Slow Cooked Beef Stew

Slow Cooked Beef Stew

Ingredients

  • 2 lbs. beef chuck, cut into 1 inch pieces
  • 1 tablespoon butter
  • 1 large white onion, diced
  • 2 stalks celery, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
  • 1 lb. Yukon gold potatoes, cut into 1/2 inch to 1 inch cubes (leave skins on)
  • 3 large carrots, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
  • 32 oz beef broth, heated separately
  • 3 tablespoons tomato paste
  • 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 2 dried bay leaves
  • 1 teaspoon dried thyme
  • 2 tablespoons cornstarch
  • 1 cup frozen peas

Directions

  • Season cut beef with salt and pepper on all sides
  • Pre-heat a large skillet, medium high heat, add butter
  • Add the beef to the pan in small batches, and brown on all sides–I usually do just two sides because it get a little timely and chaotic to do all four.
  • Once the beef is seared, add the pieces to your slow cooker
  • Then add diced onion, celery, potatoes and carrots
  • Mix everything together
  • Pour warmed beef broth into slow cooker
  • Stir in the salt, pepper to taste–I use bullion, so it’s a little salty to begin
  • Add tomato paste, Worcestershire sauce, minced garlic, bay leaves, and dried thyme.
  • Cook the beef stew on the low setting for 6-7 hours or on high for 3-4 hours.
  • The beef will start out tough, and get tender throughout the day–the longer it slow cooks, the more tender it will be
  • 30 minutes prior to the beef stew being complete, remove 1/2 cup of broth from the slow cooker and combine in a bowl with cornstarch–mix until there’s no clumps, use a strainer if needed.
  • Add cornstarch mixture into the slow cooker–stir to combine, let cook for 30 minutes.
  • Add frozen peas, let cook until heated through.

Tip

Remove excess fat from beef–if not, the stew will be very oily