One of my personal favorite Fall/Winter dinner recipes is Beef Stew with homemade bread. I crave it during the cold months! No matter how many different beef stew recipes I try making, I always come back to this easy & simple beef stew made in the crock pot.

You really can’t go wrong. Throw some stuff in the slow cooker and 8-10 hours later it’s ready when you are. The thing I love most about beef stew is that the longer it’s in the slow cooker the better. This is definitely not one of those recipes where you can throw it in a few hours before dinner and turn it on high, and hope it cooks in time.

Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 8 hours
Total Time: 8 hours 20 minutes
Servings: 8 servings

Ingredients

1 lb lean beef stew meat
2 red potatoes, peeled and chunked large
2 carrots, peeled and sliced
2 celery, sliced
1 sweet onion, finely diced
2 cloves garlic, minced or pressed
1 can (14.5 oz) beef broth
1 1/2 cups V8 Vegetable Juice
1/2 cup water
1 tablespoon dried parsley
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground thyme
1/4 teaspoon black pepper

Ingredients to add later
1/2 cup frozen peas
1/2 cup frozen corn
2 tablespoons cornstarch
2 tablespoons cold water

Instructions

Combine stew meat, potatoes, carrots, celery, sweet onion, garlic, beef broth, V8 juice, water and seasonings into the slow cooker.

Cook on LOW for 8-10 hours.

At 1 hour left to cook, add in the frozen corn and peas. Mix together the cornstarch and cold water in small bowl and add to the slow cooker. Stir everything together, cover with lid and let cook the remaining 1 hour.

** If you are not home and can’t add the stuff 1 hour before the cook time is done. Simply add the other ingredients after the cook time is over, cover with the lid, and let it cook for about 30 minutes to help thicken the stew up and soften the frozen vegetables.

Notes

You can use 1 lb – 1 1/2 lbs of the beef stew meat. You probably won’t find a package of stew meat that is exactly 1 pound, so get one that is between 1 lb and 1 1/2 lbs.