Beef Stew with Carrots & Potatoes
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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.
With over 4,000 5-star reviews, this classic French beef stew is the all-time most popular recipe on my website. It is the ultimate cold weather comfort food. Chunks 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 in the oven, the meat becomes meltingly tender and enveloped in a deeply flavorful sauce. It takes a few hours to make, but the recipe is mostly hands-off. Go ahead and make it a day or two ahead of time; the flavor improves the longer it sits.
This stew is part of my classic French recipe collection, which includes similar slow-cooking comfort food recipes, like coq au vin and braised short ribs, and impressive main courses, like steak au poivre or roast beef tenderloin with red wine sauce.
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 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.)
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.
You may also like
- Slow-Baked BBQ Short Ribs
- Onion-Braised Beef Brisket
- Chicken Cacciatore
- Guinness Lamb Stew with Vegetables
- Texas-Style Chili Con Carne
- Coq Au Vin
- Meatloaf
Video Tutorial
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 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 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.
- Note: 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.
- Freezer-Friendly Instructions: The stew can be frozen for up to 3 months. 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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I made this exactly as shown for a group visiting from Germany. They all loved it!! The weather is cooling off this week so I am making it again for just me and my husband. Thankfully, it warms up well and is more delicious the next day. Restaurant quality.
I do not have a Dutch oven but I do have a large pot- any suggestions with tweaking the recipe? Thank you! Looking forward to making this recipe.
Hi Taylor, It’s perfectly fine to use a large pot without any other modifications. Hope you enjoy! 🙂
Hi Jen, I’ve made this recipe several times and love it. Can you explain the purpose of the sugar? I usually leave it out, but just wondering if I’m missing some key flavor component, of if the sugar serves some other purpose in the recipe.
Thanks!
Laurel
Hi Laurel, Glad you like this! I add the sugar just to balance out some of the other flavors.
Sugar in small amounts can simply serve to complement other flavor components in dishes. In this recipe it works to balance the sourness from the balsamic and the acidity of the tomato paste. 1.5 tsp definitely does not make the dish sweet!
Sugar helps with the acidity of the tomato paste
Can I cook this in a slow cooker? For how long?
Hi Ann, for using a slow cooker, you go all through all the steps until you’re ready to add the water, wine, and broth. At that point, you add everything to the slow cooker and cook 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).
Hi Jenn,
My guy likes a little heat and suggested I add jalapeno to the recipe. We love this recipe. Would the jalapeno be ok, or would red pepper flakes be better, also, how much?
Hi Doreen, I think either would work, but I’d err on the side of the red pepper flakes. Enjoy!
I am not the greatest cook, yet by following your recipe, this stew was amazing. Such great flavours.
I am about to make it again and looking forward to it.
I’m so excited about a good beef stew recipe! Just realized we don’t have balsamic vinegar…can I substitute red wine vinegar?
Sure – enjoy!
Best stew I’ve ever made! Such great flavour and enjoyed thoroughly by my family. Thanks for the terrific recipe!
Wonderful recipe. We add a little oyster sauce to it . Seems to make it more beefy, don’t know why . If Any is left ( doubtful) we water it down and turn it into soup . We also add a puck size portion of Demi-glacé to it . Fantastically rich dish and serve it with mashed potatoes with Stilton to soak up all the lovely sauce . 5star . Thank you.
I have used the same beef stew recipe for years but was never completely happy with the results because the meat was always tough and chewy. I found Jenn’s recipe online after searching for a beef stew that’s cooked in the oven. I made this yesterday and I will NEVER use another beef stew recipe other than this one AGAIN! Jenn’s tip of using a chuck roast instead of beef stew meat was spot on! The meat was so tender and the sauce was so flavorful! Sure, it’s time consuming but very easy. My family absolutely loved it! Thank you Jenn for a truly GREAT recipe!
Oh my goodness! The very best beef stew we’ve ever made. Absolutely delicious. Great instructions, and very easy to make. This will be our “go to” beef stew from now on. We didn’t add the flour, because we are gluten free, and doubled the thyme. Very minor changes, which is unusual. Thank you!
Definitely am making this for Sunday dinner tomorrow! Looks delish. Do you think the flavour would be compromised if just cooked on the stove (not braised in oven?)
It’s fine to simmer it on the stove, Sarah. Enjoy!
OMG…best Beef Stew recipe.
My husband loves beef stew and every fall asks me to make it for him, I do though never eat it. This recipe has changed that…I will make this over and over. I did add a bit more thyme and next time will add sautéed mushrooms as well.
Love your recipes.
🙏🏻 Susie
I’ve made this recipe a few times and never seem to have the wine for it (okay, maybe I preferred to drink it instead 😘) but I am always blown away with how tasty this is. Don’t bother trying anything other than this recipe if you want a good beef stew! True comfort food.
Do you think 1/2 beef chuck and 1/2 pork chuck would work here?
Hi Elena, I’d stick with all beef chuck for the best result – sorry!
Jennifer,
This was awesome. So flavorful. Is there a way to make the stew so there is more sauce? It is so good I just want more of it. Should we just increase the liquid? We made in the slow cooker(we have a small apartment and did not want to have the oven on for several hours) 3 hours on high for the beef and then added the carrots and potatoes for another 1.5
Your recipes are wonderful. You are my go to internet chef!
Hi Annie, so glad you enjoyed this! If you want to make more sauce, you could add 1 more cup of wine and 1 more cup of broth. It may make the stew a bit thin though so when you add the flour earlier in the recipe, I’d increase that to 1/3 cup. Hope that helps!
Thank you for taking the time to leave us this recipe! I am curious why there are 2 cups of water, in addition to 2 cups of beef broth and 2 cups of wine needed for the stew? Wondering if water dilutes some of the flavor? Never seen that before! Thanks!
Hi Tiffani, I don’t think the water dilutes the flavor at all and I developed this recipe so long ago that I’m not quite sure why I added the water but it was likely to add more liquid and help balance out the flavors. If you prefer, you can use 4 cups of broth instead of 2 cups broth and 2 cups water; just cut back on the salt a bit. Hope that helps!
This is the best beef stew I have ever tasted. There are only two of us, and we ate it for dinner three nights in a row; SO YUMMY. We added sauteed mushrooms and some frozen peas and carrots. This recipe is definitely a keeper!!
Thank you for sharing your recipes! The beef bourguignon and the biscuits turned out perfectly. I will definitely be making it again again.
Made this tonight. It was deeeelicious! So much flavour.
Have made this a few times, delicious and my hubby loves it ❤️
I am not a traditional cook since I always cut down salt and oil for health reason. I cook daily for my husband and myself. However, for special occasions, I like to be able to make some crowd pleasing dishes. I found the biggest challenge to be browning the meat. I use a stainless-steel Dutch oven and electric burner. No matter how much oil and how high the temperature I use, the meat always releases water, turning searing to boiling, unless I coat it with flour. But sauteing flour is not a good thing since the flour gets burned. I like your recipe because it does not brown the meat with flour. The question is, how to sear the meat instead of boiling it. Do you have any suggestion? Thank you in advance.
Hi Joan, do you brown the beef in three separate batches? (If you crowd the pan too much, the beef will steam instead of sear.) Also, do you pat the beef dry before seasoning with salt and pepper?
Hi Joan, I am an avid cook, so when I lived in an apartment with an electric stove I could not stand it, and bought a one-burner Japanese butane stove (Iwatani, rated for indoor use, 15,000 BTU) . It was a life-saver for me. Now I live in a rental cottage with a gas stove, but it’s bottom of the line, so I still use my Iwatani for things like searing meat (or chicken or shrimp). I can not recommend these little stoves enough. You can get the butane canisters at places like Home Depot, or even better, at Asian markets for less than $1.50 and they last a good while, depending on how much you use the stove. It comes with a case, so you can also use it for camping or cooking outside.
Hello! I plan on making this tonight, however, I have no balsamic vinegar, and I really don’t like red wine. Can I omit these? Thanks!
Hi Emily, you can use apple cider vinegar or white wine vinegar in place of the balsamic vinegar and just use additional beef broth in place of the wine. Hope you enjoy! 🙂
Outstanding!
I usually make stew with “stew beef” and utilize a pressure cooker, (or should I say, USED to)
The effort to make this is absolutely worth it, this is hands down, the best version of stew I’ve ever made. I had raves about it!
Thank you for sharing the recipe, this one’s getting laminated!
My family LOVED the beef stew! What an amazing flavourful sauce.
We can’t wait to make it again!
5 stars and I don’t even like beef stew. Can’t believe how good this soup is!!
I cooked fo 31/2 hours and broth still very thin.Would a slurry ruin the flavor?
Hi Barbara, I would make a beurre manié by mashing together equal parts soft butter and flour, then whisk it in to the stew as it simmers. It should thicken right up.
Thanks. We are having it for dinner. Broth, even thin has a wonderful flavor.
Delicious. I am an average cook, not very skilled and I managed to follow the steps and serve a really tasty stew that impressed the whole family.
So, so good…I am not much of a cook, but the rave reviews from the fam were nice to get with this one! I can’t post a pic because it was gone so quickly 😄, but will definitely make it again. I wouldn’t change anything about it, other than adding an additional carrot as we live veggies, or maybe a few peas at the end. Sue M.
Best stew I have ever made, I may add a pinch of red pepper flakes next time as it had a slight sweetness from the carrots and I also added the greens of the carrot tops from the carrots.
I love this recipe but can only fit half of it in my Dutch oven. To make the full recipe was wondering about using a crock pot or stove top?? Thank you !!
Glad you like it! Yes, either alternative will work. For 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). If you want to cook it on the stove, that’s fine too. Just give it a stir periodically so it doesn’t scorch on the bottom.
I’ve made several beef stews in the past, but this was hands down the best recipe I’ve ever used. The only changes I made to it were to get rid of vegetables that were nearing end of life, e.g cup of quartered portabella mushrooms, half cup of celery, and cubed golden potatoes.
Honestly, the stew was thick, flavorful, and incredibly tender. I have permanently added this recipe to my repertoire and shared with several other beef stew enthusiasts. Amazing stew, especially for a cold, windy fall day. Thank you!!!
This is the second time I have made this recipe and my family loves it, not to mention the wonderful aroma throughout my house while it’s cooking. Throwing out all other versions I had saved. Thank you!
I didn’t read all the way through and bought the lean stew meat. Since I already have three pounds of it, is it worth trying with your recipe?
Sure — the meat won’t be quite as tender but it will still work. Please LMK how it turns out!
Wow this was incredible! I usually need to tweak most recipes but this was absolutely perfect as written. Perfect for a cold fall night!
Hi Jenn, I just finished my first attempt at your beef bourguinon and I’m happy to say it turned out well! I did however have to braise a bit longer, cut carrots too thick, rookie move! Pictures were very helpful, and the recipe was easy to follow. Look forward to trying more of your recipes! Thank you.
Well, this recipe is certainly a keeper. The only change I made was to add a spoonful of beef flavored “Better Than Bouillon” to the beef broth. The gravy was so rich and absolutely delicious. Easy one-pot recipe.
I don’t have dried thyme. I am not a big fan of it so I don’t keep in the house. Can I omit? Thanks!
Hi Marla, you can get away with omitting it. Please LMK how turns out!
Will do! I love your recipes … especially the brisket, chocolate chip coffee cake and french apple cake!
I have 2.5lb chuck. Can I follow the recipe as is? I assume that I can. It’s close enough to 3lb.
Yes, that should be fine. Feel free to increase the carrots and potatoes a bit if you want to make up for the 1/2 pound of meat.
One of the best beef stew recipes that I have tried. So delicious! I am making it again, but this time I’m adding some fresh spinach leaves that I have sitting in my refrigerator. I added a little more wine and broth to have a bit more gravy. Thank you for this wonderful recipe!
I made this recipe with half the amounts (just for myself), and it came out exactly how a beef stew should taste. Rich, deep flavor, the beef was falling apart, and the veggies were cooked through, but still had a little al dente quality. Perfect! I added chopped collard greens to mine, since I had some that needed to be used, and it was delicious! I put them in with the beef so they got the long braise. I also added some fresh rosemary with the carrots and potatoes. Mine came out with a thick and rich gravy, if anything, I would maybe add a little more liquid next time. Someone suggested doing this with mashed potatoes–great idea. Also would make a killer beef pot pie. This recipe is a keeper!
Absolutely delicious!! I will be making this regularly.
Has anyone made this with 2 pounds of beef (it’s what I have on hand). Did you reduce everything by 1/3?
Thank you.
Hi Toby, It’s fine to make it with 2 pounds of beef as long as you cut the ingredients by 1/3, as you mentioned. Enjoy!
Made this for dinner a couple of weeks ago and it was such a hit with my husband. He loves stew but announced that we should only make this in the future! Thanks for the recipe.
I have made this recipe a few times and just had to add a review. WONDERFUL! So easy to put together with easy to find ingredients. After the long cooking time the flavor becomes deep as it should with a beef stew. I think this recipe is actually better the second day. I rewarm the refrigerated stew in the oven.
Hi Jenn,
I love your site and this beef stew is delicious! Question. I tried to prep the night before and discovered that mixing the red merlot wine and beef broth together 10 hours prior to use, there was a chemical change especially in the wine? Just wondering what your thoughts are as to why this would happen,
After separating the liquids and throwing out hopefully I saved the dish!
Thank you so much!
Hi Lesa, Good question! I wouldn’t think there would be a chemical reaction, but I’ve never mixed just wine and broth together before and let them sit for an extended period of time. I hope that ultimately, it turned out well!
Wine is acidic and will “cook” the meat when raw. Its the same as marinating shrimp in lemon juice.
So delicious! I made a few changes because I had no beef broth (I used one beef bouillion cube and a cup of water instead), and wanted to finish cooking this in the slow cooker. So I followed the steps up to (and including) adding the flour to the pan, then added everything else, except for the carrots and potatoes; I had used the liquids to deglaze the pan before pouring them in the slow cooker. Cooked on high for about 3 hours, then added the carrots and potatoes, and cooked for another 1.5 on high. This is an awesome recipe, Jenn – thank you!
Hi there, is there any substitutes for the dry red wine? Am I able to use a different ingredient by any chance? If not where can I buy this in Canada?
Hi Renee, Any red wine will work (like Pinot Noir, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon). You can also replace the wine with additional beef broth. Hope you enjoy!
The recipe looks delicious! Question: Can I use the crockpot Or Instapot? If so, on low or high and for how long? Thank you 🙂
Hi Carmen, I’ve never made it in either a slow cooker or an Instant Pot, but a number of readers have commented that they have successfully. For 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).
For an Instant Pot version, one person said they did the following: I cooked at high pressure for 35 min, although next time I will add 5 more min, then depressurized, added the potatoes and carrots, and cooked for another 10 min. Also added a bit less liquid, since you lose none in the pressure cooker. Hope that helps!
So delicious! My husband couldn’t stop raving about the stew! I added 2 stalks of celery, a 1/2 TSP of herbs d’Provence and I used 4 cups of beef stock and eliminated the water. I added cut up celery when it was time to add the carrots and potatoes.
When the 3 hours were up, I discarded the 2 celery stalks and added cremini mushrooms that I had already sautéed. I found the carrots to be not quite done so next time, I would add them a little earlier than the potatoes and cut up celery and I would add a lot more pepper.
Best beef stew recipe I have ever tried! I have tried a few! I did add peas with the carrots & potatoes. Absolutely delish!
Hi Jenn, I’m planning on making this today in my slow cooker, following the cooking time you mentioned previously, 4-5 hours on high. I’m wondering if I need to make any adjustment to the liquid quantities so I’m sure I get a good thick gravy. I’ll be adding sautéed mushrooms (quartered). Maybe I should dry off the carrots? 😉
Hi Nina, I think I’m probably weighing in too late to be helpful – sorry! How did the stew turn out?
I made the recipe as it was written. My husband said this is “lick the bowl” good. Enough said.
Can i substitute thyme for oregano, i don’t know what they’re both for so I’d love to hear your opinion.
Sure Dib, that should be fine. Hope you enjoy! 🙂
OP
Hi Jenn! I have the beef in the oven right now and my house smells so good. First time making stew with this recipe and after reading numerous reviews I don’t think it will disappoint! I was wondering if I could add celery when I add the carrots and potatoes? Would that change the flavor profile or spoil it?
Hi Cindy, It’s perfectly fine to add celery with the carrots and potatoes and won’t spoil the flavor profile at all — hope you enjoy!