cozycakes cottage crockpot beef stew
Mmmmmmm! Another lovely summer day. We’ve been soaking up every last bit of it. Today, swimming and dinner outside on a waterfront patio. What have you been up to? How many more days of summer vacation before your kids start school? We’ve started making an “end of summer bucket list” so we can squeeze in as much fun as possible. Eat more sweet corn… make a blueberry pie… make a bunch of zucchini bread… enjoy another blufftop/prairie picnic… go to the beach/swimming hole… make s’mores over a campfire… get ice cream cones at the local ice cream parlor for lunch… play frisbee… watch the clouds roll by… watch a sunset over the river in Colvill park. What’s on your bucket list?
Here’s a wonderful dish for busy days. I found the recipe while perusing my friend Danielle’s blog over at Cozycakes Cottage. I changed it up a bit, but the idea is still the same… a delicious, cozy, comforting dinner you can start in the morning and that will be ready to enjoy when you walk through the door in the evening. What could be better than that? This was SO darn good. Jeff and Gracie demolished it! Thanks for a great recipe D! Definitely a keeper!
4 lb. chuck arm roast, (excess fat removed)
1/4 cup olive oil (I used extra virgin)
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 large onion, chopped
4 stalks celery (cut into one inch pieces)
1 small can tomato paste (about 1/4 cup)
3 cups beef broth
1 cup red wine
2 Tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
4 large carrots, (peeled and cut into one inch pieces)
20 red baby bliss or yellow baby Dutch potatoes (the tiny ones)
3 bay leaves
2 Tablespoons fresh thyme leaves
5 Tablespoons minute tapioca
2 large cloves garlic, minced
Cut roast into 2 inch chunks and dry well with paper towels. Heat the olive oil in a heavy skillet or Dutch oven. Brown the beef in batches, and transfer them to a large (6 or 7 quart) crockpot. Salt and pepper the meat. Add the onion and celery to the skillet and saute until transparent. Add tomato paste, broth, wine and Worcestershire to skillet. Stir to combine. Bring to a gentle simmer and carefully pour this mixture over the meat in the crockpot. Add everything else to the crockpot and stir to combine. Cover and cook on the “high” setting for 6 hours. Remove bay leaves. Salt and pepper to taste and serve with your favorite bread, baguette or biscuits.
Enjoy!
~Melissa
Yummm…going to make for my parents as my mom recuperates from surgery. Have you ever froze this? Wondering in veggies would get too mushy?
Hi Donna 🙂 No, I’ve never tried freezing this, so I can’t help you there. I hope your mother is on the mend. Enjoy this cozy, yummy stew, and thanks for visiting!
Hello,
Have you tried cooking it longer on low temp? Looking to see if this is something I can make before work. Thanks!
I haven’t tried that yet, Lisa…but I bet it would work just fine 🙂 enjoy, and thanks for visiting!
I can’t wait to try some of these recipes. They seem so easy to make. The beef stew will be the first thing I try. YUMMMM!
YAY! enjoy, Marcia! this is the best stew ever! 🙂
Sounds good! Why do you have to brown the meat first? Do you think it would be okay to skip that step?
Hi Leanne,
You certainly could skip that step, but browning the meat adds SO much flavor to the dish as well as sealing the juiced into the meat so it stays tender during the cooking process.
Thanks for stopping by! Great question 🙂
~Melissa
Thanks for your quick response! We often stay in a hotel for work and I use my crockpot so we don’t have to eat out all the time. There is a stovetop but the pans leave a lot to be desired lol! I will do it right at home, though.
My pleasure, Leanne! Enjoy 🙂
Wait,Tapioca??? when do you put that in?
Hi Marie! 🙂
See in the recipe instructions where it says “add everything else”? You add the tapioca at that point. Thanks for visiting! 🙂
This looks so good. We make beef stew but I’ve never used the tapioca so mine is more brothy. We also use Progresso french onion soup instead of the onions because some of the family don’t like onion pieces. I want to try this dish your way. Looks so good.
Hi Ruth! Sometimes I like the “brothy” stew too 🙂 depends on my mood. Thanks for visiting! XO
I have always used cornstarch and water as a thickener at the end of my beef stew. Do you think that would still work or is the tapioca critical to this recipe? I’d love to make it tomorrow and don’t have tapioca!
I have made this stew 3 times. I m making it this week with lamb instead of beef. Do u think it will work?