Ultimate Slow Cooker Beef Stew

Ultimate Slow Cooker Beef Stew made with chuck roast, Yukon potatoes and carrots for a rich beef stew that is perfect for the cold weather.

Slow cooker meals are so popular right now with good reason. We have less time with school and holidays and the weather is so cold we all want food that is hearty and comforting. This Ultimate Slow Cooker Beef Stew is the best of all worlds.

You can brown the beef and toss it in with the vegetables in 15 minutes in the morning. Then it cooks while you’re gone all day and when you get home you have the most amazing smell going through your kitchen.

Serving suggestion? Just like in mySlow Cooker Vegetable Beef SoupI highly suggest you enjoy this meal with crusty French bread and a side salad (a nice lemon/olive oil dressing would be great to cut through all the hearty flavors here).

Tips for making this Ultimate Slow Cooker Beef Stew:

• Brown your beef! I used a chuck roast, seared it well on both sides, then trimmed and cut it into 2-3 inch chunks.
• One of the easiest and most delicious ingredients in this stew: Yukon Potatoes! They’re buttery and rich and won’t fall apart after a long day of cooking. Definitely use these potatoes.
• I browned the beef in my cast iron skillet and got a GOOD crust on both sides with plenty of kosher salt and black pepper. If you have a slow cooker with an aluminum insert I highly suggest browning it in the insert and saving all the browned flavor that stays in the pan for your stew.
• If not using a base use beef stock instead of broth and its even more important to get a good sear on the meat, then deglaze the pan with the stock to make sure all the beef flavor comes with it.
• Instead of crushed or diced tomatoes I use tomato paste, the concentration of flavors adds so much more.
• In a stew you aren’t looking for the consistency to be that of a soup, so minimizing added liquids is helpful. If using canned tomatoes instead of paste drain the can.
• Serve this with crusty french bread, the Beef Stew is great for bread dipping.

How do you thicken up beef stew? To thicken beef stew you can either mix equal parts of flour/butter together and add it to the last hour of cooking or you can simply mash 3 or 4 chunks of the potatoes well and mix it into the stew for a natural thickener.

Slow Cooker Beef Stew with Red Wine? Instead of four cups of beef broth add in 3 cups of broth and one cup of red wine and follow the rest of the recipe as written.

Looking for more Slow Cooker Recipes?

Tools Used in making this Ultimate Slow Cooker Beef Stew:
Slow Cooker:This recipe was made in this slow cooker. Love this slow cooker and how programmable it is. Plus the locking lid makes it a breeze for making a dish that needs to travel
Aluminum Insert Slow Cooker: I brown the meat in the insert without losing a bunch of the flavor by transferring the meat and leaving the browned bits behind. If you’re thinking of a new slow cooker, consider it if your budget is open.

Cast Iron Skillet: If you don’t have a slow cooker with a stovetop friendly insert, this is my most used pan in my kitchen, heavy, keeps heat well and gives the BEST sear ever.
Pig Tail Flipper: I use this to flip the chuck roast easily. I use this tool EVERY time I cook something that requires flipping, it is amazing.
Beef Base: I almost never buy boxes of broth because I keep the beef, chicken and vegetable version of this Better Than Bouillon.

Yield: 8 servings

Ultimate Slow Cooker Beef Stew

Prep:20 minutes

Cook:8 hours

Total Time:8 hours 20 minutes

Ultimate Slow Cooker Beef Stew made with chuck roast, Yukon potatoes and carrots for a rich beef stew that is perfect for the cold weather.

Ingredients:

• 3 pound chuck roast
• 1 teaspoonKosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon coarse ground black pepper
• 1 yellow onion, chopped
• 4 carrots, cut into 2 inch chunks
• 4 Yukon potatoes, chopped
• 4 cups beef broth*
• 1/4 cup tomato paste
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 teaspoon thyme
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 Tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
• 2 tablespoons butter, unsalted
• 2 tablespoons flour

Directions:

1. Preheat an aluminum slow cooker insert or cast iron skillet on high heat.
2. Season the beef with half the salt and all the pepper.
3. Add to the skillet and brown on each side for 4-6 minutes or until deeply browned on each side.
4. Remove the beef from the pan and add in the onions.
5. Cook the onions for 3 minutes, stir then cook another 3 minutes.
6. Into the slow cooker add the onions, carrots, potatoes, broth, second half of the salt, tomato paste, bay leaf, thyme, garlic and Worcestershire sauce.
7. Cut the beef into 2-3 inch chunks and add it to the slow cooker.
8. Stir all the ingredients until well mixed and cook on low for 7 hours.
9. In a small bowl mix the butter and flour and add it to the slow cooker and stir.
10. Cook an additional hour or until thickened.

• *Alternately use a big scoop of Beef Better than Bouillon like I did in addition to water/stock. The extra beef flavor is fantastic.

Nutrition Information

Yield: 8 servings, Serving Size: 1/8th recipe

• Amount Per Serving:
• Calories: 453 Calories