40mSpy x Family
Yor's Macaroni Gratin
Comfort Food Mains · Medium
Yor's Mother's Stew
- Prep
- 25m
- Cook
- 2h
- Total
- 2h 25m
- Serves
- 4
- Difficulty
- Medium
Season 1 Episode 16 flashes back to Yor's childhood — her mother ladling a thick red stew into a handled bowl for Yor and her brother Yuri. The frame is unmistakable: potato chunks, carrot, meat in dark broth, a sunny-side-up egg, and a sausage cut into curling tentacles on top.
In the same episode, adult Yor echoes that memory when she finally cooks a successful dinner for Loid and Anya. This is the Ostania-style reading — pork shoulder, caramelized onions, Hungarian paprika, caraway, red wine, sour cream — scaled for four generous bowls (~110 g cooked pork each), not eight skimpy ones.
About 25 minutes prep and two hours mostly hands-off simmer. Use a deep enameled Dutch oven or braiser, not a donabe: searing meat and simmering wine need enamel or stainless, not porous clay.
Ingredients
Recipe ingredients
- Pork Butt (Shoulder)Key1 lb (450 g) boneless, cubed
- Hungarian PaprikaKey3 tbsp
- Caraway SeedsKey1½ tsp
Pantry staples
Salt, oil, butter, and other basics you likely already have — scaled with servings above.
- Neutral oil2 tbsp
- Yellow onion · sweet onions, diced2 medium
- Garlic · minced4 cloves
- Potatoes · peeled and diced5 medium
- Carrot · diced1 large
- Red bell pepper · diced1 medium
- Chicken stock powder4 tsp
- Red wine · non-alcoholic OK; plus more water below1 cup
- Water · simmering liquid with wine3 cups
- Sour cream · to finish¼ cup
- Kosher saltto taste
- Black pepperto taste
- Eggs · 1 fried egg per bowl4
- Cocktail sausages (octopus-cut) · cocktail size; octopus-cut, 1 per bowl4
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Instructions
- 1
Prep ingredients
Cube 1 lb boneless pork butt into bite-size pieces. Dice 5 medium potatoes, 1 large carrot, 2 sweet onions, and 1 red bell pepper. Mince 4 garlic cloves.
- 2
Brown the pork
Heat 2 tbsp neutral oil in a deep enameled Dutch oven or heavy braiser over medium-high. Brown pork on all sides in batches — not cooked through. Transfer to a plate.
- 3
Caramelize onions
Reduce heat to medium. Add more oil if needed. Cook onions 10–15 minutes, stirring, until deeply golden and sweet.
- 4
Aromatics and spice
Add garlic; stir 1 minute until fragrant. Add carrot, bell pepper, and potatoes; sauté 3–4 minutes. Stir in 3 tbsp Hungarian paprika, 1½ tsp caraway seeds, salt, and pepper.
- 5
Deglaze and simmer
Return pork to the pot. Pour in 1 cup red wine (non-alcoholic is fine) and scrape the bottom. Add 3 cups water and 4 tsp chicken stock powder — liquid should nearly cover the vegetables (about 1 L total for four servings). Boil, then cover and simmer on low 1 hour until potatoes are nearly tender.
- 6
Reduce the stew
Crack the lid to vent steam; simmer 15 minutes more to thicken. Optional: stir in 1 tbsp cornstarch mixed with 1 tbsp water if you want a tighter broth.
- 7
Finish with sour cream
Off heat, stir in ¼ cup sour cream until the stew turns silky — do not boil after adding.
- 8
Octopus hot dogs and eggs
Use 4 small cocktail sausages (about 3–4 in / 8–10 cm each). Cut legs from one end toward the middle so they fan out — do not halve lengthwise or both ends stay flat. Pan-fry until curled. Fry 4 eggs sunny-side up — one per bowl.
- 9
Serve like Yor's mother
Ladle stew into four deep bowls. Top each with one fried egg and one whole octopus-cut cocktail sausage. Serve immediately while the yolk can run into the broth.
Pro tips
Brown pork in batches in a heavy pot — do not crowd. Caramelize onions 10–15 minutes. Bloom paprika and caraway 30 seconds before liquid; never scorch paprika. Use 1 cup wine plus 3 cups water so four bowls get enough broth. For octopus garnish, use four small cocktail wieners (not halved standard franks): score legs from one end and pan-fry until they curl — one whole sausage per bowl.
Storage & leftovers
Refrigerate 4 days. Freezes well up to 3 months without egg and hot dog toppings — add those fresh when reheating. Sour cream stirs in off heat after warming.
What to serve with
Crusty bread for dipping, simple green salad, or steamed rice — Loid would approve of balanced sides. Anya would ask for peanuts on the side anyway.
Equipment
All kitchen equipment guidesFAQ
The Scene Reference screenshot is from Season 1, Episode 16 — a flashback of Yor's mother serving stew to young Yor and Yuri. In that same episode, adult Yor recreates the dish for Loid and Anya.
