The Best Beef Stew – Easy Winter Dinner Recipe

This cozy beef stew recipe is super easy to make, it’s healthy and filling, and warms you right up on cold winter days. I love to make this beef stew on Monday nights with the leftover Sunday roast beef! It’s a great way to use the leftover roast and an easy weeknight meal. Serve with warm rolls.

A traditional Sunday dinner around the farmhouse is Roast beef, and we usually have enough leftovers to make a nice pot of beef stew for dinner on Monday night. If I have pan drippings leftover (when I don’t make gravy) I save them for soup the next day too.

This simple stew uses pantry staples that you probably already have in your kitchen like, carrots, potatoes, celery, onion, and frozen peas.

We live in Idaho where we grow an abundance of beef and potatoes… So we really enjoy a stereotypical meat and potatoes kind of dinner, just like this!

Ingredients:

• 1 large Onion – diced small. Or use baby onions.
• 2 garlic cloves chopped small
• 2 tablespoons cup butter to saute onion and garlic on.
• 3 -4 cups broth, stock, pan drippings, or water. (Use more if you want more broth.)
• 3 celery stalks – sliced down the middle then chopped into small pieces.
• 2-4 large carrots – chopped into 1/4 rounds.
• 3 medium potatoes – diced into medium pieces.
• Beef – 2 cups or more of diced beef. (or leftover roast beef)
• 1/3 cup butter
• 1/2 cup flour
• 1 cup water or broth.
• 1 cup frozen peas.
• Seasonings, Salt & Pepper to taste

Tools You’ll Need

You only need a couple of tools, that you probably already have around the kitchen, to make this simple recipe!

1. Cutting Board
2. Large Chopping Knife
3. Large Soup Pan
4. Whisk
5. Measuring Cup
6. Large Wooden Spoon (for stirring)

How To Make Beef Stew

If you are using leftover roast beef for this recipe follow below. If you are using raw beef, cook it first with the broth till tender, then follow the instructions below!

• First, dice up your onion and garlic, and saute them in your soup pan with 2 tablespoons of butter for 1-2 minutes. Or use baby onions whole.
• The dice up your carrots and celery, and add them to your pot.
• Add 3-4 cups broth or water, and turn heat to medium and bring to a low boil.
• Wash & dice potatoes and add them to your pot.
• Dice beef and add to pot.
• SImmer with low boil till carrots and potatoes are tender.
• Make your roux – in a smaller sauce pan or non stick skillet melt 1/3 cup butter, then sprinkle 1/2 cup flour over bubbling butter and let it cook into the butter till lightly browned. Whisk in 1 cup water just till thick.
• Add roux to beef stew and stir to incorporate well. (This will thicken your stew, and add a wonderful flavor.)
• Add salt, pepper and seasonings to taste. (Optional seasonings below.)
• Remove from heat.
• Add 1 cup frozen peas. (This will help cool stew before serving!)
• Enjoy!

What is the difference between beef stew and beef spoup?

The only difference between beef stew and beef soup is the consistency. Beef stew is meant to be thicker, and heartier than beef soup. Beef soup has more broth! You can easily turn beef stew into beef soup by adding more broth!

What To Serve With Beef Stew

I love to serve warm soft & buttery sourdough rolls (or homemade yeast rolls with this bread recipe) with beef stew! This makes for a satisfying meal that even the pickiest eaters love.

Another good side dish to serve with beef stew is salad! I like to serve salad in bowls first then fill the same bowls with beef stew… That way you have fewer dishes to clean after dinner!

How To Make Good Beef Stew

To make really good beef stew, use beef broth or stock instead of water! This adds a depth of flavor that you can’t get any other way. If you don’t have with of those on hand, and a tablespoon of beef bouillon!

Seasonings make a huge difference in the taste of your stew. You can add mushroom powder, garlic or onion powders, and celery seed. You can also use rosemary or thyme if you like those flavors!

How Do You Make Beef Stew Soft and Tender?

How do you make stew meat tender? Good question! Stew meat is usually from leftover pieces from tougher cuts of beef the butcher and made, so they need extra cooking time.

Make beef soft and tender, cook the meat first! If you are using raw beef, add it to the soup pan with the broth and boil it over medium heat for an hour. Then, test the meat to see if it is tender, add time as needed to soften beef.

Using a leftover roast is the perfect way to get soft tender beef stew because the meat has already been cooked!

Should I Brown Stew Meat First?

Browning meat first helps add a great flavor to stew! And, If you are using raw beef then you should cook it first. (Especially if it’s “stew meat”.) Stew meat comes from leftover cutes the butcher makes and is usually tougher cuts of meat. Instead of just browning it, you should boil it in broth till tender then add other ingredients.

What Are The Best Kind of Potatoes To Use In Stew?

Yukon Gold potatoes and red potatoes hold their shape best in stews. Russet and other potatoes will disintegrate faster into the stew. (Especially in a leftover stew!)