Believe me when I say this hearty beef stew is extra thick and extra perfect for winter! This post will share how to make it (so good, you’ll always want seconds).
If you know anything about me, you know like my meals to be simple but delicious. And although this beef stew needs a little more lovin' than usual — oh my — it is worth it. Consider this a small labor of love. And it's pretty simple in technique. I promise.
First, you brown the meat to develop its flavor. Then, you braise the beef with vegetables in a red wine-beef broth mixture. Finally, near the end, you add the rest of the chopped veggies to keep their character, color, and flavor.
Mmm, beef stew. Can you smell it already?
The beauty of this dish is it gives you back what you give it. The more care you take to brown the meat and follow each step carefully, the more delicious your final result will be.
If you liked Hearty Beef Stew, then check out my Corned Beef and Cabbage recipe! Both are classic, satisfying meals that are easy to make and packed with flavor.
And believe me, it WILL be delicious. And thick. So let's go to it!
If you’re into hearty and healthy meals, try my Healthy Braised Short Ribs with Polenta!
Ingredient Notes
In addition to the spices and seasonings we mentioned above, here are the other simple ingredients you’ll need to complete this superb meal:
- Boneless beef chuck roast: This cut adds insane flavor to your stew and doesn’t dry out quickly.
- Chickpea flour: For added thickness (I like my stews thick).
- Carrots: Loaded with beta-carotene and beneficial nutrients, carrots add fiber and fullness to your stew. Try these yummy Maple Glazed Carrots if you want to up your intake of this veggie!
- Celery ribs: Another way to add antioxidants and texture to your hearty dish.
- Onions: They never fail to add a caramelized depth to your stew.
- Dry red wine: Optional : )
- Low-sodium beef broth: Avoid extra sodium without skimping on flavor.
- Red or Yukon potatoes: For more fiber, nutrients, and texture.
- Cremini mushrooms: For extra earthiness and umami.
Tips To Make Beef Stew More Flavorful
To make your beef stew as flavorful as possible, make sure to brown the meat by searing it on high heat first. This step adds a noticeable difference.
I also use cremini mushrooms (which have an earthy flavor and meaty texture).
What else? Really think about what forms the broth. This recipe, for instance, also uses balsamic vinegar, tomato paste, dry red wine, and low-sodium beef broth for added depth and decadence.
How To Make Beef Stew Meat Tender
Here are some tips to make sure you get tender and juicy meat in your beef stew:
- Be patient with your stew. Cook your beef stew low and slow for around three and a half hours (it will be worth the wait when the meat melts in your mouth). Chuck roast is fabulous for beef stew but does need time to break down.
- Do not overcook your meat. That being said, don't get too carried away. Once the connective tissues in the meat break down, make sure you don't keep walloping it with heat. Overcooking can result in tough meat!
- In this recipe, we've got the timing nailed down. The first 2 hours are dedicated to braising and tenderizing the meat. While the last 40-60 minutes of simmering brings all the flavors together.
How To Thicken
A common gluten-free way to thicken your beef stew is to add some cornstarch. I prefer chickpea flour, which works well, too. I add the chickpea flour as a coat on the beef before browning it in this recipe.
- Another technique I've found helpful is adding two tablespoons of tomato paste and reducing your liquid by ⅔ as you cook. Follow the recipe steps carefully, and you will end up with a thick (velvety even!) stew.
How To Store
Store your hearty beef stew in a heavy plastic or airtight container for maximum fridge life and safety. Before covering your container, allow your stew to come to room temp. When kept in the fridge, cooked beef stew can last for up to 4 days.
- When kept in the freezer, cooked beef stew can last for up to 3 months. Make sure to leave some space at the top for when it expands!
More Tasty Soups And Stews
Ready to try your hand at making more soups and stews? You’ve got this! Here are some recipes I think you’ll love:
- 17 Healthy Soup Recipes
- Healthy Slow Cooker Split Pea Soup
- Low Carb Slow Cooker Chicken Noodle Soup
- Easy Turkey Noodle Soup
- Easy Chicken and Dumplings
Hearty Beef Stew
*This post may contain affiliate links for products I use often and highly recommend.
Ingredients
- 3 lbs boneless beef chuck roast cut into 1-inch chunks
- 2 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 teaspoon sea salt for seasoning beef
- 2 teaspoon ground black pepper for seasoning beef
- ⅓ cup chickpea flour for coating beef
- 2 carrots unpeeled and quartered PLUS 3 carrots, sliced into ½-inch slices
- 2 celery ribs quartered
- 1 medium yellow onion quartered
- 10 garlic cloves peeled
- 2 tablespoon tomato paste
- ¼ cup balsamic vinegar
- 1 ½ cups dry red wine (can sub with additional 1 ½ cups low sodium beef broth)
- 1 bay leaf
- 4 whole fresh thyme sprigs
- 4 cups low sodium beef broth
- 2 lbs red or yukon potatoes unpeeled and chopped into bite-sized pieces
- 7 cremini mushrooms quartered
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Heat oil in a large over medium-high heat. Season beef chunks with sea salt and ground black pepper. Pour flour into a shallow dish and lightly coat the beef with flour. Without crowding the meat, brown in batches, turning to brown all sides. You will have approximately 3-4 batches. Transfer to a plate and set aside.
- Once all meat is browned, reduce the heat to medium and add the quartered carrots, celery, onion and garlic. Cook approximately 10-15 minutes until well-browned, stirring occasionally.
- Add tomato paste to the pot and mix to incorporate.
- Add balsamic vinegar to the vegetables and stir to incorporate. Cook 1-2 minutes.
- Stir in the wine, bay leaf and thyme. Simmer 5 minutes.
- Return the cooked beef (and any residual juices) to the pot, along with the beef broth, and bring to a simmer. Cover and place in the oven to braise until meat is tender and falls apart with a fork, about 2 to 2 ½ hours.
- Carefully remove the meat, thyme sprigs and bay leaf. Set beef aside and discard the herbs. Using a stick blender, blend the remaining contents in the pot (if you don't have a stick blender, you can use a food processor or blender). This will work to thicken and flavor the stew. After blended, return the meat to the pot and bring to a boil.
- Add the potatoes, carrots and mushrooms to the pot, taking care to submerge as many vegetables as possible.Add just enough additional beef broth, as needed, to submerge the contents of the stew (adding more will dilute the stew since the additional veggies will give off additional liquid) Simmer, covered, until potatoes and carrots are tender, about 40-60 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Video
Nutrition
This post contains affiliate links for products I use regularly and highly recommend.
Angie
I made this a few weeks ago. My husband said "this stew makes me love you even more". SO, thanks for that Sweet Pea Chef! This is an amazing recipe. I had to make a few changes based on items I did and did not have on hand and it turned out phenomenal. We will definitely be making this again before winter is over. I also bought a bottle of that FRE wine and I like! Next time I will use that. I had Sherry cooking wine on hand and that's what I used.
Also, congrats on baby 2. Hope your pregnancy goes well.
Lacey Baier
Haha, Angie! Gotta love beef-stew-induced-love! Thanks so much for sharing -- you put a big smile on my face. Glad you two enjoyed it.
Thanks for the baby wishes as well -- we're getting so close! 🙂
Bob
Hi Lacey, I just stumbled upon your site while looking for good recipes to try out. Absolutely love the vibe of your blog site here. The photos are nicely shot with care & detail to really give each recipe a visual appeal. Simply worded recipe instructions too make it very easy for even novice cooks to understand. I plan on trying a LOT of your recipes & have definitely bookmarked this site & will pass it around to friends; online & in person.
One question I had for this beef stew recipe here: Do you think this would work well too cook in a slow-cooker? And if so, how long would you recommend it to cook in the slow cooker? I just bought a nice big 6-quart slow-cooker & would like to make a large batch of this to share with my parents, as well as my two sisters & their kids ;).
Can't wait to try out a lot of these recipes. I've found your site to be quite resourceful all around so far.
Lacey Baier
Hey Bob! I;m so glad you like my blog -- thanks for all your great feedback.
Regarding the beef stew, I would recommend cooking it for a good 4-6 hours, assuming you are browning the meat first to give it extra flavor. Unfortunately, this is only a guess, as I'm not as familiar with crock pot recipes...sorry. I hope it turns out for you...I'd love to know how it goes.
Thanks again for your kind words!
Kelly
fantastic lacey - we had this tonite for dinner and both licked our bowls! i added some stewed tomatoe's (because i add them to everything) but otherwise didn't change a thing! perfect!
Lacey Baier
Hi Kelly! Yay -- so glad you guys enjoyed it. Definitely worth the love and energy, huh? I like the addition of stewed tomatoes -- maybe I'll try that next time 🙂
Erika
I tried this out yesterday. It it by far the best beef stew I'd ever tasted. I let my husband have a bite of meat before it was finished, and he spazzed about it and wanted to just have a plate full of the meat. 😛
I like how flavorful it turned out... a lot of beef soup/stews I've run into, I end up having to put in some 'Better Than Boullion' just to make it not seem terribly bland. This needed no such treatment was AMAZING.
Lacey Baier
Wow, Erika, thank you so much for your great review. I'm so glad you and your husband enjoyed it!
Dustin Baier
Hearty beef stew sounds really good right now. All this rain makes me want some and some tasty rolls 🙂
Lacey Baier
Yes, it totally sounds delicious..and with some buttered egg bread buns. Mmmm.
Susan
Made this last week and just now remembered I didn't comment. I have made many stews over many years, I think this is the most flavorful one I've ever made. Thank you so much, I have kept the recipe and will be making this again and again. It has a great depth of flavors and was even better the next day!
Lacey Baier
Wow, Susan. I'm so glad the stew turned out well for you and that you will be keeping the recipe -- what a compliment 🙂
Kelley Coffey
OMG, the stew is almost done and I had a small bite of the meat. UNBELIEVABLE - the flavor is so intense. I seriously think that it is the best thing I have ever made. Marched myself into husbands workshop and informed him how lucky he was to have me. LOL.
Thank you for creating and posting this dish. Amazing!!!
Lacey Baier
Hi Kelley! You're hilarious! I'm so glad you like the stew. It's one of my (and my husband's) favorites to.
Eliza
this recipe was great!! made it without the red wine (the liquor store wasn't open), short ribs instead of stew meat, and added some canned le sueur peas at the very end - it was delish! it's all about making it work with what you've got.
it turned out perfectly, so hearty and nourishing.
thanks!
Lacey Baier
Hi Eliza! Wow, such interesting substitutions! I'm glad you liked it. Thanks for sharing!
Betty @ scrambled hen fruit
Your beef stew looks delicious! I love the rich brown color and the chunky vegetables. Beautiful!
Lacey Baier
Thanks, Betty! Glad you like it 🙂
John
Looks very hearty, although i like to add finely diced potatoes at the start, since i dont use flour. (essentially replacing one starch with another)
In future, you could try using the wine to deglaze the pan just after searing the beef, that way you can ensure a thorough reduction. you should add the thyme when you do this, as its shown to prevent harmful chemicals occuring during the process, not to mention the fragrances it'll produce.
Lacey Baier
Hi John! I like your ideas of using the diced potatoes in the beginning and of using the wine to deglaze the pan. Thanks for sharing!
delicieux
This looks like such a hearty stew. Beautiful photos too Lacey. Perfect for the stormy weather we are having today. I will have to file this one away to make for my boyfriend (I'm vegetarian so I might adapt it to make a vegetarian version).
Lacey Baier
This stew is soooo good in stormy weather! I'd love to know how it turns out for you if you try it sans meat. 🙂
Zina
Now this looks absolutely, drooly, yummy, good! I'll be making this for an upcoming family visit...your recipes never disappoint and thank you so much for sharing them. ...wishing you and your family all the best and congratulations. Zina
Jessica
I just found your blog on Tasty Kitchen and it's just what I need! So many great, tasty recipes. Keep up all the wonderful inspiration!
Lacey Baier
Hi Jessica...and welcome! I'm so glad you found my blog too :). Hope to see you around and thanks for the support!
Shari (aka: fruitloopgirl)
I LOVE beef stew and this recipe looks amazing. Will definitely give this a try!
And congrats on your expectant baby!!!
Lacey Baier
Hi Shari! Thanks for the congrats (and for the tweets!). If you try this stew, I'd love to know what you think. Thanks again!!
Tara
Congratulations Lacey!! The stew look delicious!
Lacey Baier
Thank you, Tara...times two! 🙂