How to Cook Beef Stew on the Stove
Do you want to learn how to cook beef stew on the stove? There’s just something special about humble beef stew filled with flavorful and tender chunks of beef and bright vegetables in a delicious thick sauce that has been slowly simmering on the stove. This delicious, no-fuss, easy beef stew recipe might just become your family’s newest favorite comfort food. And you can add whatever leftover vegetables and broth you might have in your fridge, which makes it a great thrifty kitchen recipe!
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I love making hot stews and soups with simple ingredients during cold months. Not only are they filling and satisfying and bring warmth to the body, but soups and stews made with your homemade bone broth are extremely nourishing and cheap!
Beef Stew Ingredients
Before moving to our farm and raising our own beef, we ordered half a cow every year from a local farmer. I highly recommend this if you have a good farmer near you. It’s a huge cost-savings if you can buy a quarter, half, or even a whole cow directly from the farm!! After that, you let your butcher know how you want your beef packaged such as the quantity and thickness of certain cuts.
Tip: Always get everything you can from the butcher. Bones are excellent for making bone broth and organ meat is a superfood! Don’t let anything usable go to waste.
Beef Chuck Roast
The star of the show in this dish is beef chuck roast that you chop into large chunks. You can also buy chopped beef chuck roast better known as beef stew meat to save some time.
I like to leave the beef stew chunks exactly how the butcher packaged them because they are on the large side. I think it makes this stew look more rustic.
Root Vegetables
This classic beef stew recipe will use Irish potatoes (white or russet potatoes), carrots, celery, and onion.
However, you can also add or substitute other hearty vegetables like leeks, parsnips, sweet potatoes, green beans, green peas, or corn.
Beef Bone Broth
This is the perfect recipe to use your homemade beef bone broth.
If you haven’t made your own yet, you can use good beef broth or beef stock from the grocery store. You can also just use water.
Herbs and Spices
Adding dried or fresh herbs and spices to season your stew makes it extra-flavorful and delicious. I added dried basil, thyme, salt, black pepper, ground coriander, bay leaf, and fresh, minced garlic.
Other herbs like paprika, rosemary, and oregano can also be added for an extra punch of flavor.
Other Ingredients
You’ll need some all-purpose flour or freshly milled flour along with some good tomato paste and olive oil.
Optional: You can also add some red wine, balsamic vinegar, or worcestershire sauce to add a deeper flavor.
Instructions for How to Cook Beef Stew on the Stove
This beef stew is so easy to make. So aside from some prep work in the beginning, you can pretty much leave it alone on your stove top to slowly simmer away while you do chores around the house.
Tools
You will need a large Dutch oven or large pot with lid, cutting board, two mixing bowls, knife, measuring cups, measuring spoons, and a wooden spoon or spatula.
Instructions
In a mixing bowl, combine all the flour, salt, and pepper. Then add your chunks of beef stew meat and coat all the meat very well in the flour mixture.
In a large Dutch oven, heat up your oil over medium to medium-high heat. When the oil is hot, add a third of your beef chunks so that you don’t over-crowd your pot. Make sure that each piece of beef has room to brown properly.
Cook both sides of the beef chunks and remove to a separate mixing bowl when they get golden brown. Continue cooking the meat until all the chunks are nicely browned.
Add all the cooked meat and juices back to the pot along with any excess flour, salt, and pepper from the other mixing bowl. Cook over medium heat for about 30 seconds.
Then stir in the beef bone broth, tomato paste, onion, garlic, coriander, basil, thyme, and bay leaves.
Make sure to scrape the brown bits off the bottom of the pan as you stir. Mix well and bring to a boil. Then reduce the heat, cover, and simmer for 1 hour and 15 minutes until the meat is nearly tender.
When the timer goes off, add in the potatoes, carrots, and celery. Then cover and simmer for 30 more minutes.
The beef, potatoes, and carrots should be fork-tender so that a fork can easily pierce it when it’s done cooking.
Make sure to taste your sauce to see if you need to add any additional seasonings.
If your sauce is too runny and not as thick as you’d like, you can add some additional flour or arrowroot powder by the tablespoon. Mix it in well until you get your desired result.
Bread Options
Serve up your hearty beef stew to your family with homemade dinner rolls or crusty bread like french bread.
Storing Your Beef Stew
Store your beef stew in an airtight container in your refrigerator. It’s best eaten within 3 days but you can also freeze your stew.
If you feel ambitious, try pressure canning your leftover beef stew so that you can have a quick and healthy convenience meal on your pantry shelf!
Easy Beef Stew Recipe Card
Stovetop Beef Stew
Equipment
- enameled cast iron dutch oven or large pot
- cutting board
- knife
- wood spoon
- 2 mixing bowl
- measuring cups and spoons
Ingredients
- 2 pounds beef stew meat
- 1/4 cup flour
- 2 tbsp salt
- 1 tbsp black pepper
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 2 quarts beef bone broth
- 3 tbsp tomato paste
- 1 onion, diced
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 tbsp ground coriander
- 1 tsp dried basil, crushed
- 1 tsp dried thyme, crushed
- 3 bay leaves
- 4 medium potatoes, diced
- 4 cups carrots, sliced
- 2 stalks celery, sliced
Instructions
- In a large mixing bowl, combine flour, salt, and pepper. Add all the beef stew meat and coat each piece well. (Add more flour, as necessary to give a good coating.) Set aside any leftover flour, salt, and pepper.
- In a large Dutch oven or large pot, add the olive oil and turn the heat on to medium. When the oil is hot, add one-third of the coated meat and brown it well. Remove to a separate mixing bowl. Continue cooking the meat in thirds until all the meat is golden brown. Then add all the meat and juices back to the pot along with the leftover flour, salt, and pepper. Cook over medium heat for about 30 seconds.
- Add the beef bone broth, tomato paste, onion, garlic, coriander, basil, thyme, and bay leaves. Mix well and bring to a boil. Then reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 1 hour and 15 minutes until the meat is nearly tender.
- Add potatoes, carrots, and celery when the timer goes off. Cover and simmer for 30 more minutes.
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I love making beef stew! It’s such a comforting meal!
I couldn’t agree more!
With all the rain we have been having, soups have been made often in my home. Love soups made on the stove because it makes your house smell delicious! Thanks
I agree! I absolutely love it when the house smells yummy, too. It’s both aroma therapy and comfort food!
This looks delicious. I always cook mine in the oven. Nice option to prepare it.
This looks absolutely delicious! I love beef stew and haven’t made it since last winter I think. Now you’re giving me some weekend dinner options – yum! I think it’s pretty amazing that you raise your own beef 😍
OOo I have never flour-coated the beef before! What does that do? (I am no expert chef here!)
I don’t claim to be an expert, either! LOL. I like to flour, salt, and pepper the meat for a couple of reasons. 1) I think the flour and seasonings make the beef chunks taste better and brown better. 2) Extra flour in the pot makes your sauce thicker like it’s supposed to be. Otherwise the sauce might be too runny and watery. If you try it the next time you make beef stew, I’d love to know what you think!
I have never made beef stew before, but this looks absolutely delicious. I mean, I love beef stew, I just have never really made it before. And I’m hungry, so now I feel like this is going on next week’s meal list. lol Thank you!
Do you have instructions for making beef bone broth? I only found the post about chicken.