Crock Pot Beef Stew is easy, hearty, and comforting. Toss everything into the crock pot at night then pop into the base and cook the next day!
A few weeks ago my kids and I were on a Target run (I had an extra $100 just laying around – NOT!) and I could smell them before I saw them:
Crayons. Construction paper. Rubber erasers. Rulers!
Ok, maybe not the rulers but seriously, back to school shopping has begin. Although we’ve got a few more glorious weeks of summer left, the school year is coming, along with busy evenings, early mornings, and all the chaos in between. Take a beat to get Crock Pot Beef Stew simmering in your slow cooker to take the stress out of dinner time, at least!
With school age children comes karate, cub scouts, swimming, etc, and once evenings get crazy I’ll be turning to my crock pot to make dinner for me more and more.
If you’re in the same boat and are looking for a hearty, filling, and comforting family-friendly recipe that couldn’t get any easier – Crock Pot Beef Stew is for you!
Chopped stew meat is slow cooked in beef broth seasoned with pantry staples like dried thyme, rosemary, and bay leaves, and pumped up with tons of vegetables including potatoes, carrots, celery, mushrooms, and peas. A complete meal in one pot that requires no pre-cooking. Just toss everything into the crock pot – which you can even do the night before – then press start!
How to Make This Recipe
To a 6 quart crock pot add: 1-1/2lbs stew meat cut into bite-sized pieces, 1 chopped onion, 2 chopped carrots, 2 ribs chopped celery, 8oz chopped mushrooms and 3 cloves minced garlic.
Rounding the stew out is 3 Tablespoons tomato paste, 1 Tablespoon gluten-free Worcestershire sauce, and spice cupboard staples including salt, pepper, dried thyme, dried rosemary, and a bay leaf.
Add 32oz gluten-free beef broth then cook on low for 6-8 hours or until the meat is fall-apart tender.
Once the meat and vegetables are tender, whisk together 1/4 cup gluten-free flour (or AP flour if not GF) with a scoop of the cooking liquid then stream it in and give the stew a big stir.
Cook on high for 30-45 more minutes, or until the stew is slightly thickened, then stir in 1/2 cup frozen peas and let them warm through for about 5 minutes. Serve with a side salad, Gluten Free Focaccia, or crostini for dunking, then dig in!
More Crock Pot Recipes You’ll Love
- Crock Pot BBQ Pulled Pork
- Crock Pot Mojo Pork with Cuban-Style Black Beans
- Crock Pot Italian Beef Sandwiches
- Crock Pot Shredded Beef Enchiladas
- Crock Pot Chicken and Wild Rice Soup
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1-1/2 lbs stew meat, cut into bite sized pieces
- 1 lb white potatoes, about 1 large potato, peeled then chopped
- 8 oz whole mushrooms, cut into quarters or sixths if large
- 2 carrots, chopped
- 2 ribs celery, chopped
- 1 onion, chopped
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 3 Tablespoons tomato paste
- 1 Tablespoon gluten free Worcestershire sauce
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 3/4 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon dried rosemary
- 1 bay leaf
- 32 oz gluten free beef broth
- 1/4 cup gluten free flour, or AP flour if not GF
- 1/2 cup frozen peas
Directions
- Add ingredients from stew meat to beef broth into a 6-quart crock pot then cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours, or until meat is fall-apart tender.
- Add flour to a bowl then add a ladleful of cooking liquid and whisk until smooth. Pour back into crock pot then stir well to combine and cook on high for 30-45 more minutes, or until broth has thickened (Note: broth will continue to thicken as it cools). Stir in peas then let sit until heated through, 5 minutes, before serving.
Notes
- Leftovers, when cold, will be thick. Heat it up and if it’s still too thick feel free to splash in beef broth to your desired level.
Nutrition
Nutritional values are estimates only. Please read our full nutrition information disclaimer.
Thanks for a Gluten Free Recipe. I was Happpppy I when I saw GF. You’re my kind of girl. Merry Christmas. ? I will use this recipe soon.
I’ve made this a few times, and it has become my go-to recipe for beef stew! Yummy! Thanks!
I tried your Beef stew, Oh my Goodness it was so delicious! Perfect is good enough.
If I may suggest, if anyone has the extra time braising the meat and vegetables before
Adding to crock, the time is worth the extra flavor. I did my meat & onions first and vegetables second Deglazing the bottom of the pot with a little stock. I never liked beef stew I was making this for my husband but you now have a convert! Can’t wait for seconds!
Note I have an old crock and anytime I use the low setting nothing ever cooks in 6-8 hrs it’s more like 10-12. So for this recipe I used Hi for about 4-41/2 hrs and it was
perfect.
I wanted so badly to love this! My meat is like shoe leather before my veggies are even done. The taste of the veggies will be good without the meat though, will try again with much larger stew meat pieces. I’ve loved all your other recipes though!
I just made this beef stew as I wait for the ice storm to arrive. It was delicious. I normally think that some stew broth is too thick but this one is just the right consistency and it has great flavor with the bay leaf, thyme and rosemary. I’m not a mushroom fan so I just added in more carrot and celery. I will definitely be making this one again. It’s hearty yet healthy with all the veggies. Thanks Kristen!
So glad you loved it, Jackie! Thanks for the feedback!
What if you’re not home 30-45 min before dinner to do the thickening part? Can you put that in 2 hours beforehand?
Hi there! So I made a mistake and only read to the part where you said that i could put all of the ingredients in the crock pot and turn it on. So, I did just that, incliding the flour and peas. Have I ruined the recipe? Does anyone know what the outcome will be? Oopsie!!!
Thank you!!
Yum, yum, f%ckin yum!!
I just wanted to pop in and let you know that as a diagnosed celiac, I’m a big ingredient watcher, and I thought I should let you know that Worcester shire sauce is not gluten free. It is made with malt vinegar, which is a barley product. Wheat, barley, and rye are the main products you want to avoid if your dish is to be advertised as gluten free. Instead, I substituted half red wine vinegar and half gluten free soy sauce. I hope this reaches your celiac readers. Cheers!
Hi Andrea! I have Celiac Disease and use Lea & Perrin’s Worcestershire Sauce, which is gluten-free. I hope this helps!
This looks delicious and I have everything on hand to make this tonight. However just not enough time to cook it on low the whole time. Can this be cooked on high for 4-5 hours instead?
Hi Molly! I haven’t personally tried it, but I think it could work!
Thank you :-).
Stew is my comfort food anytime of the year. Thank you for a delicious, easy way to make it. I love crockpot meals. Thank you for sharing!
I was curious., when you prepare the meal the day before and put it in the fridge, do you also add the beef broth? Or do you add the broth the next day just before you put the crockpot on?
Yep, I add the beef broth at night too!