Easy Beef Stew Recipe
My favorite beef stew recipe is pure comfort food, perfect for Sunday dinner. With potatoes, carrots, mushrooms and red wine, it’s thick, rich and so flavorful.
Beef Stew is Comfort in a Bowl
With this beef stew recipe, it was love at first bite.
I’ve already shared my recipes for Instant Pot Beef Stew and Slow Cooker Beef Stew, so I wondered if a classic stove top beef stew recipe was really necessary. The answer, friends, is yes, absolutely yes.
This beef stew slow simmers on the stove to develop rich flavors, tenderize the beef and thicken the stew. At the last minute I decided to add mushrooms to this recipe, along with the potatoes and carrots, and I’m so glad I did. The mushrooms soak up the flavors of the broth and seasonings as they cook, and I found myself seeking them out bite after bite.
I love this recipe because I can prep it in the afternoon and then it simmers until we are ready to eat. I like to serve the stew with my easy drop biscuits. You could also do a loaf of crusty bread or a green salad.
Beef Stew Recipe Ingredients
- Beef Chuck Roast: Buying beef chuck roast and cubing it yourself will give you the most tender beef in your stew. If you’re short on time, you can use beef stew meat, which is already cubed.
- Flour: Coating the beef with flour before browning it helps to create a flavorful crust on the meat and provides a thickener for the stew.
- Onion and Garlic: These bring lots of flavor!
- Mushrooms, Carrots and Potatoes: Cremini mushrooms add umami flavor and taste almost “beefy” after they simmer in the stew. Cut the carrots and potatoes into large chunks so that they don’t over-cook while the stew simmers.
- Tomato Paste: Creates a richly flavored broth.
- Red Wine: Adds depth of flavor and helps to tenderize the beef.
- Beef Stock: I like to use unsalted beef stock in this recipe. If you use low sodium beef broth reduce the salt in the recipe by 1/4 teaspoon, then taste the stew at the end and add more salt if needed.
- Worcestershire Sauce: Brings savory, umami flavor. Balsamic vinegar works well if you need a gluten-free substitute.
- Seasonings: Italian seasoning, thyme, salt, pepper and a bay leaf season the stew.
How to Make Beef Stew
This recipe takes some time to chop the veggies and cube the beef, but overall it’s really easy to make. Once the stew is simmering, it’s hands-off from there.
Season and brown the beef. Combine flour, salt, pepper and beef cubes in a large zip-top bag, seal, and shake to coat the meat with the flour and seasonings. Working in batches, brown the beef cubes in olive oil in a large Dutch oven or other heavy pot, about 2 minutes per side. Then transfer the browned beef to a clean plate.
Sauté the onion and mushrooms until softened. Then add the garlic, tomato paste and any remaining flour from the bag. Cook, stirring, for 30 seconds to 1 minute. This develops the tomato paste flavor and cooks off any raw garlic and flour taste.
Deglaze the pot. Pour in the red wine and beef stock. Stir, scraping up the flavorful browned bits from the bottom of the pot. Add the browned beef back to the pot (along with any juices from the plate). Then stir in the carrots, potatoes, Worcestershire sauce, Italian seasoning, thyme sprigs and bay leaf.
Simmer the stew, covered, for 1 ½ hours, until the beef is tender, stirring occasionally. After it simmers the stew should be nice and thick, so you shouldn’t need to thicken it any further. (But you can always simmer it a little more with the lid off if needed.) Then discard the bay leaf and thyme stems. Taste the stew and season with extra salt and pepper if needed. Then serve and enjoy!
More Favorite Stews and Soups
Easy Beef Stew Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 pounds boneless beef chuck roast, or beef stew meat
- 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon Kosher salt*
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 3 tablespoons olive oil, divided
- 1 medium yellow onion, chopped
- 8 ounces cremini mushrooms, sliced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 3 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1 cup dry red wine, or beef stock/broth
- 3 cups unsalted beef stock, or low sodium beef broth
- 4 large carrots, cut into 1-inch pieces on the diagonal
- 1 ½ pounds Yukon gold potatoes, cut into 1 ½-inch pieces
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 teaspoon dried Italian seasoning
- 4 sprigs fresh thyme, or ½ teaspoon dried thyme
- 1 bay leaf
Instructions
- If using chuck roast and not already cut stew meat, cut the beef into 1-inch cubes, trimming off excess fat.
- Place flour, salt and pepper in a large zip-top bag. Add the cubes of beef, seal the bag, and shake to coat the meat with the flour mixture. (Alternatively, you can place the beef, flour, salt and pepper in a large bowl and stir to coat the beef.)
- In a large Dutch oven or other heavy pot, heat 1 tablespoon of the olive oil over medium heat. When the pot is hot, add half of the beef in a single layer. Let the beef brown on the first side for about 2 minutes, then flip and brown the other side. Transfer meat to a clean plate. Add another tablespoon olive oil to the pot. Brown the second half of the beef, about 2 minutes per side. (*Save any extra flour in the bag – you will add it to the pot later.) Remove the browned beef to the plate with the first half of the beef.
- Add the remaining tablespoon of olive oil to the pot, followed by the onion and mushrooms. Sauté for 4-5 minutes, until the vegetables begin to soften.
- Add the garlic, tomato paste, and any remaining flour from the bag. Cook, stirring, for 30 seconds to 1 minute.
- Pour in the red wine and stock/broth. Stir, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom of the pot. Add the browned beef back to the pot (along with any juices from the plate). Then stir in the carrots, potatoes, Worcestershire sauce, Italian seasoning, thyme sprigs and bay leaf.
- Bring stew to a simmer. Reduce the heat to maintain a low simmer, cover the pot, and cook for 1 ½ hours, until beef is tender, stirring occasionally.
- Remove the bay leaf and thyme stems (the leaves will have fallen off). Taste and add additional salt and pepper if needed. Serve.
Notes
- Beef: Using beef chuck roast and cubing it yourself will give you the most tender beef in your stew. If you’re short on time, you can use beef stew meat, which is already cubed.
- Salt: If using low sodium beef broth instead of unsalted stock, reduce the salt to 3/4 teaspoon.
- Potatoes: I recommend using waxy potatoes, such as yellow potatoes or Yukon golds, because they hold up well while the stew pressure cooks. Small creamer potatoes or baby potatoes are more tender and may become too soft. Avoid using starchy potatoes like russets because they will fall apart.
- Storage: Beef stew can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months. If frozen, thaw overnight in the refrigerator before reheating.
- To Reheat: Reheat beef stew in a covered pot on the stove over medium heat until simmering.
