Sweet Potato Beef Stew
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The coziest beef stew with the most tender chunks of beef and sweet potato that just melt in your mouth! And it’s FREEZER-FRIENDLY!
Is there anything else more cozy than a beef stew during the dead of winter? And just to be clear, when I say dead of winter, I mean anything below 50 degrees F.
Hey, you guys know I’m a California wimp.
But I know this stew will be made on the daily once we move to Chicago. I mean, hello, polar vortex stew, right? Maybe that’s what this stew should be called.
Seriously though, these tender chunks of sweet potato with the most amazing melt-in-your-mouth beef chunks cannot be beat.
And you can totally sip on the leftover red wine you use for this. It’s a win-win for all.
Not to mention, this stew is completely freezer-friendly.
I just ask that if you do plan to freeze this, I would undercook the sweet potato by just 5 minutes so that they can stay firm when frozen and reheated (without running the risk of being overcooked during the second round of cooking).
See, now you’re all stocked and ready for the next polar vortex.
Sweet Potato Beef Stew
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 pounds top sirloin steak, diced
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 1 medium sweet onion, diced
- 1 medium carrot, peeled and diced
- 2 celery ribs, diced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 8 ounces cremini mushrooms, quartered
- ¼ cup all-purpose flour
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- ½ cup dry red wine
- 4 cups beef stock
- 4 sprigs fresh thyme
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 large sweet potato, about 1 1/2 pounds, peeled and cut in 1/2-inch chunks
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley leaves
Instructions
- Heat olive oil in a large stockpot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Season steak with salt and pepper, to taste. Working in batches, add steak to the stockpot and cook, stirring occasionally, until evenly browned, about 6-8 minutes; set aside.
- Add onion, carrot and celery. Cook, stirring occasionally, until tender, about 3-4 minutes.
- Add garlic and mushrooms, and cook, stirring occasionally, until tender and browned, about 3-4 minutes.
- Whisk in flour and tomato paste until lightly browned, about 1 minute.
- Stir in wine, scraping any browned bits from the bottom of the stockpot.
- Stir in beef stock, thyme, bay leaves and steak. Bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer until beef is very tender, about 30 minutes.
- Stir in sweet potatoes; simmer until potatoes are just tender and stew has thickened, about 20 minutes. Remove and discard thyme sprigs and bay leaves. Stir in parsley; season with salt and pepper, to taste.*
- Serve immediately.
Notes
Did you make this recipe?
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Going to make this tonight with what we have on hand! I’m sure it won’t be the same but with Covid we are trying to avoid grocery shopping. I’m using lean ground beef instead of diced sirloin, fresh rosemary instead of time, and navy beans instead of mushrooms. Since beans won’t add the beautiful umami mushroom flavor, I was thinking of adding a little dashi which I happen to have. Thoughts?
This looks so delicious !!! Can I use boneless chicken thighs?
Thanks for this delicious looking stew.
I would like to substitute pork loin for the beef. Do you think that would work – would anything else need adjusted? Appreciate your reply and love your recipes Please and thank you.
We made this delicious stew while “social distancing” for COVID-19. Fortunately we had most ingredients already – except fresh thyme and tomato paste. I substituted 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme for fresh thyme and approximately 3 tablespoons prepared, leftover tomato soup for tomato paste. We loved the stew and look forward to enjoying the leftovers for dinner tonight! I also bookmarked this recipe so I can make it again next winter – or as we like to call it, “soup season.”
Excellent recipe! I’ve made this twice and my family really likes it. First time I made it, I substituted the beef with venison. Froze half of it and it reheated nicely. Second time, I substituted the beef with javelina and also amazing. Thanks for sharing this recipe!!!
We loved this meal Sadly not enough to freeze. I didn’t have any red wine so I subbed it out for equal amt of red grape juice . This is a keeper
Delicious! Perfect for a winter dinner. This prep and cook time made this a weekend recipe for me–I think it would be tough to pull-off on a weeknight. There are plenty of leftovers, though.
Any nutritional info?
This was delicious!! I made it in the Instant Pot – seared the meat first but then just dumped everything else in, gave it a big stir, and used the Stew setting. Tender, tasty beef stew in under 30 minutes. Thanks for ALL of your great recipes – I haven’t found one I haven’t loved!
How long did you cook this in the IP?
I congratulate you on your recipe and actually being a cook. Many recipes that include sweet potatoes instruct me to add the sweet potatoes at the same time as the meat. The photographs show the finished product with whole pieces of sweet potatoes. Impossible. 🙂 Just for that I am going to buy your book.
This was AMAZING! Thank you for another awesome recipe.
great recipe! I wish you guys said in the recipe if you simmer covered of uncovered because that can make a big difference in the thickness of the sauce. I tweaked the recipe a bit but it’s a great fall harvest recipe! Could also be adjusted to a crockpot for melt in your mouth beef or for convenience.
Had to move it to the Instant Pot. The time allotted in the recipe did not make the meat tender not the sweet potatoes soft.
I’m sorry this recipe did not turn out for you. But if you are using larger cut steak and sweet potato, it will take longer to cook through. Please note that cooking time in recipes is simply an estimation.
Do you have an instant pot version of this sweet potato stew?
This was AMAZING! By far the best beef stew I’ve ever made, and I’ve tried a lot. My 6 year old said ‘I don’t want to hurt your feelings by saying I don’t like this’ but he gobbled up his bowl. My other kids loved it 🙂
Glad everyone enjoyed it!
AMAZING! This was so good. We doubled the mushrooms and the wine. For sure kept us going during this cold MN winter.
Thanks for sharing with us, Steven!
I didn’t have enough to freeze, it was absolutely scrumptious! Damn Delicious recipes are 3 for 3 at our place. And getting to see Butters on InstaStories is a bonus. 🙂
Butters is always a treat! 🙂 Thanks, Christy!
Oh YUM! DELICIOUS!
This is a keeper!
Amazing taste, easy and great for our North Idaho winters! Good luck in Chicago!
Thank you for sharing such fantastic food. I LOVE everything, it’s the best out there!
Thank you, Kari!
Made this last night. It is rich and very flavorful. I will definitely keep this in my collection of hearty soup recipes!
It’s a great one. 🙂 Thanks for sharing!
This looks amazing! Your photos make me wanna run to the store to get all the ingredients so I could make it. Beautiful!
This was so damn delicious! My husband isn’t the biggest fan of sweet potatoes, but he LOVED this stew. I didn’t have fresh thyme, so I added about 1/2 tsp dried thyme. Next time, I’ll add the sweet potatoes at the same time as the beef, since they needed an additional 20 minutes to get tender.