By using differant ingredients, a characters should be able to make stew.
First off, a new item should be added to carpentry--the wooden bowl.
Use a wooden bowl, water, and cabbage, and you've got a not-so-tasty stew.
Be creative, and other things might happen. Some suggested recipes include:
Milk+Fish+Water+bowl= Chowder
Water+Fish+Cabbage+bowl=Fish Broth Stew
Water+Ham+Cabbage+bowl=Ham Soup
Water+Mushrooms+Ham+bowl= Hearty Stew
Water+Trout+Cabbage+bowl=Moskher's Stew, a foul-smelling delicacy introduced to the island by one Moskher Heszche (Hey, I have to get rewarded for the idea somehow.
Anyways, this would bring more functionality to a few items that really have none right now, and add more fun to being a cook.