This Dutch oven beef stew recipe offers tender beef simmered in a nutritious broth, packed with hearty veggies and herbs. It’s a comforting and filling family favorite for chilly nights.
During the colder months, it sometimes feels as though I spend the entire day in the kitchen. That’s when it’s nice to throw something like this hearty Dutch oven beef stew in the Dutch oven, allowing it to simmer on the stove while we work on starting sauerkraut or preparing a batch of apple butter.
Knowing there is a hearty meal at the end of the day gives me peace of mind. We need all the energy we can get on these long and fulfilling days.
This easy beef stew recipe is the comfort food of all comfort foods featuring tender pieces of beef, hearty vegetables, and the taste of fresh herbs. Serve it up with some crusty bread with homemade butter or sourdough herb and cheese rolls. It’s a favorite meal for all ages in our home, guaranteeing everyone’s appetites will be satisfied.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
Nutritious – The whole ingredients that make up this classic beef stew recipe add a wide range of nutrition into one dish, while still being a delicious meal your whole family will love.
Simple – This easy Dutch oven beef stew is made up of simple whole ingredients that you probably have on hand already, or are easy to pick up next time you are at the grocery store.
Comforting – This is the best beef stew and is a total comfort food. Warm and perfect for a chilly day.
Ingredients
All purpose flour – I like to use einkorn flour in this recipe, so you can sub for that if you would like. I like using einkorn flour whenever fermentation (aka sourdough) can’t be utilized, since it is easier to break down and has a lower gluten content than conventional flour.
A full ingredient list with exact amounts can be found in the recipe card below.
How to Make Dutch Oven Beef Stew
Step 1: Add olive oil to cast-iron Dutch oven or soup pot. Add beef to the hot oil, giving a few minutes on each side to develop flavor.
Step 2: Remove partially cooked meat and set aside.
Step 3: Add diced onion, and toss in oil and beef fat. Cook for about 3 or 4 minutes until the onions start to soften.
Step 4: Add butter to the onions. Once melted, stir in all purpose flour and cook for 2 minutes.
Step 5: Pour in beef broth and add carrots, celery, potatoes, Herbs de Provence, bay leaves, and salt.
Step 6: Add carrots, celery, potatoes, Herbs de Provence, bay leaves, and salt.
Step 7: Add partially cooked browned beef back to the pot. Reduce heat to low. Cover and simmer for 45 minutes, or until you have fork-tender beef and vegetables.
Step 8: Add frozen peas and cook for an additional few minutes. You want them cooked, but still bright green. Remove the bay leaves from the stew. Taste and add additional salt and pepper, if necessary.
Tips
- Brown the beef. Even if you want to skip the step, it’s well worth the extra effort in maximum flavor.
- When serving hot soups and stews, I like to add some frozen peas to my kids’ bowls to help cool it down without watering it down (like an ice cube would).
- This recipe can be made on the stove (the quick way) or in the slow cooker. See directions below.
- You can make this gluten free by substituting the flour for cornstarch. Create a cornstarch slurry by mixing together equal parts cornstarch and water, mixing well, and adding towards the end of the cooking time. Pour a little of the slurry in, stir, and let it come to a simmer. Continue to add more slurry until desired thickness is achieved. Allow to cook a few minutes before serving.
Recipe FAQs
The stew should never reach a boil once the stewing beef is added or it’ll become very tough. Low and slow is the way to achieve tender meat in your stew.
Browning beef, while not essential, adds a great deal of caramelization and depth of flavor to the dish. Even if you are tempted to skip this step, take the time to brown – you won’t be disappointed.
This hearty beef stew is great either way. Brown the beef in a hot skillet. Place beef and remaining ingredients in a slow cooker (except the flour and peas). Cook on high for 3-4 hours or low for 7-8 hours. Once the time is up, mix together flour with 1/2 cup of broth, pour into the slow cooker, add peas, and cook on high for 30 minutes.
Let the leftover stew cool to room temperature and store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3-4 days. I would not recommend freezing this soup because the texture of the potatoes will likely change and not be as good.
More Dinner Recipes from the Farmhouse
- Maple Roasted Chicken With Sweet Potatoes And Apples
- The Best Shepherd’s Pie From Scratch
- Creamy Chicken And Mushroom Pasta
- Pumpkin Chili Recipe With Ground Beef
- Best Chicken Pot Pie Recipe With Sourdough Biscuits
If you try this recipe and love it, I would love it if you could come back and give it 5 stars! Tag me on Instagram @farmhouseonboone.
Classic Dutch Oven Beef Stew Recipe
Equipment
- 1 Dutch Oven A large soup pot would also work.
Ingredients
- 1 lb beef stew meat, cut into 1” cubes
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 onion, diced
- 1 tablespoon butter
- ¼ cup all-purpose flour
- 32 ounces beef broth, homemade or one carton
- 3 carrots, diced
- 2 stalks celery, diced
- 2 medium potatoes, cut into ½” cubes
- 1 teaspoon Herbs de Provence , or Italian seasoning
- 2 bay leaves
- 2 teaspoons salt
- ½ cup frozen peas
Instructions
- Add olive oil to cast-iron dutch oven or soup pot.
- Add beef to the hot oil, giving a few minutes on each side to develop flavor.
- Remove beef, add diced onion, and toss in oil and beef fat. Cook for about 3 or 4 minutes until the onions start to soften.
- Add butter to the onions. Once melted, stir in einkorn flour and cook for 2 minutes.
- Pour in beef broth and add carrots, celery, potatoes, herbs de provence, bay leaves, and salt.
- Add partially cooked beef back to the pot. Reduce heat to low. Cover and simmer for 45 minutes, or until beef and vegetables are tender.
- Add frozen peas and cook for an additional few minutes. You want them cooked, but still bright green.
- Taste and add additional salt and pepper, if necessary.
Notes
- Brown the beef. Even if you want to skip the step, it’s well worth the extra effort in maximum flavor.
- When serving hot soups and stews, I like to add some frozen peas to my kids’ bowls to help cool it down without watering it down (like an ice cube would).
- This recipe can be made on the stove (the quick way) or in the slow cooker. See directions in the blog post.
- If you are making a gluten-free version, mix together equal parts cornstarch and water to create a slurry and add towards the end of the cooking time. Pour a little slurry in, stir, and let it come to a simmer. Continue to add more slurry until desired thickness is achieved. Allow to cook a few minutes before serving.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
I added a cup of Cabernet red wine partly for flavor and partly because I needed a little more liquid. I used celery seeds instead of celery. The wine really took it up a notch I think!
Is the nutrition information per serving or for the whole meal?
Per serving!
I have tried many stew recipes, and this one is my new favorite. I used parsnips instead of potatoes, doubled the meat and used gluten free flour to thicken. Thank you for this recipe!
Have you ever made this in the crockpot?
You could!
Making it now for lunch/dinner! Thank you!
I made this tonight, exactly as written. It’s been a cool and rainy afternoon, and the smell of the stew cooking was a wonderful counterpoint. It will go into our regular rotation this fall!
One question – would this freeze well?
So glad you enjoyed it. I don’t think it will freeze well because the potatoes will most likely fall apart and make a not so nice texture.