Easy Slow Cooker Beef Stew Recipe

This is a wonderful recipe. Please don't be deterred by the "extra preparation" noted in some of the reviews. Every step is worth it, from browning the meat to deglazing the pan. This hearty and flavorful stew satisfied my family and dinner guests. Everyone went back for more. I followed the recipe as written, using merlot for the red wine because I like the rich flavor and Yukon Gold potatoes because I like their taste and texture and they were on hand for the Potato Fougasse (potato bread with olive oil and rosemary) I made to accompany the stew. They were wonderful together. Trust your instincts when thickening the stew once it is done. Some reviews complained about consistency but you really need to decide what it needs for yourself using more or less of a flour/water paste than indicated. Do what works for you. (And by the way, if you have extra merlot use it with the flour instead of water to thicken the stew to impart some extra flavor.)

Added a little extra wine, worcestershire, and garlic powder like other users suggested, as well as a pinch of red pepper. I ended up cooking it for 1 1/2 hours on high heat and 3 on low to speed things up a bit, and it turned out great. This recipe is a real winner -- the meat was very tender and the gravy texture, perfect. Served it up to rave reviews. I'll definitely make this again!

Quite Tasty and easy! My changes: Beef broth instead of water and I just dump broth and the soup mix into the slow cooker without boiling or pre-mixing. Soups/stews love acid and the bit of wine for deglazing wasn't quite enough for me - so added some tomato paste. For even more oomph I added worcestershire and lots of garlic. Finally, I like veggies - so added some spinach, chopped celery, and the greens from the tops of my carrots.

For two adults, I took 1/3 of meat & veggies. Slow cooked on High for 30 minutes per recipe-then cooked on Low for 4 hrs. Added flour & hot water at end. Was perfect! Great recipe!

Good stew recipe. I pretty much followed the recipe but added my own touch. I add cut up celery about 4 stalks, reconstituted the onion soup in beef broth rather than water and cooked in a pressure cooker 30 minutes. Done.

So good! I had about 4 pounds of beef, so I added a little more of everything else besides the onion soup. I took the time to trim all the fat & veins off the meat and cut the pieces smaller to make it easier for kids and grandparents to eat. I also ended up adding about 2 cups of beef broth to make it soupy. I could have also used more wine (I’d say up to a cup). I also had some roasted cauliflower leftovers so I dumped that in when I added the flour slurry sat the end to just warm through. It was like a secret ingredient! Easy shortcuts: I don’t do well with chopping onions, so I used a bag of frozen chopped onion. And I had some of those tiny potatoes that I just dumped in rather than cutting up potatoes, and they cooked perfectly! Next time I might add a can of diced tomatoes or just a diced tomato towards the end to give a little freshness and acidity.

The two add-ons I use are mushrooms, sautéed with the onions and about two tablespoons of tomato paste added to the onion soup mix liquid. I have made it with a whole bag of baby carrots or regular peeled large cut-up carrots. This recipe always tastes fabulous! It’s so great on a cold winter evening!

As I am wont to do, I used this recipe as a starting point ( and it's a very good staring point, IMHO) and then "customized". I used 1 1/4 lbs. cubed stew beef, 2 potatoes, and 2 onions, omitted the onion soup mix (didn't have any on hand) and used 3 cups of beef broth in lieu of the called-for beef bullion and water. I added a stalk of chopped celery, rosemary, sage, thyme, minced garlic, 1 tsp. white pepper, 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce, onion powder, a scant bit of red pepper flakes, and threw in some frozen peas in the last 15 minutes of cooking time. I served it over Jasmine rice and both my wife and I thought it was delicious! [ We laughed, we cried, we did the dishes.]

This is the best beef stew I have ever made. I added sprigs of fresh thyme and in the last hour, a cup of frozen peas. I also used corn starch instead of flour for thickening. So tasty!!

Only used 1 large potato and doubled the carrots. Added fresh garlic, 1 cup of wine, cremini mushrooms,, bay leaves. Used beef broth instead of water. Delish!

My partner loved this! He ate 3 helpings! I served with cornbread and mixed green salad. Made a few changes. Eliminated the onion soup and used beef broth instead of water. Also, added garlic and celery to the onions and sautéed together. Added a tsp of thyme. Great, hearty meal.

So yummy! Added corn, peas, sprinkle of worcestershire, thyme, rosemary, garlic powder

simple and I stuck to the recipe using all organic and local 100% grass fed beef, LOVED it! Exactly like my mom's maybe because the ingredients weren't adulterated, food for thought,

Toddler approved!!! Followed the recipe and it was delicious. Thanks for sharing this recipe.

Much better than I was expecting. My family loved it ESPECIALLY when I paired it with some homemade cornbread. This has definitely earned a spot in my cookbook.

I think it needs a lot more salts and pepper and wine. I also added sugar and a bit of thyme, as others suggested. (I threw away the residues on the pan after cooking the meat. I think this might be why it tasted too bland?) I didn't add flour because the soup texture was fine without it. Family liked it, so I'm definitely making again. Next time though, I would definitely add more vegetables! (More carrots, and broccoli.) You might wanna add carrots later, because it becomes too mushy to the point that it melts into the soup.

Absolutely delicious!

This will be a staple in my house.

This was fantastic!! The only thing I changed was to cut back a little on the onions and add some celery. My Husband and I both loved it. Will be making this one again.

It’s delicious.. only issue is it’s time consuming. I added a little bit of beef broth to mine to make it thinner in turn i ended up adding a little more onion soup mix because i made it too thin. but all and all i will be making this again!!