Beef Stew calls for simple ingredients, but it’s a stunner! Hearty and economical with meltingly tender beef, you’ll love the deep, rich flavour of the sauce that develops from hours of slow cooking. Serve over mash and mop your bowl clean with crusty Artisan bread or Irish Soda Bread.
For the set-and-forget Slow Cooker version of this Beef Stew, see here.
Beef Stew
The Queen of Brown Food strikes again. Back to back brown foods, possibly the two MOST brown foods in the world – a curry on Friday, and now a Beef Stew recipe today.
*Head smack* I will never be a magazine editor. Can you imagine? Page after page after page of brown, saucy goodness….. (*she cheers at the vision, you groan at the thought! 😂)
A well made beef stew is a thing of beauty. While it’s easy to make, it takes a little more than just “chucking it all in a pot” (or instant pot) then leaving it to simmer until the beef is tender.
Best beef for beef stew
The best beef for beef stew is chuck beef because it’s reliably juicy and succulent. It is a tough cut of meat that needs to be slow cooked to make it tender enough to eat, and it’s nicely marbled with fat which keeps the beef succulent. See FAQ for thoughts on other beef cuts and why they aren’t my preference for beef stews – brisket, ribs, cheek, gravy beef, bolar blade and oyster blade.
Cut BIG pieces yourself – I really urge you to buy a large piece of beef chuck and cut it yourself into large 3.5 cm / 1.5″ pieces so they don’t cook too quickly and fall apart during the long slow-cooking time. Pre-cut stew beef is usually cut too small for this recipe, though the thick cut beef chuck steaks that are carried at some grocery stores and butchers here in Australia will work, as long as they are cut thick enough!
Key tip: brown the beef well
The better the browning, the more brown stuff you have stuck on the bottom of the pot* = better sauce flavour with a deeper, richer colour. You’ll see in the recipe video how the base of my pot is basically entirely dark brown when I finish browning the beef.
* The brown stuff is called fond and whenever you sear meat, fish or prawns/shrimp in the pan, you should do everything in your power to use it in a sauce or similar because it’s flavour, flavour, flavour!
How to make Beef Stew
Beef stew is really straight forward to make, it just takes patience to give the meat time to become meltingly tender and the sauce to develop rich flavour.
Season the beef with salt and pepper.
Sear the beef well on all sides – in batches, because if you cram them all in at the same time, they will steam and won’t brown well.
Sauté onion and garlic in the beef drippings so they soak up all that amazing flavour. Then stir in the carrots and celery to coat it in the flavours too.
Add beef stew sauce ingredients – beef broth, red wine (great for extra flavour, but can be skipped), Worcestershire sauce (savouriness and depth), flour (to thicken) and tomato paste (to thicken + a touch of sour to balance richness).
Add potatoes, bay leaves and thyme. The liquid will be covering the ingredients at this stage.
Slow cook for 1 hour 45 minutes with the lid on until the beef is almost fall apart tender.
Simmer for a further 30 minutes without the lid to allow the sauce to reduce and thicken.
Serve – Then it’s ready to serve!
Slow cooker and pressure cooker options
To make this in a slow cooker or pressure cooker, see the separate recipe here – Slow Cooker Beef Stew. If you use this Beef Stew verbatim and cook it in the slow cooker instead of the stove or oven, you don’t get quite the same rich flavour in the sauce. So I’ve altered the recipe slightly to make it suitable for slow cookers and pressure cookers so you won’t sacrifice flavour for convenience!
What to serve with Beef Stew
I personally don’t serve stew with anything other than mashed potato. I know, I know, I’m sooo boring! 😂 Here are some other options for those of you who aren’t as straight as me:
Cauliflower Mash – for a low carb alternative
Mashed Sweet Potato or other mashed veggies (parsnip, pumpkin or other root vegetables)
Polenta, rice or bread – mop your plate clean with this quick No Yeast Irish Soda Bread or no-knead Crusty Artisan Bread!
Enjoy! – Nagi x
Beef Stew FAQ
See my Slow Cooker Beef Stew recipe. It is the same stew as this recipe, but it’s designed slow cookers, pressure cookers and Instant Pots.
To make this gluten-free, use cornflour / cornstarch instead of flour to thicken the sauce which should be added in as a cornflour slurry at the end rather than beginning (because cornflour doesn’t like prolonged boiling, it loses its thickening power).
I recommend this over using gluten-free flour because some gluten free blends containing lots of rice flour can occasionally taste a little grainy. Cornflour is a more reliable way to thicken the sauce.
Also, make sure the Worcestershire sauce and beef stock cube are all gluten-free, not all brands are.
I’ve popped these directions in the recipe card!
Yes, this would work beautifully with pork shoulder, lamb shoulder or goat, though I would starting checking a little earlier to see if the meat is tender enough.
Beef chuck is reliably juicy and tender in stews, so it’s my first choice. Here are my thoughts on other slow-cooking cuts of beef and why I don’t use them in this stew:
Brisket – too lean (better to slow cook it whole and slice, recipe here)
Gravy beef – Cut from the shin / shank area and tends to be sold in steak slice form which are too thin to cut into large stew-size-pieces. If you can find large pieces though, it can work, it is a nice gelatinous cut that becomes tender with slow cooking though bear in mind it may take a little longer to become fork-tender.
Generic “beef casserole” cubes of beef – I steer clear of these as I don’t know what cut they are, the pieces are typically far too small to use in stews, and more often than not they are not marbled with fat.
Beef rib (boneless) – Too fatty. And very hard to scoop the fat off the surface.
Beef cheeks – They would work beautifully if kept whole but Id’ need to figure out how many and how much sauce to make (because you’d keep them whole, if you cut into pieces, they twist and buckle when slow cooked so they don’t look very nice). See here for a lovely slow cooked beef cheeks recipe.
Bolar blade and oyster blade – These can be slow cooked but don’t have as much beef flavour and are leaner, so I’m not the hugest fan of these cuts for slow cooking.
4 days in the fridge, 3 months in the freezer. And though some argue otherwise, I truly believe all stews taste even better the day after you make it!
Watch how to make it
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Beef Stew
Ingredients
- 1.2 kg / 2.4lb chuck beef , cut into 3.5 cm / 1.5″ cubes (Note 1)
- 1 tsp cooking salt / kosher salt (halve for table salt, +50% for flakes)
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 3 tbsp olive oil , divided
- 1 large onion , halved then cut into 1 cm / 2/5″ slices
- 4 garlic cloves , minced
- 3 carrots , cut into 2.5cm / 1″ pieces on the diagonal
- 2 celery stalks , cut into 2.5 cm / 1″ pieces
- 1/3 cup plain flour / all-purpose flour
- 3 cups beef broth / stock , salt reduced
- 2 cups red wine , bold and dry (Cab Sauv, Burgundy, Merlot) (Note 2)
- 2 tsp Worcestershire Sauce
- 2 tbsp tomato paste
- 2 bay leaves , fresh or dried
- 4 sprigs thyme
- 400 g / 14 oz baby potatoes , halved
- More salt and pepper , if required
For serving
- Mashed potato
- 1 tsp finely chopped parsley , optional garnish
- Crusty bread , for bowl mopping and dunking
Instructions
ABBREVIATED RECIPE
- Season then brown beef, remove from pot. Sauté onion and garlic, then stir in carrot and celery. Stir in flour, then broth, wine, tomato paste and Worcestershire. Stir. Add beef, herbs and potato, stir. Slow cook 1 hour 45 min with lid on then 30 min lid off. Serve over mash.
FULL RECIPE
- Season beef – Sprinkle the beef with salt and pepper.
- Brown beef – Heat 1 1/2 tbsp oil in a large, heavy based casserole pot over high heat until just starting to smoke. Add 1/3 of the beef and brown aggressively all over – about 4 minutes. Remove to bowl, repeat with remaining beef, adding more oil if required (if you don't use enough oil, the beef will just burn rather than brown).
- Sauté – Turn down heat to medium high. Add 1 tbsp oil if required. Add onion and garlic, cook for 2 minutes until onion is softened slightly and golden on the edge. Add carrot and celery, stir for 1 minute to coat in flavours.
- Make sauce – Sprinkle flour evenly across surface, then stir to coat (the flour will thicken the sauce). Add broth, red wine, tomato paste and Worcestershire sauce. Stir to dissolve tomato paste and flour into liquid.
- Add browned beef (including any juices), thyme, bay leaf and potato. Stir. Liquid level should almost fully cover everything (see video), if not, add a touch of water.
- Slow cook 1 hr 45 min covered – Bring to simmer, then adjust heat to low / medium low so it's simmering very gently. (Note 3 for other cooking methods) Cover and cook for 1 hour 45 minutes or until beef is pretty tender (check with 2 forks at 1.5 hrs).
- Simmer uncovered 30 minutes – Remove lid and simmer for further 30 minutes or until sauce reduces slightly. It should be like a thin gravy (see video) and beef should now be very tender.
- Check seasoning – Taste the sauce and add more salt if required.
- Serve over creamy mashed potato with a sprig of fresh thyme for decoration or a sprinkle of parsley (Note 4).
Recipe Notes:
– SLOW COOKER and pressure cooker: See separate recipe here. Same stew, but recipe altered to suit slow cookers and pressure cookers. Also use that recipe for Instant Pot, but do the stove steps in the Instant Pot using the sauté function. 4. To make this gluten free, use cornflour/cornstarch instead, as follows: Mix 3 tbsp cornflour/cornstarch with 3 tbsp of water and stir that into the stew at the very end once the meat is fall-apart tender. Simmer for a few minutes and the sauce will thicken. I recommend cornflour over using gluten-free flour because some gluten free blends containing lots of rice flour can occasionally taste a little grainy. Also make sure your Worcestershire sauce and beef stock cubes are also GF, not all brands are. 5. Other serving suggestions: with warm crusty bread for dunking (try this easy rustic no-yeast Irish Bread or Crusty No-Knead Artisan Bread), polenta, rice, cauliflower mash (low carb option), or other mashed root vegetables (carrot, parsnip, pumpkin, sweet potato). 5. STORAGE / LEFTOVERS – Refrigerate or freeze, then thaw before reheating on the stove or microwave. Tastes even better the next day because the flavours develop even more. 6. Nutrition per serving, assuming 6 servings. I like to trim excess fat from the beef but this is not factored into the nutrition. Stew only – not mashed potato.
Nutrition Information:
This Beef Stew recipe has originally published April 2018. Updated for housekeeping matters in January 2019 – no change to recipe!
More cosy Stews
Slow Cooked Chicken Stew and Faster Chicken Stew – when you need a rich stew on the table in under an hour!
Slow Cooked Beef Stroganoff Stew – fall apart beef in a creamy Stroganoff sauce!
Browse Winter Warmers recipe collection
More slow cooked fall-apart meat
I’m a big fan of slow cooked meats!!
Browse the Winter Comfort Food collection!
Life of Dozer
THIS is Life Of Dozer! ↓↓↓
Recipe Tin Eats is my goto recipe site – this beef stew is excellent. I only bake stews, in 250 oven for 4 hours to avoid burn, and add peas, potatoes, and carrots near the end. Have an excellent week! Ryan Canada
Great to hear you enjoyed this one Ryan! Thanks for letting me know – N x
Hi Nagi
Another hit in my house. Wasn’t sure about the red wine as not a fan at all so halved it. Couldn’t taste it at all and everyone loved it. Thank you for all your recipes.
That’s terrific to hear Nicky! Thank you for letting me know! N x
Hi Nagi
I came across this great site looking for a simple Asian broth which I found and was bang on the nail. Since then I have tried maybe six of your recipes and they truly have been magnificent and relatively simple to accomplish.
I tried the Beef Stew tonight served with mashed potatoes and pumpkin….AMAZING!! – this really is a five star meal.
When I first tasted it at dinner my first thought was that of a dish I love at a great French Restaurant that we frequent when cashed up, it was just as tasty as that dish…my wife said exactly the same thing. Only problem was that it was Tuesday and a little early in the week to crack out the wine!! – Please keep up the great work!!
Cheers
Glenn
Hi Nagi
Another one of your mouth watering, delicious creations is teasing us. It’s a cold windy Sunday night here in Brisbane,the stew is quietly simmering on the gas, its starting to smell yummy. As per comments it’s better the next day, we plan to eat it for dinner tomorrow night with creamy mash. Can’t wait.
My goal is to slowly work my way through your recipes, all attempts so far have been huge hits, thank you.
Tan
I hope you love it Tan! Thank you for trying so many of my recipes! N x
Made this for dinner (it’s a cold and rainy day in Melbourne) and it was EPIC!
In an attempt to be “healthy”, had it with cauliflower mash (which I don’t normally like) but this stew was SO good, I didn’t even care abt the cauliflower!
Thanks tons!
That’s so great to hear Adi! Thanks for letting me know you enjoyed this! N x
Another hit! Absolutely delicious and I made sure I mopped up every last drop with some crusty bread. Thanks Nagi for another success! This is the tastiest beef stew I’ve ever made!
That’s great to hear Chantelle! So pleased you enjoyed this! N xx
I cooked this in a camp oven over an open fire. Added mushrooms (coz i like mushrooms). My brother and his wife were blown away by it. Its simple and so deliscious
That’s great Andre! So pleased you enjoyed this, thanks for letting me know! N x
I served it with dairy free scones…a rare culinary success for me in the kitchen!
Wonderful! So glad you enjoyed this Shaz, thanks for letting me know! N x
It’s 35C in Dubai but I still had to make this Beef Stew! And it turned out to be the best I’ve ever made, so yummy. I don’t know what makes the difference to my previous way of preparation – maybe the browning of the meat or the amount of flour and liquids. The sauce had a nice consistency even though I left out the potatoes (we try to eat less carbs..). Anyhow, this goes into my recipe folder!
OMG! That is a serious compliment!!! I remember how hot it gets over there. And how HUMID!!
This was indeed a rich, deep brown gravy on tender meat. I made it in my 40-year-old pressure cooker which is still going strong. I used a little less wine, but did both: put potatoes in it and mopped up every bit of gravy with bread. Lip-smacking, finger-licking good! Love the pics of Dozer. I have a yellow Lab, Daisy. I gave her a taste and believe me, she approved.
Hi, this was so good my boyfriend begged me never to get rid of my slow cooker. Thank you.
Btw I loved it as well!
Terrific to hear Miranda! Thanks for letting me know you enjoyed it – N x
I made this for Sunday dinner for the meat eaters in my family and they were thrilled. I love that you put everything in the pot together and then just leave it to do its own thing. Today is the second day of a major ice storm in Hamilton, Ontario – not much of a spring. A pine tree about 40 feet tall has fallen over, and there have been hundreds of accidents on the road. Good day to stay home and cook. Thanks for another great recipe!
Oh dear Vivian, I’m so sorry to hear the weather is still so horrid. 🙁 I won’t tell you how HOT it is still over here…. I think we have stolen your spring! 😂 N xx
Absolutely the best beef stew I have ever made.
That’s terrific to hear Michael! Thanks for letting me know – N x
I agree! It came out perfect;)
Hi Nagi
Ditch the bread and mashed potato.
You can’t eat a beef stew without light, fluffy dumplings.
And in my stew to go with the beef are leeks, swede, parsnip, potato, peas, turnip, onions, therefore it’s quite healthy so one can indulge in the not so healthy dumplings.
OMG heaven!
Dumplings and stew go together like strawberries and cream, bacon and eggs etc.
If you’ve not tried, it’s a must.
x x
DUMPLINGS!!! Seriously?? OK you got me, gotta try it!!!
Re Dumplings with stew.
Ask any Brit and it’s dumplings every time.
Use a good suet. I cook mine on to of the stew. Or use spare gravy. You can steam if you like. Experiment.
I’d be interested to hear the out come.
xx
Nagi—you may have the “Endless Summer”, but I am stuck I The Winter from Hell here in Ontario, Canada! I would appreciate if you could send Summer back the way it’s supposed to be. On the bright side, after spending the day watching snow fall when we should be watching daffodils bloom, this stew looks great for dinner tonight!! Thanks
Oh my gosh, my Canadian friends keep sending me photos of all the snow! It’s unbelievable – is this normal???
This is so far from a normal year. It seems like winter has been going on and on and on. The winds have been relentless this year. Usually in mid-April, I would be looking out at green grass & the first spring flowers…today..snow & wind most of the day. 10 to 20 cm of snow forecast for the weekend! GGGRRR
Fabulous for this never ending winter in Boston
Love your recipes
Thanks!!!!
Stay warm Patti! And enjoy the cool while it lasts – it’s going to be stinking hot in a few months!!! PS Boston has been on my Must Visit list for so long! Keen to tick it off soon 🙂 N xx
Wow, this looks amazing, Nagi! (per usual!) Yep, still chilly here in San Antonio so this comes at a perfect time. Tell Dozer to shove over, I want to sit down with him on that comfy chair and admire that view too! LOL. Thanks for all your great recipes!
Huh?/ Still chilly in San Antonio?? I thought it would be rather warm there by now! I was planning to start sharing SALAD recipes for y’all! 😂
Hi Nagi, Boy you know how to tease people. I’m so glad you have other cooking methods with this one especially with the Phillips All-in-one as I purchased mine only last week from “the Good Guys” and I must admit at a good price too. Something I’ve never done before is talk down a price, but I’m so proud of myself in doing so.
I’m going to try this with our Keto menu which means leaving out the carrot and I’ll serve over cauliflower mash (no potatoes for us right now). No matter, I’m sure it WILL still be a smash hit as all of your recipes turn out bonza!
Welcome to the world of multi function cooking! It’s going to CHANGE YOUR LIFE! And good on your for bargaining hard. You know what I do nowadays? I was in Bing Lee the other day buying a fan for my recipe videos (to blow the steam away from the lens when shooting down into steaming pots) and I brought up Appliances Online in front of the guy and showed him the price and he beat it!! 😂
Hi Nagi, I do have a pressure-cooker (the older style with the one-side handle, hardly used, still looks brand new), but I just thought “Mother’s Day” coming up and I usually have to buy my own present as hubby never knows what to get. Also we’re leaving on May 1st for Sth. Africa for a month. Anyway, to talk this guy down I actually brought up on my phone the Breville milk frother because it’s a 3 cup capacity and I got $30 off, others are only one cup. So, while there I looked at the All-in-One and brought that up, bingo I got $30 off as well. While showing him my phone before saying yes to the sale I told him I could drive another 3km up the road to Castle Towers and get the lower price, he quickly said OK we’ll do it. YEAH!
I was about to ignore this recipe. Stew is like mac and cheese. Too many tasteless recipes out there. BUT then I caught sight of that rich, dark gravy. You had me RIGHT there! I never, never pass on something this rich and decadent looking. I WILL give this a try! Brown is good! Barb
Yesssssss!!!! 😂
My husband cannot eat tomato (gives him gout), can you suggest alternative for the tomato paste in the stew?
Hi Sharon, I’m sorry to hear that. Hmmm…. let me think. I would skip the tomato paste and probably add 1 tbsp of Dijon mustard. This will provide the same tartness and thickening that tomato paste does. As for colour, as long as you brown that beef super well, the Dijon won’t affect the colour! Most of the colour comes from the browning of the beef, the wine and beef broth. Hope that helps! N xx
Sounds like a sensational idea, will give it a go, thanks heaps.
PS Love all your recipes!!
😘 N xx