Easy, hearty, comforting Slow Cooker Beef Stew is a meal-in-one packed with tender meat and veggies swimming in the most amazingly flavorful gravy broth! You won’t be able to stop at just one bowl!
I LOVE Slow Cooker Beef Stew. I grew up on my my mom’s recipe which always included a side of her specialty muffins. And a big side of oh-my-yum. There simply isn’t anything more comforting than a big bowl of hearty beef stew drowning in luscious beef and tomato infused sauce.
This Slow Cooker Beef Stew combines two of my favorite ways to make an EASY meal – a form of soup and in the slow cooker! The most time consuming part of this soup is the chopping of your carrots, celery, potatoes, onions and garlic. But its easy and mindless and perfect to put your kids to work. I loved helping my mom prep her stew – especially because I knew what deliciousness was on the other end.
Add all your veggies and your salt and peppered, seared stew meat to your slow cooker (no need to dust your beef with flour first) along with the most amazing gravy broth. I call it gravy broth because it is not watery like beef broth but rather the perfect silky consistency of a medium-thick gravy.
Unlike many recipes that call for adding cornstarch to the broth the last hour or so in the crock pot in order to thicken (which will NOT result in a velvety thick broth but still be watery), I have found the best method is to make your gravy then add it to the slow cooker. The gravy will seem extra thick but will thin to the perfect gravy broth like consistency as the vegetables simmer and release their juices. Also by making gravy first with flour, you can skip the step of dusting your beef with flour which can result in burnt beef pieces and an undesirable texture/consistency.
The silkiness and flavor of the Beef Gravy Broth is what makes this Slow Booker Beef Stew the “Best” in my opinion. Not only is it lusciously thick but the combination of crushed tomatoes, beef consommé, beef broth, soy sauce, Dijon mustard and the bevy of hand picked spices of paprika, oregano, thyme and cumin infuse the beef and vegetables with flavor as they simmer all day filling your home with the savory aroma of impatience.
But this Best Slow Cooker Beef Stew is SO worth the wait with fall apart tender, juicy, beef and fork tender vegetables smothered in luscious, perfectly seasoned gravy broth. An old comforting classic waiting to become a new family favorite!
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©Carlsbad Cravings by CarlsbadCravings.com
| Prep Time | 15 minutes |
| Cook Time | 360 minutes |
| Servings | -8 servings |
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 pounds stew meat, beef chuck or sirloin, cut into bite size pieces
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper
- 4-5 medium red potatoes, chopped (about 1 pound)
- 4 medium carrots, peeled and sliced
- 4 stalks celery, sliced thick (1/4”-1/2”)
- 1 large onion, chopped
- 4-6 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 14 oz. can crushed tomatoes
- 1 10.5 oz. can beef consommé **
- 1 15 oz. can low sodium beef broth
- 2 tablespoons low sodium soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
- 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons beef bouillon
- 1 1/2 teaspoons sugar
- 1/2 tsp EACH ground cumin, paprika, dry oregano, dry thyme
Ingredients Beef Stew
Beef Gravy Broth
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- Chop meat into bite size pieces. While meat is still on the cutting board, toss it with 1 teaspoon salt and ½ teaspoon pepper. Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add half of the beef to the very hot skillet and let cook undisturbed for approximately 2 minutes, or until nicely seared on one side, then continue to cook while stirring until beef is browned all over but not cooked through. Remove beef to 6-quart (or larger) slow cooker. Repeat with remaining beef.
- Add all of the vegetables and garlic to the slow cooker and toss with the beef.
- Wipe out skillet and whisk in all of the Beef Gravy Broth ingredients. The flour will be lumpy at first but will dissolve as you cook and continue to whisk. Bring to a boil then reduce to a simmer until thickened to the consistency of gravy. Add to slow cooker and toss to combine. Add bay leaf. The Gravy will be very thick but will thin to the perfect consistency as moisture is released from the vegetables as they cook.
- Cook on HIGH for 4-6 hours or on LOW for 8-10 hours or until vegetables and beef are very tender. Discard bay leaf. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
**May substitute low sodium beef broth if you are unable to find beef consommé.
©Carlsbad Cravings Original
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Hi Jen! A good beef stew makes me very happy and I am smiling big right now! Give me some crusty bread to sop up the gravy… 🙂 I like to add cut green beans at the end of the cooking time, just something I’ve always done.
So happy this beef stew could make you smile Dorothy! I love the idea of adding cut green beans at the end of cooking time – I am going to have to try that!
Another great looking recipe that I’m printing as I’m typing this. Made your french dips last Sunday and they were a HUGE HIT by everyone except me. The only reason they weren’t by me was because I wasn’t lucky enough to get to eat one. Something wrong with that picture. :o( Question, is beef stock be consommee similar? I’ve had a hard time finding comsommee at my grocery store.
Hi Karen, that is SO wrong you didn’t get to eat your own cooking! boo! It sounds like they need to let you serve yourself first from now on :)! Beef Consomme has a richer, more intense flavor because it is concentrated by simmering down but you should be able to substitute beef broth for beef consomme without too much of a difference. I hope you can taste this and enjoy it this time!
Hey Jen! You have officially become our one-stop dinner source. The stew is wonderful in rainy Provo! Thanks for making the most of life!
-Josh Davies
Hi Josh, its so good to hear from you (and I owe you an e-mail 🙂 ) and I love hearing that you are making my recipes, thank you! I’m glad this stew could be enjoyed on a cold rainy day – sounds perfect! Love to you and your amazing family!!
Hi Jen! Made this dish last night, and it was perfect! Exactly what I was craving with this chilly fall weather, and really easy to throw together. I used gluten-free flour (Bob’s Red Mill 1-to-1 GF flour), and found I needed a touch more than 1/3 C to get the consistency right. Will definitely be coming back to this recipe – thanks for sharing it!
You are so welcome Laura and I am so happy you were able to easily make it gluten free – yay! Thanks for taking time to comment!
This was the best beef strew I have made yet. I had to adjust a few things to what I had available and to make less but it was wonderful. Thank you.
Awesome Lorna, thank you SO much! I so appreciate you taking the time to brighten my day! I hope you find more recipes to love here!
I have made this stew numerous times and it turns out 10/10 delicious every time! Like another reviewer mentioned I haven’t yet found the beef consomme at my local grocery store, but it could be that I’m not looking for the right product. I used beef stock instead and like I said before, it’s always a hit!
Awesome Maria, I’m thrilled to hear this is a 10/10 and that you’ve made it so many times! And good to hear beef broth does just the trick – thank you!