Slow Cooker Beef Stew Recipe in Crock Pot EASY!| Best Recipe Box (2024)

FAQs

Do you have to brown stew meat before putting it in the crock pot? ›

"Browning, or caramelizing, meat before putting it into a slow cooker isn't 100 percent necessary, but it is well worth the effort for the most flavorful and full-bodied end result," he says. "The caramelized surface of the meat will lend rich flavor and color to the finished dish."

Her recipe uses bacon, red wine, tomato paste & beef broth to enhance the yummy beef flavors! But I believe the secret to the tender beef is… slow roasting the stew in a covered pot in the oven! That's it!

Add spices such as turmeric, coriander and cumin at the early stage of cooking, when you are frying onions and garlic, to enhance the taste of the beef stew. Fresh herbs like coriander and bay leaves also contribute a distinct flavour without making the dish too spicy for the younger members of the family.

In the morning, put the raw beef in the bottom of your slow cooker. Drain the vegetables, and pour in on top of the beef. Pour in the stewed tomatoes and tomato juice.

Because your slow cooker will have a tightly sealed lid, the liquid won't evaporate so if you're adapting a standard recipe, it's best to reduce the liquid by roughly a third. It should just cover the meat and vegetables.

Searing meat before slow cooking adds flavor through caramelization, but it's not mandatory. If you skip searing, you might miss some depth of flavor, but the slow cooker will still cook the meat thoroughly.

Your onions will be fine, but mushy potatoes and carrots are a no-no. Instead, add them about 20 minutes before the end of cooking. When they're tender, the stew is done.

Laurence further reveals that "adding wine or other alcohol brings out different flavors (those that are alcohol-soluble) that wouldn't otherwise be expressed in the dish. There are flavors in tomatoes that are alcohol-soluble, so adding red wine along with tomato paste also helps to enhance beef stew."

The three main thickening agents for gravies are flour, cornflour and arrowroot. The first two are normally used in savoury dishes while arrowroot tends to be used in sweet dishes – that said, arrowroot will work in a savoury dish as it has no flavour.

Place firm, slow-cooking root vegetables like potatoes and carrots at the bottom of the crock and pile the meat on top. Set the heat level: A general rule of thumb is that cooking on the low setting (170 degrees F for most models) takes about twice as long as cooking on high (280 degrees F on most models).

Why are my potatoes and carrots still hard in a slow cooker? ›

Insufficient Liquid: If there wasn't enough liquid in the crockpot, it could have caused uneven cooking. Potatoes need to be fully submerged in liquid to cook evenly. Old Potatoes: Very old or stored potatoes can become starchy and may not soften as well during cooking. It's best to use fresh, firm potatoes.

Tender vegetables such as zucchini and beans can be added to your dish in last ¾ - 1 hour of cooking when cooking on High, or 2 hours if cooking on Low. Hard, starchy vegetables like potato and carrots are best added around 3 hours before the meal is done if cooking on High, and 4 hours on Low.

What will likely happen is, it'll turn out just fine, but you'll get a less flavorful outcome. Sure, the meat will be tender. Browning doesn't affect tenderness. Cooking “all day” doesn't improve flavor, or achieve the goal of tenderness, any more more than cooking the stew 3–4 hours.

You can add beef to the slow cooker without browning. Searing it in a hot pan to create a caramelised crust is not necessary but can make a richer flavour. Simply add the meat to your slow cooker with aromatics, stock and sauces and cook either on High for 4-5 hours or on Low for 5-8 hours.

Not Browning the Meat

We developed this recipe to have maximum flavor with minimal fuss, so we skipped the usual step of browning the meat and used tomato paste and balsamic vinegar to build and enhance the flavor instead. If you prefer to brown the meat when making this stew, go right ahead!

Yes, you most certainly can cook raw meat in the slow cooker! You put it in “cold”, with whatever liquid your recipe calls for, turn it on either “low” or “high” depending on your recipe (I usually start it on “high” for a couple hours, then turn it to “low”), and in 6–7–8 hours, it's now COOKED meat!