Stupendous Stews, Savory Soups, and a Growling' Gravy

Stews and soups are great recipes to make for dogs—you can serve them over kibble or as meals by themselves. better yet, you can tailor them to your dog's tastes. a stew is simply thicker than a soup—it would be equivalent to a homemade canned dog food. soups and stews store beautifully for up to 5 days in the refrigerator or up to 3 months in the freezer.

I freeze them in convenient single-serving portions and feed them to my dogs almost daily in between servings of my loaf recipes. Although the directions I give are for cooking on the stovetop in a large stockpot (you can also use a dutch oven), all the recipes in this page can also be prepared in a slow cooker. using a slow cooker is much easier—you can set it and go, and the meat will become very tender. Set your slow cooker on high, add the oil, and let it heat up. then add the meat or vegetables.

If you are both browning meat and sauteing veggies, brown the meat first, remove it, leaving the drippings in the bottom, and then sauté the vegetables in the leftover fat, which will give them great flavor. if you have a lot of fat left over after that, drain the fat and then add the next ingredients.

Once everything has been added, bring it all to a boil, cover, set the slow cooker to low, and follow your slow cooker's guidelines for cooking a stew; cooking time is generally 4 to 6 hours. Many slow cookers have a timer that automatically shuts off after the set cooking time and keeps the meal at a constant, stable 170 degrees. this stops the cooking process but keeps the meal fresh and warm. I use a slow cooker all the time when cooking for my dogs.