Beef Stew Recipe with Carrots & Potatoes
This post may contain affiliate links. Read my full disclosure policy.
This classic French beef stew is the ultimate comfort food. Slow-cooked in a wine-based broth, the meat becomes meltingly tender and enveloped in a richly flavored sauce—perfect for chilly nights.
With thousands of 5-star reviews, this classic French beef stew is the most popular recipe on my site—and for good reason! It’s incredibly delicious and the ultimate cold weather comfort food. Pieces of well-marbled beef are seared in a hot pan, then gently braised with garlic and onions in a rich wine-based broth. After a few hours, the meat becomes fork tender and enveloped in a deeply flavorful sauce.
This beef stew recipe is largely hands-off and even better when made a day or two ahead. It also freezes beautifully. Serve it with artisan bread or popovers to soak up the rich sauce, or ladle it over egg noodles, mashed potatoes, or creamy polenta for an extra-hearty meal.
“SERIOUSLY EPIC! Hands down, the best beef stew recipe I have ever made.”
What You’ll Need To Make Beef Stew
- Boneless beef chuck: The key to tender, flavorful stew. Look for chuck roast with a good amount of marbling, or white veins of fat running through it. Avoid generic “stew meat,” especially if it looks lean.
- Olive oil: Used for browning the beef and sautéing the vegetables.
- Yellow onions and garlic: Adds sweetness, depth, and savory aroma to the stew as they cook.
- Tomato paste and balsamic vinegar: Tomato paste enriches and thickens the stew, while balsamic vinegar adds acidity and depth to balance the richness.
- All-purpose flour: As the stew simmers, the flour helps thicken the broth, turning it into a rich, velvety sauce that clings to the meat and vegetables.
- Dry red wine: Adds bold flavor and forms the base of the stew along with the broth and water. Use any dry red wine like Pinot Noir, Merlot, or Cabernet Sauvignon that is inexpensive but good enough to drink.
- Beef broth and water: Forms the liquid base along with the wine.
- Bay leaf, thyme, and parsley: Classic herbs that infuse earthy flavor during cooking and add brightness at the end.
- Carrots and white boiling potatoes (baby Yukons): Add natural sweetness, texture, and hearty substance as they soak up the broth.
- Jump to the printable recipe for precise measurements
Step-by-Step Instructions
Step 1: Trim the meat. 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 keep the beef tender while it cooks.
Step 2: Season. Next, sprinkle the meat generously with salt and pepper.
Step 3: Sear the beef. Heat a bit of oil in a Dutch oven or large 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.)
Step 4: Add the aromatics, vinegar, and tomato paste. 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.
Step 5: Return the beef to the pot and add flour. Stir for 1 to 2 minutes, or until the flour is dissolved.
Step 6: Add the cooking liquid and seasoning. Add the wine, broth, water, thyme, bay leaves, and sugar. Bring to a boil, then cover and braise in the oven for 2 hours. (If you don’t have a Dutch oven or prefer to cook the stew on the stovetop, that works, too! The timing will be the same—just keep it on the lowest heat setting and stir occasionally to prevent sticking.)
Step 7: Mix in the veggies. At this point, remove the pot from the oven and add the carrots and potatoes.
Step 8: Finish cooking. Return the stew to the oven and cook for one hour, until the meat and veggies are tender and the broth has thickened.
Pro Tips
The stew should thicken nicely by the end of cooking, but if you’d like to thicken it further, simply mash 2 tablespoons each softened butter and flour into a paste. Bring the stew to a simmer on the stovetop, then stir in small amounts of the paste, letting it dissolve and thicken the sauce before adding more.
Want to make the stew in a crockpot? Sear the meat and cook the onions and garlic as instructed. Then transfer everything to the slow cooker with the carrots, potatoes, water, wine, and broth; cook for 4 to 5 hours.
Video Tutorial
You May Also Like
Beef Stew
Ingredients
- 3 pounds boneless beef chuck, well-marbled, cut into 1½-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
- 1½ tablespoons tomato paste
- ¼ cup all-purpose flour
- 2 cups dry red wine
- 2 cups beef broth
- 2 cups water
- 1 bay leaf
- ½ teaspoon dried thyme
- 1½ 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 (165°C) 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. Garnish with fresh parsley, if desired.
Notes
- If you don’t have a Dutch oven or covered pot that is appropriate for the oven, the stew can be cooked on the stove. The timing will be the same and it should be cooked over the lowest setting.
- Make-Ahead/Freezer-Friendly Instructions: Simply prepare the stew as directed, then cool it to room temperature before refrigerating. It can be stored in the fridge for up to 3 days. Reheat on the stovetop over medium-low heat until hot. If you want to freeze the stew, transfer it to an airtight container once it has cooled. It can be frozen for up to 3 months. To serve, thaw the stew overnight in the refrigerator and reheat on the stovetop.
Pair with
Nutrition Information
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.
Add a Comment
This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.
This stew is absolutely delicious! The flavors are wonderful in this hearty dish! Thank you.
P.S. I did simmer mine on the stove top and it worked great!
Made this several times, and will continue to do so. It’s excellent. Don’t change a thing. Thank you, Jenn!
My first attempt resulted in above average results due to my mistakes. I used stew meat so the meat was tough. I minced the onions instead of cutting chunks. (My son does not like onions so I thought mincing would keep the onions hidden in the stew. I believe it lead to an overly onion flavor though.)
My second attempt resulted in comments like “five star stew” and “this is the best stew Mom”. Not using stew meat and simply following the directions make this stew the Best. Another lesson learned… when the food tastes amazing, a 12 year old will not question what ingredients are used.
Jenn, a sincere thank you for your cookbook and website recipes. I’ve been making delicious family dinners. Your recipes always produce amazing results, which is invaluable during this time.
Thoughts on cooking time to do this in a slow cooker and at what point to add vegetables? Thanks!
Hi Mike, It’s fine to cook this in a slow cooker. I’d sear the beef first as the recipe indicates and then cook it in the slow cooker for 4 – 5 hours on high (and you can put the carrots and the potatoes in with the meat– you don’t need to wait). Hope you enjoy!
Absolutely fabulous!!! I’ve been making dishes that can freeze in order to limit trips to the grocery. Since potatoes don’t freeze well, I decided to prepare as written, but instead of adding potatoes, I added a few sliced fresh mushrooms and about 1/2 C frozen green peas, then served over mashed potatoes. Served with a good bread and red wine…YUM! Thank you for a keeper!
Hi Jenn! I made this stew for my family… the BEST stew we have ever had! We are a family of foodies😊my grown sons, both in their 40’s excellent cooks, are the cooks in their families, were scraping the pot clean with crusts of bread!
I have a friend who wants an “old-fashioned” pot roast for their birthday dinner. Could I do the same thing as the stew, but just leave the chuck roast whole? Our family loves EVERY recipe we’ve made of yours! Thanks. Robin
Hi Robin, So glad you like the stew! Yes, I do think you could keep the chuck roast whole to serve as more of a pot roast. Hope your friend likes it. 🙂
This was by far the best stew I’ve ever tasted. My husband was thoroughly impressed and he’s never one to make comments about food no matter how hard I try. This will be a keeper!
I really want to make this recipe. I have a Dutch oven but I only have a small bench oven so won’t fit. Can it still be cooked on stovetop instead of in the oven?
Definitely. Just give it a stir periodically as it cooks so it doesn’t scorch on the bottom. Hope you enjoy!
So would I set it on a low boil?
Yes, a very low simmer. 🙂
Thankyou for the reply Jen will be making it this week. Starting to get into cold weather here in Australia. Looking forward to warm comfort food.
I made this today for the first time. I was so surprised—I’m not the best cook—it was fabulous. Thank you so much. Do you have a cookbook?
So glad you enjoyed it, Donna! Yes, I do have a cookbook. You can find out more about it here. 🙂
The addition of sugar is unhealthy, I assume you meant refined. We all should know it spikes insulin and causes obesity, diabetes, …
This is absolutely delicious! I’ve made it several times in the past and it always gets rave reviews.
A reply to “Researcher.” If you don’t like the sugar, leave it out. However, I doubt that 1 1/2 teaspoons in the whole recipe will send anyone into a diabetic coma or kill them. This is a place for a review of the recipe, not a supercilious lecture.
Hi, Jen,
I made the stew according to the recipe and my husband and I loved it. The only problem I had was the meat was extremely dry. Not sure what I did to cause the dryness. Do you have any thoughts?
Hi Judy, Glad you liked it but the meat should definitely not be dry. By dry, do you mean tough? If so, did you buy something that was labeled as “stew meat?” If so, it won’t be nearly as tender as beef chuck.
Hi,
Trying to make this right now. I do not have any wine. Can I use a substitute?
I’m guessing I’m too late to help but it’s fine to replace the wine with more beef broth. 🙂
Do you think this would be good in my slow cooker?
Sure. I’d sear the beef first as the recipe indicates and then cook it in the slow cooker for 4 – 5 hours on high (and you can put the carrots and the potatoes in with the meat– you don’t need to wait). Hope you enjoy!