This Classic Homemade Beef Stew Recipe is the perfect comfort food, full of melt-in-your-mouth beef and plenty of hearty vegetables. Serve with egg noodles, rice or a loaf of crusty bread to soak up every last bite.
If you’re looking for more hearty soup recipes, be sure to check out our Beef and Barley Soup, Corn Chowder, Clam Chowder and Loaded Baked Potato Soup.
Best Homemade Beef Stew Recipe
There is something so comforting and cozy about a bowl of homemade beef stew on a cold day. To make this classic recipe for stew, chunks of beef are seared, then braised with garlic, onions and vegetables in a deliciously rich beef and tomato broth. The end result is melt-in-your-mouth tender beef, potatoes, carrots, celery all wrapped up in a velvety smooth sauce.
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Another thing to love about stew recipes is that the flavor actually improves with time, making them the perfect make-ahead meals. For the ultimate winter dinner, serve Homemade Beef Stew over a bed of egg noodles or rice or with a big loaf of crusty bread for dipping.
Key Ingredients
- Beef Stew Meat – If you’re wondering what the best beef for stew is, this recipe is particularly great for using a tougher, less expensive cut. It’s a great beef stew meat recipe. The best beef for stew is basically any chuck roast, bottom round roast or bottom eye roast. You can find cut-up stew meat in the supermarket; this really is the best beef stew meat recipe.
- Flour – this helps to brown the beef and creates a sauce in the bottom of the pan. You can also substitute about half of the quantity of cornstarch.
- Water – this is for deglazing the bottom of the pot. You can also use red wine if you prefer.
- Potatoes – you can use Russet potatoes, Idaho potatoes or even red potatoes for stew.
- Celery – you’ll want to slice into about ½ inch pieces. Instead of celery, some people like to substitute frozen peas.
- Carrots – these should be peeled and cut into pieces.
- Tomato Sauce – use any type of tomato sauce that you’d like.
- Beef Broth – use your favorite kind of beef broth or stock.
- Worcestershire Sauce – this adds so much flavor to beef.
- Bay Leaves – we like to use fresh bay leaves when possible. They have much more flavor, and last for quite a while as long as you store them in the freezer.
- Thyme – use fresh thyme if possible, or you can substitute 2 teaspoons of dried thyme or Italian seasoning.
How to Make Homemade Beef Stew
- Prepare beef. Prepare stew meat by cutting roast or steaks into 1″ pieces. Pat dry with a paper towel and then lightly in flour.
- Brown the beef. In a large dutch oven pot, add a few tablespoons of cooking oil on medium high heat. In batches, add stew meat in a single layer, leaving space between the meat so it can brown. Salt and pepper as you go. Once browned, remove stew meat and set aside. Repeat until all stew meat is browned.
- Caramelize the onions and garlic. In the same dutch oven over medium heat, add the onions and deglaze the pot with about a cup water or red wine. Cook, stir the pot’s bottom with a spatula to make sure you get up all of the browned bits, and caramelize the onions until they are golden brown. Add minced garlic and cook until the garlic is translucent, or about 2-3 minutes.
- Cook the stew. Add the browned beef, potatoes, celery, carrots, tomato sauce, broth, bay leaves, worcheshire sauce, and thyme. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer, cover with a lid and simmer on the stovetop on low for about 40-60 minutes, or until the beef and vegetables are tender.
- Serve. Remove from the heat and ladle into bowls, then garnish with fresh parsley if desired. Serve immediately. Enjoy!
How to Make Beef Stew In a Crockpot
- Brown meat, add to slow cooker.
- Caramelize onions in the same pot as the meat.
- Add all the ingredients to the slow cooker and cook on low for 5-6 hours or until the potatoes are fork-tender.
- Garnish with parsley if desired, enjoy!
Recipe Variations
- Make it spicy: Add diced jalapeños or red pepper flakes to the stew for a spicy kick. You can also include cayenne pepper or hot sauce for extra heat.
- Add mushrooms: Include a variety of mushrooms like cremini or shiitake and use ale or beer for added depth and a unique flavor profile.
- Coconut curry: Infuse the stew with coconut milk and curry spices for a rich and slightly exotic twist. Add vegetables like sweet potatoes or butternut squash for sweetness.
- Mexican-inspired: Add cumin, chili powder, and coriander to the broth for a Mexican flavor. Include ingredients like corn, black beans, and diced tomatoes.
Frequently Asked Questions
You can use just about anything, but this recipe lends particularly well to a tougher and less expensive cut of beef. It makes the best beef stew. Any chuck roast will work great – it is well-marbled and has plenty of time to slow cook and melt away all of that connective tissue.
Other great options are bottom round roast, bottom eye roast or you may even find something labeled “stew meat” at the grocery store.
Yes! And get this – the flavor actually improves with time, making this a perfect make-ahead meal. Just make it, cool it completely and store in the fridge overnight. You can reheat on the stovetop over medium-low heat until warm the next day.
The most likely reason for tough beef stew meat is that you didn’t cook it long enough. Since you are using such a tough cut of meat, you need to cook it low and slow for at least 40 minutes, but it may take longer.
To be absolutely sure your meat is tender, you can cook everything but the vegetables for 30 minutes, then add the veggies and continue to cook until they are all fork-tender.
Yup! Beef Stew can be frozen for up to 2 months. I like to freeze it flat in freezer bags. The night before serving, I just transfer to the fridge to defrost and reheat the next day.
In the slow cooker it should take 5-6 hours on low for the beef and veggies to become nice and tender.
Storing and Reheating
- Refrigerator: store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
- Freezer: store in freezer bags or another airtight container for up to 2 months. Defrost overnight in the refrigerator before reheating.
- To reheat: the easiest way to reheat Beef Stew is in a pot on the stovetop over medium-low heat.
Homemade Beef Stew Recipe
Ingredients
- 1½ pounds beef stew meat, chuck roast, or any kind of steak, cut into cubes
- 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour, (plus extra for tossing with the beef)
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 cup water
- 3 cups onion, minced
- 2 teaspoons garlic, minced
- 3 cups potatoes, peeled and cut into 1" pieces
- 1½ cups celery, sliced
- 1½ cups carrots, peeled and cut into 1" pieces
- 1/2 cup tomato sauce
- 5-6 cups beef broth, enough to cover all stew ingredients
- 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
- 4 large bay leaves
- 4 springs thyme
Instructions
- Prepare stew meat by cutting roast or steaks into 1" pieces. Pat dry with a paper towel and then lightly in flour.
- In a large Dutch oven pot, add a few tablespoons of oil over medium high heat. In batches, add stew meat in a single layer, leaving space between the meat so it can brown. Salt and pepper as you go. Once browned, remove stew meat and set aside, repeating until all stew meat is browned.
- In the same Dutch oven over medium heat, add the minced onion and deglaze the pot with about a cup water or red wine. Scrape the bottom of the pot with a spatula to make sure you get up all of the browned bits, then caramelize the onions until they are golden brown. Add minced garlic and cook until the garlic is translucent, or about 2-3 minutes.
- Add the browned beef, potatoes, celery, carrots, tomato sauce, broth, bay leaves, worcheshire sauce, and thyme. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer, cover with a lid and simmer on the stovetop on low for about 40-60 minutes, or until the vegetables are tender.
- Remove from the heat and ladle into bowls, then garnish with fresh parsley if desired. Serve immediately. Enjoy!
Video
Notes
- Instead of flour you can substitute 1 1/2 tablespoons of cornstarch
- Instead of water you can substitute red wine
- Instead of tomato sauce, substitute 3 tablespoons of tomato paste
Nutrition
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This is the best recipe for Beef Stew is full of tender beef, potatoes, carrots, and celery wrapped up in a velvety smooth broth. I’ll show you how to make this easy homemade beef stew recipe step by step. This is one of the best stew meat recipes. It’s best served over egg noodles or rice or a big loaf of crusty bread. This beef stew recipe will soon become your family favorite.
Categories:
Beef, Crockpot, Dairy-Free, Easy Weeknight Meals, Fall Recipes, Main Dish, Nut-Free, Soups, St Patrick's Day, Winter Recipes,
Yum! This was absolutely delicious!
So happy you enjoyed it too!
I Made for a gathering and it was a hit, everyone loved it! Will definitely make it again!
So happy to hear this. Thank you, Shadi!