As noted, I view January as bowl-food month. Therefore, I shall close out the month with an ambitious stew. I won’t lie—it’s a bit of a project. But hey, since many of us are homebound and hunkering down, why not roll up our sleeves and have some fun with this recipe? I am a big fan of chowders and cioppinos, as you may have noticed, and I created this recipe with the deliberate intention of layering a stew with big bites, flavors, and textures. It’s winter, after all, which is the season of layering: layers of clothing, layers of bedding, and layers of nourishing ingredients in our meals. This stew is the sum of its parts. Each ingredient stands out, yet complements the whole, with a balance of sweet, smoke, heat, and brine. Each ingredient is addressed separately before uniting in the pot, taking care to prevent a mushy muddle. …