Is there anything better on a cold day than a bowl of tasty beef stew to warm you up? This Crockpot Beef Stew Recipe only takes a few minutes to prep and it’ll leave you with more free time during the day. This easy version is made without wine so that everyone can enjoy it.
Ingredients
Rump roast: You can use any roast that has some intermuscular fat. Intermuscular fat will break down while cooking and make the meat tender. Chuck roast is a great piece of meat to use. The roast above was on sale for $2.99 per pound with a card. It looks great and the price was good so that is what I used.
Salt: Cooking requires salt to round out flavors.
Black pepper: I like a lot
Granulated garlic: Garlic powder or fresh garlic also work.
Flour: I used all proposed flour to help the meat brown. If you are out of flour just skip this.
Beef stock: I used bone broth this time. Just keep in mind that some brands are very salty.
Tomato paste: Brings glutamates to the game adding to the beefy flavor.
Bay leaves: They have a nice flavor but you can leave them out. But please before serving your guest remove them. Count them going in and count them going out. They are a choking hazard.
Italian seasoning: I like to add a mix of herbs but I am lazy so I just dump in some Italian seasoning.
Carrots: I used a small bag of baby carrots. If using whole carrots cut them into large pieces so they do not get mushy with the long cooking time.
Potatoes: I used a small bag of new potatoes. Any potatoes will works just cut them into large pieces so they do not get mushy with the long cooking time.
Onion: I used half of a medium onion cut into small pieces. Feel free to add more or leave them in large pieces.
Instant potato flakes: These were used to thicken my stew at the end of cooking.
Cooking instructions:
As soon as the roast is cut into bite-sized pieces, season it with salt, black pepper, and granulated garlic, then toss it with the seasonings. In order to coat the chicken, add flour and toss it well.
Working in small batches, brown the meat in a large pan over high heat. In total, I made three batches. Working in small batches helps the meat brown quickly.
To the crock pot add beef broth, a can of tomato paste, bay leaves, and Italian seasoning. Combine all the ingredients with a whisk. Then add the browned meat, carrots, potatoes, and onion to the crockpot.
Cover and cook on high until the meat is tender. Mine took 8 hours. After the meat is tender use a spoon to skim off excess oil from the top of the stew. Taste the stew and adjust the seasoning if necessary. Mine needed a little more salt.
If a thicker stew is desired add potato flakes (instant mashed potatoes). Stir then cover and cook for 5 to 10 minutes.
How to thicken stew in the slow cooker without flour
My preferred method is to use potato flakes (the ones used for instant mashed potatoes). Yes of course you can make a roux with flour and use that to add a little flavor and thicken your stew. But making a roux takes time potato flakes are fast.
Add a few tablespoons of potato flakes and stir. Let them cook for five minutes and check to see if you need more.
You can also use cornstarch. Mix a tablespoon of cornstarch with a tablespoon of cold water and mix. Add this to your stew stir let cook for five minutes and test if it is thick enough. If you add too much cornstarch it can make the stew gelatinous.
Can you freeze beef stew with potatoes?
The short answer is yes you can but the potatoes will get a little bit mushy. I usually remove the potatoes and freeze the beef stew without the potatoes.
I do freeze the stew with carrots, they do soften a little bit more but I am ok with that.
Ingredients
Beef
- 3 pounds Beef roast I used rump, chuck is great
- 1 teaspoon Granulated garlic
- 1 teaspoon Pepper
- 1 teaspoon Salt
- 2 Tablespoons Flour
- 3 Tablespoons Olive oil
Crockpot
- 4 Cups Beef stock I used bone broth
- 6 oz Tomato paste 1 small can
- 2 each bay leaves
- 1 Tablespoon Italian seasoning
Vegetables
- 1 pound potatoes In big pieces
- 1 pound carrots
- 1/2 each onion diced
For Thickening
- 1/4 Cup Potato flakes Instant mashed potatoes
Instructions
Prepare meat
- Cut the roast into bite-sized pieces.3 pounds Beef roast
- Season the meat with 1 teaspoon salt, 1 teaspoon black pepper, and 1 teaspoon granulated garlic and toss.1 teaspoon Granulated garlic, 1 teaspoon Salt, 1 teaspoon Pepper
- To the meat add 2 Tablespoons of flour and toss to coat the meat.2 Tablespoons Flour
- To a large pan on high heat add 1 Tablespoon of oil and add ⅓ of the meat. Brown the meat on most sides and remove from the pan. Add more oil and add half of the remaining meat and brown. Continue until all of the meat is browned.3 Tablespoons Olive oil
To the crockpot
- To the crock pot add 4 cups of beef broth, 1 6oz can of tomato paste, 2 bay leaves, and 1 Tablespoon of Italian seasoning. Whisk to combine.4 Cups Beef stock, 6 oz Tomato paste, 2 each bay leaves, 1 Tablespoon Italian seasoning
- Add the browned meat, carrots, potatoes, and onion to the crockpot.1 pound potatoes, 1 pound carrots, 1/2 each onion, 3 pounds Beef roast
- Cover and cook on high for 8 hours.
- Use a spoon to skim off excess oil from the top of the stew.
- Taste the stew and if needed adjust the seasoning.
- If a thicker stew is desired add potato flakes (instant mashed potatoes). Cover and cook for 5 to 10 minutes.1/4 Cup Potato flakes
- Time to serve and enjoy.
Never mind. Now I see it’s rump not Chuck.
Cook on HIGH for 8 hours? It will be way overcooked.