Slow Cooker Beef Stew
Stew… perfect for a cold winter day. It’s a hearty man type meal. And that’s fitting since it’s one of the weekly lunch dishes I occasionally fix up for Josh. Normally slow cooker recipes don’t call for much prep work. This recipe calls for a teensy bit of prep work but don’t let that scare you off. 30 minutes of prep time will give you a tasty dish in around 7 hours. Okay, that sounds like forever. Keep in mind the wonderful part of using a slow cooker is that not only are you not slaving away in the kitchen for a longer time, your house is filled with a wonderful aroma of whatever flavorful dish you happen to be fixing up that day. It’s a bit torturous depending on what you’re making and how much you love it, but it’s worth it in the end.
Slow Cooker Beef Stew
Ingredients
- 3 lbs beef stew meat, cubed
- 1/4 Cup all purpose flour
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 3 Tb olive oil
- 1 Cup baby carrots
- 4 large russet potatoes, cubed
- 1 Tb parsley
- 1 tsp ground black pepper
- 2 Cups boiling water
- 1 1 oz pkg onion soup mix
- 3 Tb unsalted butter
- 3 yellow onions, sliced
- 1 /4 Cup red wine
- 1/4 Cup warm water
- 2 Tb all purpose flour
Instructions
- Get the veggie prep work out of the way first, you'll be glad you did. Cube your potatoes and slice your carrots in half width wise, set aside. Cube your stew meat. Even if you purchase stew meat that has been cut down, some pieces are still awfully large. Toss your meat into a large plastic bag, add flour and salt. Seal your bag and shake to coat. When each pieces has a nice four coating, set aside.
- Heat oil in a skillet of your choosing. I prefer our large electric skillet since it accomodates more than our fry pans and there is no guessing on temperature. Carefully add meat and cook until browned on all sides. Transfer meat to your slow cooker, along with your potatoes, carrots, parsley and pepper. In a bowl, stir together boiling water and onion soup mix. Pour soup type mixture into slow cooker.
- Back to the skillet. Melt your butter and toss in onions. When the onions are softened nicely, remove from skillet and transfer to slow cooker. Cool off your skillet just a tad, pour red wine in and stir to loosen any onion or meat particles. Pour liquid and particles into slow cooker.
- Hard part is done! Cover and cook on high for 30 minutes, then switch to low for 6 hours. Feel free to stir up your mixture at the first 30 minute mark, just remember to replace the lid when you are done. Now you can sit back and relax taking in the wonderful aroma. When 6 hours is up, stir in remaining flour and water. Cook uncovered for an additional 15 minutes or until it has thickened up a bit.
