Hearty Beef Stew Recipe (2024)

FAQs

What gives beef stew the best flavor? ›

Add spices such as turmeric, coriander and cumin at the early stage of cooking, when you are frying onions and garlic, to enhance the taste of the beef stew. Fresh herbs like coriander and bay leaves also contribute a distinct flavour without making the dish too spicy for the younger members of the family.

The most important key to making stew meat tender is being sure to cook it for a long time. If you want super tender beef, you'll need to cook it on a low heat in a Dutch oven on the stove or a slow cooker for at least a few hours.

"Browning, or caramelizing, meat before putting it into a slow cooker isn't 100 percent necessary, but it is well worth the effort for the most flavorful and full-bodied end result," he says. "The caramelized surface of the meat will lend rich flavor and color to the finished dish."

The addition of the vinegar adds subtle acidity that balances well with the soy sauce and the honey giving this otherwise super hearty beef stew a nice lightness to it.

If were talking while it's being made; garlic, onion, various herbs, “horse chester sauce” tomato paste, stone ground mustard, or even a small splash of A1 sauce will all “rich up” the broth. So will sauteing the veggies in butter before adding to the stew.

The idea is to cook the carrots and potatoes at the end of the simmering process, so they don't become mushy. Just make sure to keep an eye on the stew to see if you need to add additional broth or water to keep it from drying out.

Add vegetables: After 1 hour 30 minutes, carefully remove pot from oven and use oven mitt to remove lid. Add vegetables and stir gently to combine. Carefully replace lid on pot and return stew to oven to cook for an additional hour.

While you can make a beef stew on the stovetop or also in the Instant Pot, I'm partial to using my slow cooker for beef stew, to give the ingredients that long, unattended time they need to become really tender and delicious.

However, if you consistently find your slow cooker meals with meat coming out tough, lackluster, and flavorless, then you may need to reassess how you're prepping your dishes, and you may need to turn down the temperature. If you cook meat at too high of a temperature in your slow cooker, you're likely to overcook it.

When to add potatoes to a slow cooker? ›

Tender vegetables such as zucchini and beans can be added to your dish in last ¾ - 1 hour of cooking when cooking on High, or 2 hours if cooking on Low. Hard, starchy vegetables like potato and carrots are best added around 3 hours before the meal is done if cooking on High, and 4 hours on Low.

A bit of tomato paste amps up the flavor of beef stew, giving it a richness and a punch of umami that makes the stew truly memorable.

Do you need tomato paste for beef stew? We recommend using tomato paste for this recipe. Tomato paste adds crucial flavor and body to the stew meat when cooked with herbs, garlic and wine.

How to Substitute Tomato Sauce or Puree for Tomato Paste. You don't have to dash out to the store if you're out of tomato paste; tomato sauce and tomato puree are both an excellent substitute. For every 1 tablespoon of tomato paste needed, use 3 tablespoons of tomato puree or sauce.

Many stew recipes call for seasoning chunks of meat with salt before searing them or adding them unseared to the pot.

This resulting gelatin will give your stew a creamier consistency. Not only that, but any liquid that remains in slow-cooked dishes is likely to be soaked up by any starchy ingredients, creating more nuanced, developed flavors.

add a tablespoon of sugar to your stew, it kills the acidity and makes it sweeter. And it also gives it a unique taste.