Meet Perpetual Stew: The Medieval Soup That Became a Social Media Sensation

But the real question is: Is it even safe to eat?

Last summer Annie Rauwerda went viral on TikTok for her batch of potato-leek stew that she hoped to turn into a "perpetual stew," a medieval soup that cooks for prolonged periods of time.

In an introductory video, Rauwerda shared a screenshot of the Wikipedia entry for "perpetual stew." Also known as forever soup or hunter's pot, it is "a pot into which whatever foodstuffs one can find is placed and cooked. The pot is never or rarely emptied all the way, and ingredients and liquid are replenished as necessary. Such foods can continue cooking for decades or longer, if properly maintained."

Fans of medieval history will know that perpetual stews are a mainstay in descriptions of inns. Apparently, foods cooked in a perpetual stew are uniquely flavorful "due to the manner in which the ingredients blend together."

Wikipedia shares that one perpetual stew was allegedly kept going in Perpignan, southern France, from the 15th century till World War II, when its custodian ran out of ingredients to keep it going during the German occupation.

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Fast forward to the present day—Rauwerda's perpetual stew end up simmering in Brooklyn, New York, for 2 months. She even invited friends and eventually strangers to contribute ingredients to the stew—and to partake in its deliciousness at public "stew nights" on Sundays at a park. She even started a website dedicated to the project, where reviewers say that the stew is "stew-pendous," "stewper duper," and "stewpidly delicious."

But Rauwerda's stew isn't the only present-day perpetual stew. After her 60-day stew stopped cooking, she had the opportunity to go try a famous 49-year-old perpetual stew in Bangkok.

Is Perpetual Stew Safe to Eat?

Food poisoning is, of course, the question on everyone's minds. Can something cook continuously for that long and not make anyone sick? According to HowStuffWorks, as long as it is maintained at 200 degrees F (93 degrees C), which is the temperature required for a steady simmer, nothing bad can grow.

"Bacteria known to cause food-borne illness flourishes at temperatures between 40 degrees F (5 degrees C) and 140 degrees F (60 degrees C), but can't survive the heat of a constant simmer."

So the key is to keep it cooking and keep it hot. Rauwerda did this by keeping it in a slow cooker, since leaving your stove running unattended for 60 days would be unsafe in other ways than food-borne illness worries. It's also key to make sure you add enough liquid to keep the slow cooker heating the food properly and evenly—so be sure not to add two many ingredients without adding more broth too. And it play it even safer, Rawuwerda cycled through the soup each week so no one ingredient remains in the soup for too long.