Name: The Easiest Beef Stew You’ll Ever Make—Just Dump and Cook
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 3 h 5 min
Total time: 3 h 20 min
Yield: 6
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 2 pounds beef chuck or stew meat; 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour; 2 teaspoons herbs de Provence or Italian seasoning; 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more to taste; 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper; 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder; 1 large sweet onion, chopped; 2 large carrots, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch chunks; 1 pound fingerling or small red skin potatoes, unpeeled, cut into 1-inch chunks; 3 cups boiling water; 3 tablespoons Better Than Bouillon Roast Beef Base; 3 tablespoons tomato paste; 1 cup frozen peas; 1 to 2 tablespoons aged balsamic vinegar; 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley, basil, or tarragon (optional)

The Easiest Beef Stew You’ll Ever Make—Just Dump and Cook

This is the easiest beef stew recipe ever, with no browning or sautéing required. You just throw in all of the ingredients, let it simmer away, and serve.

3 hr 20 min total 15 min prep 3 hr 5 min cook 6 377 cal

Instructions

Tap a step to mark it done

1 Preheat the oven to 325°F.
2 Pull or cut off any excess fat on the meat and discard. Trim away any silvery connective tissue and discard. Cut the meat into 1-inch chunks and place in a Dutch oven or large oven-safe pot. Alternatively, use stew meat. Add the flour, herb blend, salt, pepper, and garlic powder to the beef and toss to coat.
3 Tuck the onion and carrots into the pot around the beef. Add the potatoes on top but don’t stir them in. Whisk together the boiling water, beef base, and tomato paste in glass a measuring cup. Pour over the ingredients in the pot. Bring to a simmer over high heat.
4 Cover the pot and transfer the stew to the center rack of the oven. Bake until the meat is nearly tender, 2 hours. Remove the lid and continue to bake until the stew has thickened and the meat is very tender (fish out a piece of beef and cut it in half with a fork, it should yield easily), 1 hour.
5 Remove the Dutch oven from the oven. Stir in the peas and vinegar to taste and replace the lid to let the peas defrost, about 5 minutes. Garnish with fresh herbs, if desired. Taste for seasoning, adding salt and pepper if needed. Let leftover stew cool completely in the refrigerator uncovered. Once cooled, store in an airtight container for up to 5 days or transfer to a freezer-safe container and freeze for up to 3 months. Reheat gently in a saucepan over low heat, adding water to loosen the broth, if necessary. Love the recipe? Leave us stars and a comment below!