Slow Cooker Beef Stew
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Everyone’s favorite cozy beef stew made in the crockpot! The meat is SO TENDER and the stew is rich, chunky + hearty!
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There is truly nothing more comforting than a hearty beef stew on a cold winter night. And it’s even better when it’s been simmering low and slow in your crockpot for the last 7-8 hours. The tender potatoes and carrots soaking up all the lovely meaty flavors, and sopping up all the broth with any bread vessel you can find – this is what dreams are made of.
reasons to make slow cooker beef stew
- Slow cooker does all the heavy lifting. Aside from searing your stew meat to give it that really nice caramelized flavor, this crockpot recipe requires minimal hands on time and zero babysitting. All you need to prep is your crusty bread for dipping, a glass of red wine, and a side salad to round out your meal.
- Leftovers taste even better. Similar to lasagna, beef stew tends to taste even better the next day, letting the flavors meld and intensify even more.
- Freezes beautifully. Beef stew makes for an ideal freezer meal, lasting up to 2 months in the freezer, perfect for the fall and winter months, a mom with a new baby or friends recovering from surgery.
tips and tricks for success
- Use good-quality stock. The better quality your stock, the better your stew. Many brands love to pack in the salt so always opt for unsalted or a lower-sodium variety.
- Sear the meat. Browning the beef first is key here. That dark crust on the stew meat cubes will create such richer, deeper flavors in your stew.
- Red potatoes hold up very well. Baby red potatoes hold up much better throughout the long cook time than russet potatoes, which tend to break down and fall apart. Yukon golds can also be used.
- Potatoes and carrots should be cut in larger pieces. We want our vegetables to be cut a little larger here as they will cook down quite a bit in the slow cooker (or else they will be overcooked, fall apart and turn to mush).
- Tomato paste adds so much flavor. Tomato paste is a key ingredient in beef stew, adding body and richness in small amounts without adding too much liquid to the stew. Opt for tomato paste in a tube, using up only what you need at a time without having to open up a whole can.
- Mix it up. Swap out the potatoes for sweet potatoes, add butternut squash, mushrooms, parsnips, or a little bit of crumbled bacon at the end of cooking time.
- Serve with crusty bread. Serve with all the homemade crusty bread for dipping, sopping and dunking!
pro tip
Use beef stew meat.
Stew meat is a tough cut of meat making it ideal for a slow cooker recipe as the long cook time will allow the connective tissue to break down, yielding tender, juicy, melt-in-your-mouth beef. Stew meat is also incredibly cost-effective, making this a budget-friendly dinner. Boneless beef chuck roast can also be used, cut into 1-inch cubes.
what to serve with slow cooker beef stew
Slow Cooker Beef Stew: Frequently Asked Questions
Boneless beef chuck roast is a great sub.
No slow cooker, no problem! We have a stovetop recipe for you here.
Yes, we have a recipe for that too.
Yes, beef stew freezes very well! Once cooled completely, you can freeze the leftovers in individual freezer bags, thaw overnight, and reheat on the stovetop over low heat, stirring occasionally, until heated through.
Slow Cooker Beef Stew
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 pounds stew meat, cut into 1-inch cubes
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 1 pound baby red potatoes, quartered
- 4 carrots, cut diagonally into 1/2-inch-thick slices
- 1 onion, diced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 3 cups beef broth
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1 teaspoon dried rosemary
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1 teaspoon caraway seeds, optional
- 2 bay leaves
- ¼ cup all-purpose flour
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley leaves
Equipment
Instructions
- Heat olive oil in a large cast iron skillet over medium heat.
- Season beef with salt and pepper, to taste. Add beef to the skillet and cook until evenly browned, about 2-3 minutes.
- Place beef, potatoes, carrots, onion and garlic into a 6-qt slow cooker. Stir in beef broth, tomato paste, Worcestershire, thyme, rosemary, paprika, caraway seeds and bay leaves until well combined; season with salt and pepper, to taste.
- Cover and cook on low heat for 7-8 hours or high heat for 3-4 hours.
- In a small bowl, whisk together flour and 1/2 cup stew broth. Stir in flour mixture into the slow cooker. Cover and cook on high heat for an additional 30 minutes, or until thickened.*
- Serve immediately, garnished with parsley, if desired.
Video
Notes
Did you make this recipe?
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Soooo good! Made it tonight and my guy devoured it! I had to use Bloody Mary Mix that I had on hand because I didn’t have tomato paste or whorchesshire. Turned out awesome! Just used the fancy bloody may mix that comes in glass bottles at any big grocery store. Will be saving this recipe!
This was dinner tonight for my son and husband on the night every week that I know I will have no energy to cook. They both love beef stew and this filled the bill admirably. Thanks!
To make this gluten free, what would be the best thing to use in place of flour?
You can substitute gluten-free flour.
As a thickener, you could mix a little cornstarch and water (dissolve the cornstarch) and then add to the stew. I do the same when making gravy and thickening soups.
I should have paid more attention to ‘Caraway seeds … optional’. Sadly, I included them and my husband and I both found the flavour from the seeds a little overpowering. Other than that, the falvour and consistency of the stew was great, minus the caraway seeds of course. Served with some nice fresh bread to sop up the gravy. For those of you who are not fans of caraway seeds, I recommend you omit them for sure!
I just tried this recipe today! The flovor is good. But my beef came out a bit tough. I am not sure where I went wrong? Maybe I cooked too long on the skillet?? Please help!
Perhaps it’s a bit overcooked?
You may be right. I set it to finish at 5:30 but due to scheduling issues, I wasnt able to finish the last step until 7:30. But I’ll definitely try this again and make it right! Thanks 🙂
when you sear your meat, use a cast pan if you got, and crank it on med/high. When HOT, add cold oil just to cover the bottom, and lay in your meat, do NOT crowd, and turn it with tongs. only need to sear the sides… do NOT cook.
Then I toss in the mirepoix and cook it on Med/High til the onion just start to turn translucent.
then add all that to your crock pot, deglaze with a bit of red wine, pour that in your crockpot, and add the rest.
also, if you are going to cook it a LONG time, perhaps add the garlic half way through. it is volatile, and the flavour can cook out.
Just put the ingredients in the slow cooker this afternoon! Adjusted the ingredients to fit my smaller pot, and I’m using the High 3-4 hour cook time. Cannot wait to taste this tonight.
What do you serve with this?
Crusty bread! 🙂
I freaking love beef stew, but my husband does it stove top and never in a slow cooker. Maybe I can change his mind.
Great. That looks fantastic.
What size slow cooker are you using for this recipe? I’ve got a 4 quart crock pot, will that be large enough?
I recommend using a 6-qt slow cooker, or reducing the recipe as needed to fit a 4-qt slow cooker.
What would be the ratio to reduce the recipe for a 4 quart pot?
Unfortunately, without further recipe testing, I cannot answer with certainty. As always, please use your best judgment regarding substitutions and modifications.
This beef stew looks amazing! I’ve been trying to find a good recipe for ages, but always trust your recipes, so I’ll totally be doing this!
Paige
http://thehappyflammily.com
Love a good slow cooker dish like this. So simple and easy to do (:
You have a thickener as an ingredient… The potato. Once cooked, just mash it up and stir it through. I do this for many veg soups. Also, I found you can use left over mash potatoes just add them to the stock. But, for paleo, use sweet potatoes, not white.
Pearlie – do you think arrowroot can be used instead of the flour in the same quantity as the recipe calls for flour?
Chungah – thanks for the great recipe! Excited to try it! I’ve got everything on hand and will be making it today.
Pearly, thanks for the idea – I was planning to make it until I saw the flour, since I’m gluten-intolerant. But your suggestion puts it back on my list of things to make. Thanks, Chungah! I’ve never made a recipe of yours that didn’t come out terrific!
I used gluten free all purpose flour as a substitute for the flour and it was delicious! No one even knew.
So the GF flour thickened it OK?
GF flour is a great thickener. Best if stir flour in a little bit of cold liquid first.
I used Sweet Rice Flour (mixed 1/2 cup flour with 1/2 cup water and added in, heated in a pan before adding) and it was also great. After about 3 1/2 hours though on high it still needed another hour. Delicious recipe! Thank you Chungah!
PEARLIE – Never thought of mashing the potato… GREAT idea. thanks.
I can’t wait to try this recipe beef stew is my fave.
That’s one hearty looking pot ‘o stew. Yum!
Certainly looks delicious!!
I make a lot of your yummy recipes. Trying this slow cooker beef stew tomorrow with football and baseball in the background! Thanks for your delicious work.
I don’t have a slow cooker. Could I bake it? What temperature and for how long?
Unfortunately, without further recipe testing, I cannot advise on how to adapt this recipe without a slow cooker. However, here is an article worth checking out on a possible conversion guide. Hope that helps!
What, no slow cooker? You are missing so much. A slow cooker is so cheap to buy and to run. Once you get used to its advantages, it’ll become as useful to you as your microwave. Like a pressure cooker, it will need to be understood, so read the manual – but the method is very simple. Slow cooking means coming home to soups, stocks, stews and puddings after a hard day at work. Chilli con carne and curries are deep flavored and rich from the slow cooker – all you need for serving up is rice. They are also great one-pot, low power consumption, cookers for campers and caravans. They comes in different sizes. Get one with a removable crock for easy cleaning. Be flexible, e.g. cook a cheaper joint like brisket in it and use your steamer for the veggies before serving up. They are also great for pet food recipes, and did you know you can make cakes in them? If you use a dehydrator, this slow cooking process allows full rehydration and flavor blending. The space these cookers take up is very small and they look good too.
Oh Peggy you are missing out on great and easy cooking….
Please buy a Crock-Pot I know you will not regret it. I have three of them..
One small for dips and a 4 qt and 6 qt..
They are fabulous and so many good recipes to try.
Peggy, crock pots/slow cookers, especially this time of year, are less than $30…go buy one and change your cooking life!!
I’ve printed out soooo many of your recipes that the other day I said, “No more recipes” and then you post this delicious looking beef stew, so I’m thinking okay, just one more recipe. (Chuckle). Thank you for all that I’ve printed.
Joann
Mmmm so satisfying and perfect for these rainy Virginia fall nights!! Can’t wait to make this!
I usually make Oven Beef Stew, which we love. But this looks SO good that I may have to try it!
This recipe looks great. Can I just flour the stew meat and then add to recipe so it can thicken as it cooks?
Yes.
Should I cook the meat then flour it or flour it then cook it in the pan?
Flour. Then cook. 🙂
I’m making this today for the first time, hopefully later today. Your reply of flour then cook is different than the video which shows no flouring before or after to the meat itself. I’ve seen other recipes where they say no searing needed. What does the searing do–bring out more flavour?
The flour is used for step #5. I always recommend searing the meat as it brings out more of a caramelized flavor but really, it’s up to you and your personal preferences.
What is stew broth? Do I just ladle out 1/2 cup of the soup from the crockpot and whisk it with flower?
Yes.