Best 10 Classic Beef Stew Recipes

CLASSIC, HEARTY BEEF STEW

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Place beef cubes into a large bowl. Season with kosher salt and black pepper. Add flour and paprika and toss until evenly coated.
• Heat oil in an oven-safe Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Sear the beef cubes in batches until dark brown, about 4 minutes per side. Flip or stir gently with a wooden spoon until all edges are dark brown, 2 to 3 minutes more. Remove beef and set aside.
• Add onions to the beef fat with more salt and pepper; cook and stir until they begin to caramelize, about 10 minutes. Add garlic and stir until aromatic and soft, about 30 seconds. Stir in tomato paste and cook until it turns brown and begins to caramelize and stick to the bottom of the pan. Deglaze with red wine, scraping up the flavorful browned bits on the bottom. Let the wine reduce until almost dry again, about 3 minutes.
• Add dried thyme, dried rosemary, herbes de Provence, and bay leaves. Add 2 cups beef broth and Worcestershire, stir, and bring to a boil. Add the seared beef cubes back into the stew liquid. Remove from heat and cover the pot.
• Braise in the preheated oven until meat is almost tender, about 1 1/2 hours. Remove from the oven. Add carrots, potatoes, and more beef broth if needed. Cover and return to the oven to braise until meat and vegetables are tender, about 30 minutes longer.
• Discard bay leaves. Stir in peas, fresh rosemary, and fresh thyme. Serve hot.

CLASSIC BEEF STEW

Steps:

• In an oven-safe Dutch oven, brown beef in batches in oil; drain. Return all meat to the pan. Add onions, tomatoes, broth, tapioca, garlic, parsley, salt, pepper and bay leaf. Bring to a boil. , Cover stew and bake at 350° for 1 hour. Stir in carrots, potatoes and celery. Bake, covered, 1 hour longer or until meat and vegetables are tender. Discard bay leaf.

CLASSIC BEEF STEW

Steps:

• Generously season beef with salt and pepper. Dust with flour and shake off excess. Heat a Dutch oven or other heavy-bottomed pot over medium-high, and swirl in 2 tablespoons oil.
• Add half of beef in a single layer and cook, turning a few times, until browned in places, 5 to 7 minutes. Transfer to a plate, leaving fat in pot. Brown remaining beef; transfer to plate.
• Preheat oven to 350°F. Swirl remaining 1 tablespoon oil into pot, still over medium-high heat. Cook onions until golden, 3 to 4 minutes. Add tomato paste and cook, stirring frequently, until caramelized, 1 minute. Add Worcestershire sauce and wine; boil until mostly evaporated.
• Return beef and any accumulated juices to pot with broth and tomatoes. Bring to a boil. Cover pot, transfer to oven, and cook 1 1/2 hours. Remove pot from oven and stir carrots and potatoes into stew. Cover and continue cooking in oven until beef is fork-tender and vegetables are easily pierced with the tip of a knife, about 1 hour more. Stir in peas; return to oven for 5 minutes more, just to heat through.
• Ladle stew into shallow bowls, sprinkle with parsley, and serve. Cooled stew can be transferred to an airtight container and refrigerated up to 2 days, or frozen up to 3 months.

CLASSIC BEEF STEW IN A CROCK POT

Steps:

• Put the flour in a large Ziploc bag.
• Add the beef and seal.
• Toss to lightly coat the beef.
• Heat a few tablespoons of the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.
• Brown the meat in small batches, adding more oil as necessary.
• Transfer to the slow cooker.
• Add the onions to the skillet and cook over medium heat until tender, about 10 minutes.
• Stir in the tomato paste and coat the onions then transfer to the slow cooker.
• Pour the wine into the skillet and scrape up any browned bits and then add to the slow cooker.
• Stir in the potatoes, carrots, broth, salt, thyme, and bay leaf.
• Cover and cook on low heat for 7 1/2 hours or on high for 4 hours.
• Add the peas and heat through before serving.

BOEUF EN DAUBE - CLASSIC FRENCH BEEF BURGUNDY STEW (BOURGUIGNON)

Steps:

• In a large non-reactive bowl, combine beef, Cognac, cloves, garlic, onions, carrots, celery, bay leaf, sage, thyme, parsley, 1/4 teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper, orange peel, wine, and mushrooms. Cover and refrigerate overnight or for up to 2 days, stirring from time to time.
• Bring the meat and vegetables to room temperature. Drain, reserving the marinade.
• Blot the beef and veggies dry with paper towels.
• Preheat oven to 325F/175°C.
• In a large heavy oven proof dish (such as a cast iron dutch oven or Le Creuset), fry the bacon over medium heat until it renders its fat, about 3-5 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, remove the bacon to paper towels and reserve.
• Working in batches so as not to overcrowd the pan, add the meat and vegetables to the fat in the pan, and brown them on all sides over medium heat, seasoning with salt and pepper as they brown, about 7 minutes per batch.
• Transfer to a platter. Add the marinade to the pot, and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce to medium heat and simmer until the liquid is reduced by one-third, about 8 minutes. Skim off the foam from the surface. Add the stock or consomme, and simmer another 8 minutes, until reduced again by one-third. Stir in the pinch of sugar and the tomato paste, (and add the diced tomatoes and green olives now, if using).
• Return the meat, vegetables and reserved bacon to the pot. Cover and bake in the oven until the meat is tender, 2 1/2-3 hours. -OR- alternately, at this stage you can cook in the crock-pot on LOW heat 8 to 10 hours, or on HIGH heat 4 to 6 hours.
• Serve with a rustic bread for mopping the juices, along with a green salad and a platter of cheeses.
• Freezes and reheats beautifully. Leftovers will make a lovely Cottage-Shepherd's Pie a la Provencale, see my recipe #355446.

CLASSIC CROCK POT BEEF STEW

Steps:

• Mix flour, salt and pepper in slow cooker. Add beef; stir to coat. Add onion, carrots, celery, potatoes, beef broth and Worcestershire sauce. Stir to blend.
• Cover; cook on low for 5 1/2 to 7 1/2 hours.
• Mix cornstarch with water and stir into stew. Cover; cook 30 minutes or until carrots are cooked and meat is tender.
• Top with optional chopped parsley.

CLASSIC BEEF BURGUNDY STEW

Steps:

• Melt butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add garlic and pepper. Add beef in batches and brown thoroughly.
• Put beef into a soup pot with wine, beef base, consomme, onion, celery, parsley, basil, bay leaves and garlic salt. Bring to a boil, lower heat, cover and simmer for 45-60 minutes, until meat is tender.
• Add carrots and potatoes; simmer until tender. Add mushrooms and cook a few minutes longer until mushrooms are cooked through. Adjust seasonings, to taste.
• To thicken, mix cornstarch with enough water to form a smooth, slightly thick mixture; stir into stew, remove from heat and serve.

CLASSIC BEEF STEW FROM BIRDS EYE®

Steps:

• Heat oil in large deep nonstick skillet over medium high heat and brown beef.
• Stir in Recipe Ready Stew Blend, tomatoes and beef broth. Reduce heat to low and simmer covered 20 minutes or until beef is tender.* Season, if desired, with salt and black pepper and sprinkle with chopped parsley. For thicker stew, gently mash 2 potatoes using a fork; stir to blend.

CLASSIC BEEF STEW

Steps:

• In 12-inch skillet or 4-quart Dutch oven, heat oil over medium heat 1 to 2 minutes. Add beef; cook about 15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until brown on all sides.
• Add water, 1/2 teaspoon salt and the pepper. Heat to boiling. Reduce heat to low. Cover; simmer 2 hours to 2 hours 30 minutes or until beef is almost tender.
• Stir in remaining ingredients except cold water and flour. Cover; cook about 30 minutes or until vegetables are tender. Remove bay leaf.
• In tightly covered jar or container, shake cold water and flour; gradually stir into beef mixture. Heat to boiling, stirring constantly. Boil and stir 1 minute until thickened.

CLASSIC BEEF STEW

Steps:

• In a Dutch oven, cook the bacon over medium heat until crisp.
• Meanwhile, cut the beef into 2-3 inch cubes. Remove and discard any excess fat as you do.
• Sprinkle the cubes with salt and pepper.
• After you have cooked the bacon and taken it out of the pot, turn the heat up to high and add the beef cubes. DO NOT crowd.
• Brown the beef well, turning as necessary, and turning the heat down if the residue on the bottom of the pan is burning.
• Remove the browned meat to a plate, and continue browning all the remaining cubes.
• Meanwhile, peel the onion and cut into 1/4-inch (or so) slices.
• After browning and removing all of the beef, add the sliced onions.
• Stir to bring up any of the yummy brown bits off the bottom of the pan.
• Lower the heat to medium, and cook onion about 5-10 min, stirring occasionally, or until limp and well browned.
• Heat oven to 300ºF.
• Return the meat to the pan with the onions, along with any of the residual juices that have collected on the plate.
• Add the beef broth and bring to a boil.
• Turn off the heat and cover.
• Place meat in the oven and cook for 2 hours.
• Peel and quarter the potatoes, adding them to the pot as you do.
• Cover the pot and cook for 30 minute.
• Peel and quarter the carrots, slice the mushrooms if you like and are using them; add them to the pan.
• Cover the pot and cook for 20 min more.
• Serve in bowls.