This Beef Stew Recipe is perfect for the colder weather! Tender beef is simmered in beef broth with potatoes, onions, celery, peas, and carrots until melt in your mouth tender. It’s comfort food heaven!
I serve beef stew with 30 minute dinner rolls or Homemade Buttermilk Biscuits to sop up any gravy in the bottom of the bowl!
Beef stew is a classic dinner staple in so many households around the world. There are soup and stew adaptations of beef stew like my favorite Easy Hamburger Soup and cultural variations like Hungarian Goulash, but this classic beef stew recipe is a favorite for me!
How To Make Beef Stew
Searing the beef pieces before you add the stock makes such a difference in the flavor you get from the soup. It’s really the only chance you have to get that delicious caramelization on the meat!
As the veggies and broth simmer, you will really start to notice the flavors in the stew intensify. Peas cook quickly so I add them in the last few minutes!
This stew recipe is also the perfect way to use up any vegetables you might need to use up. If you’ve got leftover roasted potatoes, glazed carrots or fried mushrooms, just chop ‘em up up and throw them in!
How To Thicken Beef Stew
Beef stew will thicken a bit naturally thanks to the starches in the potatoes and the dredging of the beef, but I always like to thicken it a little bit more.
Stew can be thickened by giving the vegetables a quick mash or you can use either flour or cornstarch. My preferred method for thickening beef stew (and the method used in this beef stew recipe) is to use a cornstarch slurry.
How to Make a Slurry
A slurry is super easy to make! Combine equal parts cornstarch and water and stir. I told you it was easy!!
Pour this mixture a little bit at a time into bubbling soup or stew to thicken until you reach desired consistency. Once your stew is thickened, allow it to boil at least 1-2 minutes to ensure you cook out any starchy flavor.
If left to sit before adding to the soup or stew, a slurry will settle within a couple of minutes so be sure to give it a stir before adding it. I sometimes mix the cornstarch with low sodium (or no sodium) broth instead of water.
Can You Freeze Beef Stew?
Yes, you can absolutely freeze beef stew! I like to freeze it in freezer bags in single servings portions so I can take one portion out for lunches (or four out for dinner)! Defrost overnight in the refrigerator or you can defrost in the microwave (time will vary based on portion size) stirring occasionally.
What To Serve With Beef Stew
Beef stew is super perfect on it’s own; it is a complete meal!
We usually serve it with a bread, biscuit or even Garlic Crescent Rolls to sop up any broth! I also love serving it with mashed potatoes in the bottom of the bowl! Even just some crushed crackers or saltines are all you really need.
More Belly Warming Soups You’ll Love
- Easy Hamburger Soup– Reader favorite!
- Beef Barley Soup
- Hungarian Goulash
- Minestrone Soup – Classic Italian!
- Pasta Fagioli Soup Recipe
- Stuffed Pepper Soup – Easy and delicious!
- Beef Bourguignon Recipe
Beef Stew Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 pounds stewing beef trimmed and cubed
- 3 tablespoons flour
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 onion chopped
- 6 cups beef broth
- ½ cup red wine optional
- 1 pound potatoes peeled and cubed
- 4 carrots cut into 1 inch pieces
- 4 stalks celery cut into 1 inch pieces
- 3 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1 teaspoon dried rosemary or 1 sprig fresh
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch
- 2 tablespoons water
- ¾ cup peas
Instructions
- Combine flour, garlic powder and salt & pepper. Toss beef in flour mixture.
- Heat olive oil in a large Dutch oven or pot. Cook the beef and onions until browned.
- Add beef broth and red wine while scraping up any brown bits in the pan.
- Stir in all remaining ingredients except for peas, cornstarch and water. Reduce heat to medium low, cover and simmer 1 hour or until beef is tender (up to 90 minutes).
- Mix equal parts cornstarch and water to create a slurry. Slowly add the slurry to the boiling stew to reach desired consistency (you may not need all of the slurry).
- Stir in peas and simmer 5-10 minutes before serving . Season with salt & pepper to taste.
Video
Notes
Nutrition Information
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Course Beef, Dinner, Entree, Main Course, Soup
Cuisine American© SpendWithPennies.com. Content and photographs are copyright protected. Sharing of this recipe is both encouraged and appreciated. Copying and/or pasting full recipes to any social media is strictly prohibited. Please view my photo use policy here.
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This was delicious! Just made a pot, thickened up nicely and the flavor is so comforting. Great way to use up some of the veggies I had laying around. Added a splash of Worcestershire because I wasn’t sure if the brand of stock I bought was up to snuff, but I doubt I even needed it! This recipe is just so good.
Yummy
Tried this and it was really delicious! I added about 8 cups of beef broth and abut 1/2 coup of crushed tomatoes. The family really loved it. thank you
Happy to hear that, Leticia! Thanks for sharing ❤️
Can this be made in a crock pot? If so, recommended cooking time and instructions?
Hi Toni, we recommend following our crockpot beef stew recipe for the best results!
Love this recipe. Simple and so yummy.
Absolutely delicious. The amount of broth makes it more of a soup than a stew. I added a beef bouillon cube and will use fresh Rosemary the next time around.
Holly, would you advise one to 1) reduce the amount of broth or 2) increase the amount of ingredients or 3) a little bit of both?
Hi Ron, the slurry should give it the creamy stew texture but you could reduce the broth slightly if you find it too runny or add a little extra slurry.
I made it. Added a teaspoon of Beef Better Than Boullion at the end. A wonderful recipe Thank-you
We loved this. pretty much followed the directions , and dinner was ready in 2 hours! No need for a crock pot simple and delicious!!
So happy you enjoyed it, Chris!
We have made this several times and it is our family’s all-time favorite stew. The flavor is delicious and my 12 year old loves to help by adding lots of extra spices to it to really season it up. This is a keeper for life!
Excellent! My husband and I had it three times in one week and gave some to my daughter who loved it also! I love a stew that’s more on the thick side than watery.
Thank you so much!
This is the best beef stew that I have ever had and my husband, who is a picky eater, also loves it! We’ve had it three times this week.
Thank you so much.
After many stew recipes over MANY years, I’ve finally found one that is 5 stars every time. I’ve made it quite a few times but never commented – bad, I know – but I’m here now to say that this is it! Thank you very much Spend With Pennies!!
So happy you have been enjoying this recipe, Karen!
Hi! How large should the potatoes and beef be cut? One inch cubes?
We cut them into bite-size chunks so 1-inch would be a good size, Asia!
Great recipe! Even my picky 8 year old granddaughter liked it and had seconds!
Made this stew one cold morning. It was very good and hit the spot. The only issues I had were the prep time is misleading if you have to peel and dice potatoes and carrots, dice the onion and cut the celery stalks – you need to add at least 30-60 minutes for those tasks. Or have a helper do those! And I didn’t think the tomato paste added much of anything to the overall flavor, so I will omit that the next time I make this stew. But overall it was really good and easy.
Not to be mean-bit you cannot blame Spend With Pennies on how long it took you to cut 3 different things. It should NOT TAKE 30-60 MINUTES TO CUT THEM! Really, not trying to be mean
Just saying that you cannot fault or blame recipe for how LONG….IT TAKES YOU TO CUT THEM. SHOULD NOT DROP RATING ON RECIPE. SHOULD NOT TAKE YOU MORE THEN 5-7 MINUTES TO CUT THEM!!! PRACTICE IS PERFECT…HOWEVER, NOTHING IS PERFECT! WITH THAT SAID…DO NOT MAKE A COMMENT ON YOUR CUTTING TIME! YOU R WAY OFF!!! THAT IS OKAY…YOU DO IT TO YOUR SPEED AND HOWEVER YOU WANT TO DO IT. BUT DO NOT LEAVE A REVIEW SAYING THE CUTTING TIMES R WRONG!!! YOU R WRONG FOR SAYING THAT!!! SMH!!! DOES NOT DO SPEND WITH PENNIES JUSTICE!!!!
Corrected -supposed to say does not do(give proper justice) to Spend With Pennies)!
PONEYGIRL,
This is a wonderful recipe that I have made for years, it’s a Southern Beef Stew recipe.
HOWEVER….it does take longer than 5-7 mins. to get the veggies ready to add.. I’m saying at least 20 minutes and I been doing this for a while. It was rude of you to jump on the person who said she had to add time to making the stew. Maybe she added more veggies or maybe you only added a couple of pieces. Thanks to Spent for a great Beef Stew recipe.
Super easy and very delicious. Will make this again.
can you use sweet potato instead of the other potatoes
Sure you can!! Sweet potatoes can cook a little bit quicker so they might be a bit softer but still delicious.
Very good, but I didn’t see where you used the tomato past or rosemary in the recipe, although it was on the list of ingredients.
In step 4.
4. Stir in all remaining ingredients except for peas, cornstarch and water. Reduce heat to medium low, cover and simmer 1 hour or until beef is tender (up to 90 minutes).
Just tasted this stew and it’s excellent !!!!!