Beef Stew

Last Updated January 4th, 2024 at 11:31 pm by Lisa

Traditional beef stew is a beloved dinner worldwide and one of the great recipes of all time. We all crave cozy warm bowls of comfort food on cold Winter nights. This Dutch oven beef stew can be made on the stovetop or in a slow cooker crock pot.

Delicious red wine beef stew starts with meat browning, creating succulent tender beef and a rich depth of flavor. Then topped off with tender potatoes and carrots in a thick dark hearty stew to dunk crusty bread into...

Best Beef Stew Recipe

This hearty beef stew is a great way to warm right up and is a classic recipe for cold nights. So much flavor is added to the red wine sauce from the garlic, sun-dried tomatoes, and the sauteing of the meat. Serve with slices of bread and a glass of wine for the adults!

Beef Marinade

• red wine
• bay leaf
• whole garlic cloves
• Worcestershire sauce (or balsamic vinegar)

Browned Meat

• good quality beef chuck roast well trimmed cut into 1 ½ inch cubes. (see below for more beef cuts that work!)
• all-purpose flour
• baking soda
• Kosher salt
• black pepper
• olive oil (or vegetable oil)

Best Stew Beef Cuts: Choose a package of stew meat, boneless beef chuck roast, bottom round, or tenderloin, cut into 1 ½ inch cubes, and be sure to trim the silver skin and fat or ask the butcher for well-trimmed stew meat.

Vegetables: You can add different root veggies like sweet potatoes, celery, parsnips, Yukon gold potatoes, russet potatoes, or red potatoes. Another classic addition is to add frozen peas. Add them during the last 15 minutes of cooking so they stay bright green and don't get mushy.

Best Red Wine: A nice bottle of red wine you would drink is the best choice. A dry red wine, a merlot, a pinot noir, or a cabernet sauvignon all work well. I found well-priced bottle (under $10!) of French red wine at Trader Joe's. If you don't want to use wine, swap in beef broth into your marinade!

Beef Broth: Ideally beef broth is best for this stew. You can swap in chicken broth or chicken stock, and if you have it add in some beef bullion like Better Than Bouillon.

Cooking The Beef Stew

•  yellow onions diced
• sun dried tomatoes or sub tomato paste
• beef broth preferred (or sub chicken stock)
• small baby potatoes - Yukon gold, red potatoes halves
• carrots peeled, cut on a diagonal 1-½"
• garnish: fresh parsley

Here are the ingredients you will need...

All these ingredients are easy to find at any grocery store and are great to keep on hand for this stew recipe.

Stove Top Stew Instructions

Remove any silver skin or tough shiny membrane from the meat. Read below for more tips to remove the silver skin. Cut the meat into 1 ½” cubes, and place the small pieces of cut meat in a covered airtight container with marinade.

Marinade: Pour in 1 cup of wine, peeled garlic cloves, 3 whole bay leaf, and 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce. Marinate overnight in the fridge (or for at least a couple of hours), this adds tremendously rich flavor.

Preheat oven to 300 degrees.

Combine flour, baking soda, salt, and black pepper in a large bowl.

PRO TIP: Baking soda raises the PH and helps to brown the beef to a golden brown!

Using tongs, remove the garlic and bay leaves and discard. Grab 2 large plates. On one plate, remove the meat from the marinade using tongs (don’t throw out marinade!) and toss a few pieces into the flour mixture in the bowl. Coat all the pieces in the flour mix and place the floured beef on the other plate.

On the stovetop, in a large dutch oven or large pot that has a fitted lid, heat the pan over medium-high heat. Add 3 tablespoons of olive oil to the bottom of the pot. Brown for 5-7 minutes in batches removing to a plate as you go.

If the meat sticks to the pan, it isn't quite seared enough, wait a few more minutes and if it releases from the pan it has formed a brown seared crust and will easily lift with tongs.

PRO TIP: Don’t overcrowd the pan, this develops deep flavor and the flour coating will help the stew thicken as it cooks!

Cook all the beef, and add a little bit more oil as needed while you saute.

Now add the diced chopped onion to the dutch oven. Use a wooden spoon to scrape up the brown bits on the bottom of the pan. Cook the onion until it starts to soften and turn brown for about 5 minutes.

Next, into the large dutch oven, on top of the cooked onions, place all the reserved marinade, beef stock, browned meat, and sun-dried tomatoes. Stir well, cover, and place in the oven for 1 hour at 300 degrees.

After 1 hour, carefully remove the pot from the oven, add the cut carrots and sliced potatoes, stir well, and cover. Place it back into the oven for 1 additional hour at 300 degrees. TIP: If the stew gets too hot and boils, reduce heat to 250 degrees. Once the meat and vegetables are tender, the stew is ready to eat.

PRO TIP: If the stew isn't as thick as you desire, whisk in a tablespoon of cornstarch into some cold water, this prevents lumps! Then add to the stew and stir to combine. Cornstarch has twice the thickening power of flour!

Serving Ideas: Side dish recipes that go with your hearty stew dinner can be these beautiful Dinner Rolls, a big loaf of French crusty bread, or baguettes with butter would be amazing too. Garnish with fresh thyme or parsley.

Beef Stew Slow Cooker Instructions

Slow Cooker / Crock Pot Tips: Follow the recipe and brown the beef, and transfer the browned pieces into the slow cooker as you work. Next, add the onion, and cook for 5 minutes, scraping up the brown bits with a wooden spoon. Place the cooked onions, all the reserved marinade, beef stock, and sun-dried tomatoes into your slow cooker. Stir well, and cover. On a low setting cook for 6 hours or on high for 3 to 4 hours, until the potatoes and carrots are fork tender.

Red Wine Stew Top Cooking Tips

• Time & Patience: The secret to delicious stew, is time. Both prep time and cooking time. Stews have tougher cuts of meat that need a long, slow cooking process to break down the meat into succulent tender bites and release a depth of flavor.
• Silver Skin: Be sure to slice it all off or have the butcher remove the silver skin. No one wants a chewy tough bite of meat!
• Cooking Oil: lean meat beef cuts will need more oil, you can use olive oil, or a high temperature cooking oil like vegetable or avocado oil.
• Beef Browing: baking soda raised the PH and browns the meat better, and that is why it is in the flour coating mixture.
• Thicker Stew: You don't need any cornstarch slurry or thickeners, because the flour mixture on the browned meat pieces does all that work for you!

Leftovers: The next day, portion servings in an airtight container or zip top bag, and store in the freezer for up to 3 months. Defrost in the refrigerator, and heat in a microwave safe bowl or on the stove in a small pot for a great lunch or dinner on a cold day.

More Seasonings & Flavor Add-Ins: Fresh rosemary and or fresh thyme are also nice for additional flavor. Be sure to remove the stems before serving. Some people love to add a packet of Lipton onion soup mix for added flavor! Another addition is to crisp up some bacon and use a bit of bacon fat in your stew for flavor. To make a rich velvety stew sauce, at the end of cooking, stir in a couple of tablespoons of butter. It adds shine, flavor, and richness. This is a French term called Monter au Beurre that adds shine, flavor, and richness to sauces and stews.

More Beef Dinner Recipes

Make the best Corned Beef with a delicious spice crust, and juicy fork-tender slices. An Irish tradition especially for St. Patrick's Day! Dishes that go with your cooked brisket dinner are these Roasted Cabbage Steaks with golden crispy edges from the olive oil, Mashed Potatoes, Smashed Potatoes, Roasted Rosemary Potatoes, or Red Potatoes. Cheddar Irish Bread, Brown Soda Bread, or Dinner Rolls would be amazing too!

Make an elegant Beef Roast (aka Roast Beef) from a tenderloin or New York steak. Wonderful to serve for dinner parties, special occasions, or the holidays with a rich red wine sauce.         

Shredded Beef is fall-apart tender and bursting full of flavor from slow cooking with the Latin Caribbean sofrito ingredients. It is one of those easy dinners that takes just 10 minutes of prep. Add flank steak, onions, bell peppers, tomatoes, and spices to your slow cooker for a delicious cozy dinner!

Try a Beef Stroganoff recipe with tri-tip steak, mushrooms, and creamy rich stroganoff sauce. It is easy enough for a weeknight dinner and yummy enough for company.