Slow Cooker Apple Cider Beef Stew
ShareA seasonal twist on a classic beef stew, made even easier in the slow cooker! Tender beef and root vegetables, flavored with a hint of apple cider.
I’m a huge fan of using my slow cooker throughout the year, but I know I’m probably in the minority there. Of course, now that it’s unofficially Fall, I can push slow cooker recipes your way and encourage you to dust them off and make a permanent spot on the counter for them.
Because you’ll want to use your slow cooker all of the time!
Regardless of if I’m home or not, I love the convenience of tossing in a bunch of ingredients and coming back to a delicious meal later in the day. It makes dinner so much easier! Serve and eat. No fuss! It’s just ready to go when we’re ready! I couldn’t love that more.
So far I’ve stuck primarily to savory dishes in the slow cooker, with the exception of apple sauce and apple butter. But, I hope to venture more into the idea non-savory recipes in the slow cooker soon. This is kind of a nice way to transition into that.
A sweet seasonal drink paired with a classic savory dish. It’s a fun Fall twist on beef stew. Tender beef and root vegetables, flavored with a hint of apple cider.
Dust off your slow cooker and whip up this apple cider beef stew!
Slow Cooker Apple Cider Beef Stew
Ingredients
- 2 lb beef stew meat
- 1 C yellow onion
- 1 C carrots
- 3/4 C celery
- 3 C russet potatoes
- 1 tsp ground black pepper
- 2 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp dried thyme
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp cumin
- 2 3/4 C beef broth
- 3/4 C apple cider
- 1/4 C all purpose flour *see notes
Instructions
- Prepare vegetables. Chop onions, celery and carrots. Peel and cube potatoes into roughly 1-inch pieces. Add vegetables to a 5-6quart slow cooker bowl. Cut stew meat into manageable 1 to 2-inch bite size pieces. Add to slow cooker. Sprinkle with salt, pepper, thyme, cinnamon and cumin. Finally add beef broth and apple cider. Gently stir, being sure to keep all potatoes completely covered by liquid.
- Cover and cook on high for 4 hours or low for 8.
- In the last 10-15 minutes, remove 1 cup of liquid, whisk in a spoonful of flour at a time, up to 1/4 cup. Return to slow cooker, gently stirring to combine. Allow mixture to continue cooking and thicken slightly.
- Divide among bowls, serving warm.
Notes
Hi Rachel.
Brings back a lot of memories, just seeing the photo’s. When I was young we used to get a lot of Irish stew’s because both my parents where Irish.
I have seen many recipes done with a slow cooker and you being the expert I’d like to ask if this recipe can be cooked quicker than by the slow cooker method.
Hope you understand what I’m asking.
Ghaelach (AKA – James Stuart White)
I haven’t personally made this outside of the slow cooker, but if you’re familiar with cooking stew in a large stockpot then it would follow the same general guidelines. Keep in mind that cooking in a large stockpot will still require minimum of 30-60 minutes, but that’s obviously faster than a slow cooker method. Good luck! :)
I can’t wait to try this; sounds yummy! I LOVE the bowls you chose to use to exhibit the Slow Cooker Apple Cider Beef Stew! Pottery or ceramic? FYI, I use my slow cooker year round! Have a beautiful weekend Rachel. God bless!
Thanks Deb!
A perfect fall stew! I can’t wait to be warming up with this stew!
Thanks Sommer!
Rachel, this looks and sounds amazing!! I’m so ready for fall, even though I’m a year-round crock pot user. I’m pinning this one for later, can’t wait to try it!! Thanks for sharing!
Steph
Thanks Stephanie!
I’m still resisting my fall-ish impulses, but if my husband saw this, it would be on the MUST.MAKE.NOW. list! Beef stew is such perfect fall food!
I’m in full blown Fall mode now. Once September hits, there’s no looking back ;)
I love the combination of sweet and savory! This looks delicious — pinned!
Thanks Ashley!
This stew looks perfect. I love my slow cooker. I think it’s time to dust it off from it’s summer time nap!
Thanks Liz!
This looks amazing! Best comfort food!
Thanks Amanda!
This stew looks wonderful!
Thanks Marla!
My slow cooker is my best friend. And your recipe will be perfect for cooler weather. I’m pinning this one for later!
Thanks Jen!
Looks delicious! Can you please tell me where you got those bowls? I love them!!
Thank you. And the bowls have been discontinued, sorry!
What a wonderful twist! Love the photos too. Gorgeous!
Thanks Lindsey!
I’m making this tonight! I was reading the directions and I don’t see where to add the cinnamon. I’m assuming with the other spices obviously. I just didn’t want to put the cinnamon in of it’s a typo!!
Correct, it should be added in with the other spices. Sorry about that! Enjoy! :)
Ok just wanted to make sure I wasn’t losing my mind! Thanks Rachel! I’m pretending it’s Fall here even though it’s about 100 degrees every single day!
Hi Rachel,
I cannot wait to make this recipe this week! I have one, very silly (ok stupid) question. Does this recipe call for apple cider vinegar or apple cider juice?
It just dawned on me as I was making my shopping list.
It is apple cider (juice), but not apple juice. Hope that helps! Enjoy! :)
This was an amazing dish! Thanks for sharing!!
So glad you enjoyed it!
Rachel thank you so much for replying to my question last week! This was a big hit! My step father eats like a bird, but went in for seconds and took the small amount of leftovers home with him along with snagging the printed recipe I had one the counter from cooking it. Certainly will be making this again soon!
Not a problem! And I’m glad to hear it was so well received! Thanks for sharing. :)
I made this tonight and it was SO incredibly delicious and flavorful. The perfect stew for cool nights. Thanks so much for sharing!
So glad to hear you enjoyed it, Danah!
I made this last night and it easily the best beef stew I’ve ever had!
So glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for sharing, Nancy!