When it comes to flavor, this classic beef stew isn’t messing around! This is seriously the best beef stew recipe ever! It’s made with chunks of slow-braised beef, baby potatoes, mushrooms, carrots and peas. This hearty and warming chunky soup is so aromatic and flavorful, you’ll be coming back to this dinner recipe again and again!
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How to Make Beef Stew
The secret to making the best stew is time! The longer the stew gets to simmer away, the better it’s going to taste! Because it requires a few hours of cooking time, this dinner recipe is perfect for making on the weekend. Start by choosing the right meat: I recommend using large, 1 1/2-inch chunks of beef tri-tip, beef roast or even beef short ribs. Preheat a large pan and sear the meat all over, giving it nice color. This step is going to add lots of flavor so don’t rush the process!
I love a good, chunky soup and this one is made with halved baby potatoes, carrots, sliced mushrooms and even peas! The baby potatoes are sweet and tender, making them perfect for this recipe. For the sweet peas, either fresh or frozen will work well. And for the mushrooms, I recommend going with baby bella mushrooms – they’re firm in texture and delicious! After browning the mushrooms, I add a few tablespoons of flour, which will help thicken the stew as it cooks.
The beef and vegetables then combined with red wine, beef broth, tomato sauce and Worcestershire sauce. If you don’t use wine for cooking, you can replace it with more beef broth but I highly recommend adding it. The wine will add lots of flavor that you just can’t get otherwise. I also season the beef stew with smoked paprika and Italian herbs. Once the stew comes up to a boil, reduce the heat and it cook away for at least 1 to 1 1/2 hours – the longer it simmers, the softer and more tender the beef will be.
Italian Herbs Seasoning
I like to add my own Italian herb blend to this soup recipe and it’s super easy to make: I combine 1/2 teaspoon EACH of the following dried herbs: basil, oregano, marjoram, thyme and rosemary. If you enjoy fennel seed, add about 4 to 5 seeds. This is a great herb blend for the stew and can also be used for other recipes!
More Recipes!
If you enjoyed this hearty and warming recipe, check out some of my other favorite dinner recipes!
- Braised Beef Short Ribs – the best recipe for fall-off-the-bone, extra tender short ribs in a red wine tomato sauce!
- Smoky Chipotle Beef Chili – warming and hearty chili with loads of beef and smoky chipotle peppers!
- Stewed Beef & Potatoes – a favorite Slavic recipe that’s packed with flavor!
- Classic Italian Lasagna – the best ever cheese and meat lasagna made with slow-cooked bolognese sauce!
- Ukrainian Braised Pork – hearty pork shoulder braised in a creamy mushroom sauce with mashed potatoes!
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I saw your recipe and really like to try it. Question: can i use slow cooker to cook this dish? If yes, how can it be done? Thank u!
Yes, this would be so great in a slow cooker! You would need to follow the recipe, frying the beef and veggies first. Then place everything into the slow cooker, including the potatoes, and set it on high heat for about 6 to 7 hours. Cook until the meat is very tender. If you want your stew to be on the thicker side, reduce the beef broth from 4 cups to 3. Enjoy! 🙂
Made this the other day and was SO yummy! Several of my friends asked for the recipe and I happily forwarded the link to your page. Thank you for sharing!
I’m so glad to hear that!! 🙂 And thank you so much for sharing my recipe! 🙂
What type/brand of red wine do you recommend?
I love using a good cabernet for this recipe. Any brand that you enjoy drinking will work well for this recipe 🙂
LOVEDDDD this recipe!! I used Italian passata in place of the Italian herbs and tomato sauce and it was perfect! Will definitely keep this recipe 🙂
I’m so glad you enjoyed the recipe!! 🙂
amazing!! I have made this stew probably 5 times over the past few months. My boyfriend loves it, I love it and it has now become a staple in our home. Thank you for the wonderful recipe!
Hi Jessica! That’s amazing!! I’m so glad you and your family enjoy the recipe!! 🙂 Makes my day to hear that!
This look delish and I plan on making it. I don’t really like to drink red wine so I don’t know what brand of red wine would be a good choice to use in the recipe. But I would like to use it in this recipe since you have explained that it enhances the flavor. Can you please recommend a brand? I would hate to go to all the effort of making this and choosing a bad wine. Thank you!!
It’s so delicious, you’ll love it! 🙂 I usually use zinfandel or cabernet for cooking. A great grocery store brand is Bogle. They have a great old vine zinfandel wine, too! Enjoy! 🙂
Thanks for recipe, made it tonight and turned out very yummy.
could i reduce stock so it turns out abit thicker next time?
You’re very welcome! I’m so glad you enjoyed the recipe! Yes, absolutely! You can cut it down to even half the amount for a very thick stew. You can also double the amount of flour.
Clearly, beef stew recipes are not all the same. ATK/CI was my go-to baseline for many years, and I’ve made the occasional Internet recipe, but man this is a home run. That stew broth was delicious even before i set the meat to simmer. My guess is the separate sautee and Worcester and something else or two I can’t quite put my finger on…maybe the mushroom/butter umami? I never put mushroom in beef stew before but wow. Your recipe is seriously an ORDER OF MAGNITUDE better than I tried in two decades of eating and making this.
Hi Lorrin! I’m so glad you found my recipe and gave it a try! Makes my day to hear about how much you enjoyed it! It’s definitely one of our favorite meals!
it is a liitle to sweet for me .i left the sugar out the second time. what do you suggest
Hi! If it’s still sweet even without the sugar, try adding a couple tablespoons of balsamic vinegar or even lemon juice to the stew. It will add more acidity.
I decided to cook the meat all at once instead of batches, and unfortunately it overcrowded the pan, and even after 2 hours of simmering, was very chew. The baby potatoes were quartered and still weren’t cooked, I think I could have put them in the beginning. It also wasn’t very thick, which I think was because I didn’t have enough flour.
Hi Joseph! Sorry to hear that your stew didn’t turn out well. What heat setting did you have it on? Sounds like maybe the heat wasn’t high enough and the meat wasn’t cooking. I really like using tri-tip for this recipe, the meat always comes out tender. Hope the next try turns out better for you!
How do you make the b eef broth? Or do you buy that somewhere?
Hi Daniel! I used store-bought beef broth for this recipe.