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Beef Stew with Carrots & Potatoes
This classic French beef stew is the ultimate cold weather comfort food. After a few hours in the oven, the meat becomes meltingly tender and enveloped in a rich wine sauce.
This classic French beef stew, otherwise known as Beef Bourguignon, is the ultimate comfort food. Chunks of well-marbled beef are seared in olive oil and then gently braised with garlic and onions in a wine-based broth. After a few hours in the oven, the meat becomes meltingly tender and enveloped in a rich, deeply flavored sauce.
It takes some time to make but I promise it’s well worth the effort. Aside from being delicious — it is my all-time most popular recipe — it’s a one-pot meal that feeds a crowd. You can also make it a day ahead; in fact, you should because the flavor improves the longer it sits.
what you’ll need to make beef stew with carrots & potatoes
The most important thing is to start with the right cut of meat. You want to buy chuck roast that is well-marbled—that means it should have a good amount of white veins of fat running through it. Stay away from meat generically packaged as “stew meat,” especially if it looks lean (I can guarantee you it will not get tender, no matter how long you cook it).
For the wine, use any dry red (Pinot Noir, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, etc.) that is inexpensive but still good enough to drink.
How To Make Beef Stew with Carrots & Potatoes
Begin by removing any large chunks of fat that are easy to get to (like the one my knife is pointing to below), but don’t overdo it with the trimming, as the fat helps make the beef tender.
Next, season the meat generously with salt and pepper.
Heat a bit of oil in a large soup pot and brown the meat in batches.
This step is a bit time-consuming but browning the meat adds depth and dimension to the stew. (Note: it’s important not to crowd the pan — if you try to brown all the meat at once, it will steam instead of sear and you won’t get all that lovely color and flavor.)
Remove the meat and add the onions, garlic, and balsamic vinegar to the pan. The vinegar will loosen all the brown bits from the bottom of the pan and add flavor.
Cook until the vegetables are softened, then add the tomato paste and cook for a minute more.
Add the beef back into the pan and sprinkle with the flour.
Stir until the flour is dissolved.
Add the wine, broth, water, thyme, bay leaves, and sugar.
Bring to a boil, then cover and braise in the oven for 2 hours.
After 2 hours, add the carrots and potatoes.
Return to the oven and continue cooking for one hour, or until the meat is fork-tender, the broth is thickened, and the carrots and potatoes are tender.
Feel free to adapt the recipe to your liking. You can leave out the potatoes and serve it over buttered egg noodles, or toss in some frozen peas or sautéed mushrooms at the very end. Either way, it’s soul-satisfying comfort food for a cold night.
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- Beef Tzimmes
Beef Stew with Carrots & Potatoes
This classic French beef stew is the ultimate cold weather comfort food. After a few hours in the oven, the meat becomes meltingly tender and enveloped in a rich wine sauce.
Ingredients
- 3 pounds boneless beef chuck (well-marbled), cut into 1-1/2-inch pieces
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 medium yellow onions, cut into 1-inch chunks
- 7 cloves garlic, peeled and smashed
- 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
- 1-1/2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 2 cups dry red wine
- 2 cups beef broth
- 2 cups water
- 1 bay leaf
- 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1-1/2 teaspoons sugar
- 4 large carrots, peeled and cut into 1-inch chunks on a diagonal
- 1 pound small white boiling potatoes (baby yukons), cut in half
- Fresh chopped parsley, for serving (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 325°F and set a rack in the lower middle position.
- Pat the beef dry and season with the salt and pepper. In a large Dutch oven or heavy soup pot, heat 1 tablespoon of the olive oil over medium-high heat until hot and shimmering. Brown the meat in 3 batches, turning with tongs, for about 5 minutes per batch; add one tablespoon more oil for each batch. (To sear the meat properly, do not crowd the pan and let the meat develop a nice brown crust before turning with tongs.) Transfer the meat to a large plate and set aside.
- Add the onions, garlic and balsamic vinegar; cook, stirring with a wooden spoon and scraping the brown bits from bottom of the pan, for about 5 minutes. Add the tomato paste and cook for a minute more. Add the beef with its juices back to the pan and sprinkle with the flour. Stir with wooden spoon until the flour is dissolved, 1 to 2 minutes. Add the wine, beef broth, water, bay leaf, thyme, and sugar. Stir with a wooden spoon to loosen any brown bits from the bottom of the pan and bring to a boil. Cover the pot with a lid, transfer to the preheated oven, and braise for 2 hours.
- Remove the pot from the oven and add the carrots and potatoes. Cover and place back in oven for about an hour more, or until the vegetables are cooked, the broth is thickened, and the meat is tender. Fish out the bay leaf and discard, then taste and adjust seasoning, if necessary. Serve the stew warm -- or let it come to room temperature and then store in the refrigerator overnight or until ready to serve. This stew improves in flavor if made at least 1 day ahead. Reheat, covered, over medium heat or in a 350°F oven. Garnish with fresh parsley, if desired.
- Freezer-Friendly Instructions: The stew can be frozen for up to 3 months. Just omit the potatoes because they don’t freeze well. If you’d like, boil some potatoes separately when you defrost the stew and either add them into the stew or serve them on the side. Before serving, defrost the stew in the refrigerator for 24 hours and then reheat on the stovetop over medium-low heat until hot.
Pair with
Nutrition Information
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- Per serving (6 servings)
- Calories: 539
- Fat: 18g
- Saturated fat: 6g
- Carbohydrates: 32g
- Sugar: 8g
- Fiber: 4g
- Protein: 54g
- Sodium: 1189mg
- Cholesterol: 143mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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Is this recipe able to be made with a slow cooker or completely on the stove? I do not have a dutch oven but this recipe looks divine.
Yes, you could go either way but I’d probably suggest the stove. Timing would be the same. Just give it a stir periodically so it doesn’t scorch on the bottom. Enjoy!
Thank you so much for getting back to me so quickly! I made it this morning on the stove and as far as I’m concerned it worked out magnificently. Thank you for replacing my old stew recipe, this is stupendous. Can’t wait to try it again tomorrow when it’s had some time to sit!
I added about two to four well let’s say six more cups of beef stock in addition to celery salt and celery seed I put in a little bit more black pepper and I boiled everything together covered for 3 not 3.5 hours but it was more like an hour and a half to two hours and the meat was just as tender and it was really really delicious. I ended up taking a third cup of water with about a tablespoon of cornstarch that I added that in and after cooking it for 20 minutes more it got really really thick and delicious. Everyone loved it. thank you for the recipe.
I have made this beef stew a number of times. Always turns out delicious Making it again tomorrow ❤️
So easy to make and delicious. I’ve made it several times and came out great. I’ve recommended this recipe to friends also and they love it.
Ew! More like soup than a stew. I mean, if you fancy a sloppy flavourless soup, then definitely try this recipe. But I recommend not using any water at all as it just ruins all the beautiful rich flavour that you should be able to achieve with just the wine and stock. Needs major improvement to pass as a stew.
I made this stew last night and it was absolutely stupendous. Followed the instructions completely, did not change a thing, and was told by my family that this recipe is the best stew recipe that I’ve made. The meat was tender melt in your mouth, and the sauce was rich and complex. And this is coming from a family who considers themselves “foodies!” I will double the recipe next time for an adult family of 5 to make sure there are plenty of leftovers for the next day!
I’ve tried lots of recipes for beef stew and this one is the BEST. The beef is tender and the gravy is rich and flavorful. I’ve been making this stew for 3 years now and the only change I’ve made over the years is adding the potatoes and carrots for the entire 3-hour cooking time. I thought they might get too mushy, but that’s not the case.
This was so delicious! Flavours super rich and splendid. But my stew was quite oily at the top 🙁 I didn’t chop off any fat from the beef chuck though at the start, could that be why ?
Hi Wendy, that could be why. If the beef has large chunks of fat that are easy to get to, it’s good to trim them (but if you make it again, don’t overdo it with the trimming, as the fat helps make the beef tender). Hope that helps!
I admit it, my first comment/thoughts were wrong. After I let this cook for about 7hr, the sharp wine flavor disappeared and the stew was quite good. Admittedly, when I tasted after 4hr, I added a couple of ounces of Teriyaki sauce and a good shake of Liquid Smoke but still had my doubts the final result would be edible. Turned out my friends enjoyed the stew although their grand-kids just ate the mac’n cheese I had fixed “just in case”.
Glad I tried it but probably won’t make again.
Turned out beautifully. I reheated the next day with puff pastry as a pie and we loved it.
I adapted this somewhat for slow cooker by dusting beef in flour, cooking in batches in pan and then cooking off tomato paste, deglazing the pan with a bit of the wine/stock.
I omitted the water but still found I needed to add a cornflour mix at end to thicken. Didn’t have a bay leaf at hand so used fresh sprigs of thyme and marjoram.
I also didn’t put potatoes in, but did pop in a parsnip and celery as had them to hand, then served over mash.
This was incredibly flavoursome and I could quite easily just drink the resulting liquid, it was so tasty!
Would beef cheek work well in stew?
Hi Adam, I’ve never tried it so I can’t guarantee how it will come out. That said, one reader commented that he made this with beef cheeks and was happy with the results. Please LMK how it turns out if you try it!
I have the luxury of having a good friend who sends me boxes of Moose and Musk Ox meat from Alaska. I have made this with the Chuck in the past and was absolutely fantastic. That being said with Moose and or Musk Ox it has a richness that is off the charts. Also use all homemade beef stock, no water, and a nice Oregon Pinot. Served with Polenta. Sooooooooo gooooooood!
After years of not being able to get my stew quite right, I have finally found the perfect recipe – yours! I add the sautéed mushrooms at the end as you suggested. Super yummy. My only problem is that my husband keeps asking, “How long til we can eat?”the entire time it’s cooking. Love, love, love this recipe.
LOL — it’s an exercise in patience! Glad you both enjoyed it. 🙂
This recipe made truly the best beef stew I and my family have ever eaten. I know you said not to use “stew beef,” but that is what I already had on-hand (from Costco). Despite that, the meat was tender and delicious due to the cooking method. Everyone raved. I highly recommend and will never use another recipe for beef stew. Thank you!
Delicious! I followed the recipe except for the sugar and red wine. I ran out of wine so I just used 1 cup. We try to avoid sugar in our cooking as much as possible and most of the time, its not necessary. Turned out super yummy. One of the best recipes I ever made. It’s a keeper.
Great beef stew with layers of flavors and rich broth. I froze half for another night and it was even better warmed up with some French bread on the side.
This recipe was delicious! Thanks so much.
I made this recipe with just a couple spice tweaks and added potatoes after 1 hour and baked for another 30-40 minutes. Absolutely delicious. I paired it with the buttermilk biscuits as suggested. Fabulous rainy day meal. The house smells so good. Thank you.
New to your site (and after this I will be sticking around)- this was absolute delicious!!!! I browned my meat and vegetables and then added it all to my slow cooker instead. I cut the wine down to 1/2 glass and it was still delicious!!!
Will be making this one again for sure!
This beef stew was awesome. The beef was super tender and the sauce was just so good. We will definitely be making again. It takes a little extra time so will be a weekend treat or might try to make it ahead of time for a week night.
I’ve made this Beef Stew probably 10 times, and it’s the BEST I’ve ever made. It never disappoints! My only alteration is to cut the wine to 1 cup, and use 5 cups of beef broth (no water). Definitely 5 stars!
Thanks for this beef bourguignon recipe Jenn.
I am not an experienced cook at all. But have a little more time since retiring to “potter” in the kitchen.
This recipe is my favourite from your site. (Though others in the family prefer others …)! 🙂
I love your website. Recipes are so well presented and illustrated, that even I can create these dishes and receive compliments!
Thankyou. 🙂
Richard
Australia 🙂
Oh, so delicious! I made some substitutions due to what I had on hand….still great! Thank you for all your wonderful directions and suggestions. Onward to try more dishes!!
Hi, this is so delicious. The meat is so tender and I added a cup of peas at the end and I also paired it with your artisan bread recipe and it turned out amazing. The whole family loved it. I will put this on my list of what to cook on weekdays. Thank you for these amazing recipes.
Delicious stew, loved the smashed garlic. I added pumpkin and a splash of Worcestershire and will leave out the potato next time. Served with steamed veg and buttered French stick. Absolutely will make again