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Slow Cooker Beef and Vegetable Stew

Slow Cooker Beef and Vegetable Stew

Come home to a kitchen that smells like Sunday supper already happened — beef, carrots, and potatoes waiting in the slow cooker.
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Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 8 hours
Total Time 8 hours 20 minutes
Servings: 6 servings
Course: Dinner
Cuisine: American
Ingredients Method

Ingredients
  

Beef
  • 2 pounds beef stew meat cut into 1-inch cubes
  • teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
  • 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
Vegetables
  • 1 1/2 pounds baby potatoes halved
  • 4 carrots peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces
  • 2 celery stalks sliced
  • 1 yellow onion diced
  • 3 garlic cloves minced
Broth and seasonings
  • 4 cups beef broth
  • 2 tablespoons tomato paste
  • 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
  • 1 teaspoon dried thyme
  • 2 bay leaves

Method
 

  1. Season and brown the beef. Allow about 20 minutes for chopping the vegetables and browning the beef. Pat the beef dry, season it with the salt and pepper, and toss it with the flour. Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat and brown the beef in two batches, 8 to 10 minutes total, until browned on all sides.
  2. Layer the vegetables. Put the potatoes, carrots, celery, onion, and garlic in the bottom of a 6-quart slow cooker.
  3. Add the beef and broth. Set the browned beef on top of the vegetables. Stir the beef broth, tomato paste, Worcestershire sauce, and thyme together and pour the mixture over the beef. Tuck the bay leaves into the pot.
  4. Cook low and slow. Cover and cook on LOW for 8 hours, until the beef is fork-tender and the potatoes are soft when pierced with a knife. Do not lift the lid during cooking.
  5. Finish and serve. Remove and discard the bay leaves. Check the stew with a food thermometer — it should reach 165°F. Taste and add salt if needed, then ladle into bowls and serve hot.