Beef stew in slow cooker recipe, that is one of my most requested by those who have tasted it. There are many slow cooker beef stew recipes in the UK. However, what I wanted to do, was make a slow cooked beef casserole that was stripped back of ingredients like wine etc, and almost take it back to a good old traditional slow cooked beef stew recipe.
This is also an easy beef stew slow cooker recipe, which is a pretty good thing, because this is the recipe I have to make every New Years day for my Scottish husband. He tells me it is tradition to have this on New Years day, and I can imagine it to be true, based on it being great to soak up the excess from the night before. In other words, it can line the stomach nicely! He also has me making individual pie crust tops. It also has to be puffed pastry for him. He says the traditional shortcrust pastry, (which I am more used to here in England) is not to be used. With this in mind, this recipe, makes for a great beef pie filling! However, I am given my orders on the separate pie crust tops, which you will see in the video below.
You can use whatever slow cooker you choose. Although I do love the one I use in the video. This is a mini electric cooker, and has a multitude of uses, and it can even make yoghurt! One of my sons make fun of me when I cook with it, saying “Mum is cooking in her CD player again..” Yeah, It has the looks of one, but is one of my favourite kitchen gadgets. This mini cooker has been used for cooking on a boat, in a caravan and even out camping! The affiliate link for the mini cooker is here if you are interested.
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Beef Stew In Slow Cooker Recipe
- Total Time: 3 Hours 45 Minutes
- Yield: 4 1x
Description
Beef stew in slow cooker recipe, that is one of my most requested by those who have tasted it. There are many slow cooker beef stew recipes in the UK. However, what I wanted to do, was make a slow cooked beef casserole that was stripped back of ingredients like wine etc, and almost take it back to a good old traditional slow cooked beef stew recipe.
This is also an easy beef stew slow cooker recipe, which is a pretty good thing, because this is the recipe I have to make every New Years day for my Scottish husband. He tells me it is tradition to have this on New Years day, and I can imagine it to be true, based on it being great to soak up the excess from the night before. In other words, it can line the stomach nicely! He also has me making individual pie crust tops. It also has to be puffed pastry for him. He says the traditional shortcrust pastry, (which I am more used to here in England) is not used. With this in mind, this recipe, makes for a great beef pie filling! However, I am given my orders on the separate pie crust tops, which you will see in the video below.
You can use whatever slow cooker you choose. Although I do love the one I use in the video. This is a mini electric cooker, and has a multitude of uses, and it can even make yoghurt! One of my sons make fun of me when I cook with it, saying “Mum is cooking in her CD player again..” Yeah, It has the looks of one, but is one of my favourite kitchen gadgets. This mini cooker has been used for cooking on a boat, in a caravan and out camping! The affiliate link for the mini cooker is here if you are interested.
Ingredients
- 1 Tbsp Olive Oil
- 400g Beef stewing meat
- 1 Onion diced
- 1 Carrot diced
- 1 Celery stick diced
- 1 Tbsp Mushroom ketchup
- 1 Tbsp Worcestershire Sauce
- 600ml Beef stock that is hot
- 1 Bay leaf
- 1 Tbsp Cornflour
- 1 Tbsp Butter
- 500g Puff Pastry (Non rolled one but one that is in a block)
- 3 Tbsp Milk
Instructions
In a frying pan add the olive oil and then add the beef and cook until browned on the outside. Remove the beef from the pan, then add in the onion, celery and carrot. Done be worried about the state of the pan, we shall deglaze all the flavour off it in a moment. Just sauté the vegetables round the frying pan, until the onions are beginning to soften. Then add in the mushroom ketchup, the Worcestershire sauce, the bay leaf and finally the hot beef stock, and cook in the pan on medium, until the pan is deglazed. Pop the beef back in the warm through.
Place in the slow cooker, and cook for between 3-4 hours on low depending on your make of slow cooker. I don’t tend to add salt to my stew, as I use a good beef stock and also prefer to taste at the end. I do like a good grinding of black pepper though.
If making pastry tops, during the last 45 minutes of cooking time, pre-heat your oven to 200 degrees centigrade. Then take your puff pastry and roll to around 2cm thick. Then cut your pastry sections out and place on a lined baking tray. If you watch the video, you will see I put slight diagonal slashes along the top, then lightly brush with a little milk. You then pop the into your preheated oven for around 25-30 Minutes.
Now back to the stew, and for the last 30 minutes of cooking, we want to make the stew look thick and glossy. What I do, is take out around 4 tbsp of the hot stew cooking juices, and put it into a little bowl. Then I add in the butter and mix until melted. Then I add in around 1 tbsp of cornflour. Then take this mixture and mix it back into the stew. The video shows this step nicely. After about half an hour, you are left with a glossy gorgeous tasty stew and crisp pastry tops, to pop on top. Usually eaten with a side of greens and mashed potato.
Notes
Watch the video for a great way to thicken your stew in an easy way.
- Prep Time: 15 Minutes
- Cook Time: 3 Hours 30 Minutes
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Slow Cooker
- Cuisine: British
Is beef better at low or high in slow cooker?
Low and slow is the answer. Cooking cuts of beef like chuck, need low and slow so that the meat becomes tender and not tough. When you have something like a nice fillet of beef then it is the reverse.
Can you put raw beef in a slow cooker?
Yes you can. However I do like to fry mine off to get a good colour to both the meat and the sauce it is in. What happens if you don’t brown beef before slow cooker cooking, is just a different depth of flavour and colour. So if you have the time, I would say to fry off the beef at the beginning.
Why is my slow cooked beef stew tough?
First, meat quality is important. I’ve seen many packs of beef casserole that are poor quality and just a pile of tough, sinewy beef a supermarket or supplier is wanting to be rid of. There is nothing quite like getting it from a butcher, or from a butchers counter. The next issue, is that cooking it on a low, slow braise for a few hours will help. I also find that with my recipe, the addition of mushroom ketchup and Worcestershire sauce helps. It may be that the acids or something in them help tenderise the meat. Never rush the process, and always make sure your meat has been properly defrosted too, if it has been in the freezer. Which leads me on to the last point, which is if it has been defrosted, how long has it been in the freezer? Although beef lasts pretty well in a freezer, there becomes a point where it just goes past best in my opinion.