cold November day. You can mix and match ingredients from around your kitchen, and your family is sure to be impressed. Pumpkin can be used for a lot of things besides pumpkin pie, and can be very good and hearty in savory dishes like stew. After trying this recipe, you’ll surely look at pumpkin in a whole new way!

Ingredients

• 1 Package Boneless Chicken Breast (cubed)
• 3 Tbsp Flour
• Cubed Fresh Pumpkin
• Chopped Carrot, Celery, Green Pepper and Onion
• Minced Garlic
• 1 Can Pinto or Black Beans
• Fresh Cilantro
• 1 Tbsp Canola Oil
• 4 Cups Chicken Broth
• Cumin, Chili Powder, Salt & Pepper to taste

Directions

• Coat chicken thoroughly in flour
• Heat oil in dutch oven, add cubed chicken and cook until browned
• Mix in chopped veggies and cook until soft
• Add in about 1/4 cup of chicken broth and scrape any brown bits off the bottom of pan
• Add remaining broth and spices
• Add pumpkin and bring mixture to a boil
• Simmer, covered at least one hour or until pumpkin is tender
• Mix in beans
• Serve, garnish with fresh cilantro

Tips

• Pumpkin does not get tender like a potato, it will always have a little bite to it, and almost have the consistency of spaghetti squash. If cooked thoroughly, it will be very hearty and meaty.
• As with any stew, use any extra veggies laying around your fridge or pantry.
• Other varieties of squash work great with this recipe.
• Try this recipe with different meats.