The stew, simple again: use your favorite spices (I think I used cajun), butter in the cast iron pan, fry the diced stew meat, then let it sit on a very low setting for about 3 hours or so. Somewhere along the line you add your favorite vinegar, a few good splashes. Let it cook some more, lid on. Take out meat, bind sauce with corn starch, throw meat back in, maybe add some water, if the sauce has become too strong flavoured. By now it should be really "stewy", and the combination of hot and salty with the vinegar is really nice... if you like the taste. My wife doesn't.