The Simplest Beef Stew You'll Ever Prepare—Just Toss and Let It Cook!

Beef stew has earned its classic status for good reason. With succulent chunks of beef and robust root vegetables, all immersed in a thick, flavorful broth that resembles gravy, it’s a comforting dish that fills your home with irresistible scents and warms you up with minimal ingredients. However, conventional recipes can be quite demanding, requiring significant time and effort, from searing the meat to peeling potatoes and sautéing the veggies.

I often find myself short on time and motivation for extensive meal prep, and the messy cleanup from browning meat on the stovetop isn’t appealing either. That's why I decided to create a more effortless stew recipe that eliminates the need for browning or sautéing, yet still delivers the rich flavors of traditional stews. It’s as simple as tossing everything in and letting it cook—no fuss, just flavor!

Homemade Stew Meat 

The one prep step that I won’t skip is cutting up my own stew meat. I don’t buy pre-cut “stew meat” at the grocery store because it’s made of scraps from various beef cuts and is often too lean and tough for stew. Instead, I cut a chuck roast into pieces.

Chuck meat, sourced from the shoulder of the cow, is rich in marbling and connective tissue that break down during slow cooking, resulting in a wonderfully tender and tasty stew. To prevent the stew from becoming greasy, I remove the hard white fat deposits from the meat and cut away any tough, silvery connective tissue. This process only takes a few minutes but significantly enhances the quality of my stew.

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Create Depth of Flavor Without Caramelization

I coat the beef cubes in flour, along with a generous amount of herbs and garlic to enhance the taste and help thicken the broth during cooking. For the herbs, I opt for herbes de Provence, which is a mix of savory, marjoram, rosemary, thyme, and lavender. However, you can also use Italian seasoning or any preferred herb blend that you like.

For the broth, I like Better Than Bouillon Roasted Beef Base mixed with hot water instead of boxed beef broth because it has a truly beefy flavor. A strong canned broth will work in a pinch. I also add plenty of tomato paste to the broth to add body and a touch of sweetness to the stew.

Rather than dealing with the hassle of peeling potatoes, I opt for unpeeled fingerling or small red potatoes. They cook up beautifully tender and maintain their shape, rather than breaking down into the stew.

I’ve started omitting the sautéing of onions, carrots, and celery, and I haven’t found that it significantly affects the flavor, considering the stew simmers for three hours.

Prepare It Using a Slow Cooker

This recipe is perfect for a slow cooker since it skips the browning step. Simply mix the beef with flour and seasonings in a bowl rather than using a Dutch oven. Then, layer in the vegetables and top with the seasoned beef. Use only 2 1/2 cups of boiling water and avoid simmering the mixture. Set the cooker to LOW and let it cook for 7 to 8 hours. Finally, stir in the peas and vinegar, cooking on low for an additional 10 minutes.

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