Salt the meat and set aside for 10-20 minutes at room temperature. Use this time to chop the veggies. Pat the meat dry and pour the olive oil into a large Dutch oven or other heavy pot that has a lid. Heat the pot over medium-high heat. Brown the meat on all sides in batches. Do not overcrowd the pot. Set the meat aside in a bowl once browned. Take your time and do this right.
When the meat is browned, add the onions to the pot and stir to bring up some of the browned bits on the bottom of the pan. Sprinkle the onions with a little bit of salt. Cook until they begin to brown, then add the garlic, the cured meat, and the dried mushrooms if using. Cook until fragrant, then add the meat back to the pot and mix well.
Pour in the wine and turn the heat up to high. Stir and boil furiously until the wine has reduced by half. Turn the heat back down to medium and add the tomatoes, roasted red peppers, and all the spices and herbs (except the parsley). Stir well. The level of the liquid should be about 2/3 the way up the sides of the meat. If it is low, add the stock.
Cover and cook at a bare simmer- just barely bubbling- until done. How long is that? Depends on the meat. Rarely is any meat done within an hour, but I’d check a store-bought chicken then. I find pheasants and rabbits take about 90 minutes, boar, pork, and hares about 2 hours, and venison and beef up to 3 hours or more. Use your judgment.
Right before serving, test for salt and add some if needed. Add black pepper and the parsley and stir well. Serve with mashed potatoes, rice, polenta, or bread. Simple sauteed greens are a good accompaniment.
Recipe Notes
Recipe from http://honest-food.net/2011/10/02/spanish-chilindron-stew/, retrieved Feb 2012.