Beef Stew Recipe

After eight hours of slow cooking, the smell will draw you in, and the taste will capture your heart. The rich tomato broth and the barley will soak up all the flavor. This crock pot beef stew is the dinner that makes the whole house smell like something worth coming home to. It has been in our cold-weather rotation for years, and my husband (who rates every meal I make without being asked) gives it a constant ten out of ten.

What makes this one different from the basic versions is: browning the meat first, using tomato juice instead of plain water or stock for the broth, and adding the barley in the last hour so it doesn’t turn to mush. Those three things make a real difference in the final bowl.

How to Make It

Step 1: Season and Brown the Beef

Toss the stew meat in a bowl with salt, basil, pepper, and garlic powder until every piece is coated. Heat some vegetable oil in a frying pan on medium-high heat. Brown the beef in a single layer. If needed, do multiple batches – don’t crowd the pan or it will steam instead of sear.

Step 2: Load the Slow Cooker

Place the browned beef in the slow cooker. Then add in tomato juice, chicken broth, and the vegetables you have prepped: carrots, celery, and potatoes. Finish with the bay leaf and sugar, and give it a stir. Cover and cook on LOW for 7 hours. Do not lift the lid — every peek adds time.

Step 3: Add the Barley

Add the quick barley, stir, close the lid, and set to cook on LOW for another hour. This will keep the barley tender and the correct consistency. If you add it earlier, it will absorb too much liquid and become gluey.

Step 4: Serve

Before serving, be sure to snag that pesky bay leaf. Ladle out the stew into bowls. You can also serve it with a warmed, buttered roll on the side or topped with crumbled crackers. Both options are great!

Helpful Tips

Don’t Skip Browning the Meat

I notice people skip this step all the time, and I can’t stress enough how much it impacts the finished product. If you just throw raw stew meat into the slow cooker, it comes out looking unappetizing and will be bland. Meat that has been browned adds a rich flavor to the meat and the broth. It just takes 10 minutes, but you will be rewarded with lots of flavor.

Quick Barley vs. Regular Barley

Quick barley will need just under an hour to finish cooking in the pot. Standard pearl barley is raw and will take at least 1.5 to 2 hours. Barley can be added with the veggies at the beginning if you’re using standard barley. If you add it at the very end, it will be too chewy.

If the Stew Is Too Thick

Mix in half a cup of warm chicken broth until you reach your desired consistency. It is normal to have some variation in thickness because barley absorbs a lot of liquid, especially considering how much liquid reduced during cooking.

If the Stew Is Too Thin

Remove the lid and cook on HIGH for 20-30 minutes so some liquid evaporates or stir in a slurry of 1 tablespoon cornstarch mixed with 2 tablespoons of cold water and cook for another 15 minutes.

Cutting the Potatoes

When cutting potatoes, aim for roughly 1/2 inch pieces. If you go smaller than this, they might dissolve into the broth by the 7-hour mark. They could also be a little crunchy if you go larger. 1/2 inch will ensure that the potatoes are fully soft, but they will still be distinguishable in the soup.

A Good Slow Cooker Makes a Difference

When it comes to a recipe that takes 8 hours, the slow cooker that you use is more important than you may think. A 6 or 7 quart insert will give the stew room to cook evenly, and a sear/sauté function type will save you from having to clean an additional pan.

Variations and Substitutions

Swap the Barley

Not a fan of barley or can’t find any? Try small pasta shapes like ditalini or small shells. Add them in the last 30 minutes of cooking or just skip them to keep the carbs lower. The stew is still thick and hearty without barley. You’ll just have more broth.

Add More Vegetables

Vegetables that can be used include parsnips, green beans, frozen peas (add these in the last 30 minutes), or mushrooms. For mushrooms, add them along with the other vegetables at the beginning. They cook down to create an earthy flavor in the broth.

Use Beef Broth Instead of Chicken

The recipe uses chicken broth to offset the tomato base, however, if you want a more robustly beefy flavor, beef broth does the trick. You will get a deeper and richer flavor — more of a classic beef stew flavor.

Add Red Wine

Substitute 1/2 cup of the chicken broth with a dry red wine such as Cabernet or Merlot. Add it when you add the other liquids. It enriches the broth and gives a little depth that complements the tomato base.

Serving Ideas

Although this stew can be a meal by itself, there are a few things that go particularly well with it:

• Warm, buttered dinner rolls — for soaking up the broth at the bottom of the bowl
• Oyster crackers or saltines — crumbled right on top adds a little texture contrast
• Crusty bread or a sourdough loaf — slice and serve on the side for dipping
• Simple green salad — the stew is rich and filling, so something light and acidic alongside it cuts through nicely

Storage, Make-Ahead, and Leftovers

Refrigerator

If you’re planning to store the stew, the barley will continue to soak up the liquid, so the leftovers will certainly be thicker the day after you made it. To loosen the mixture before reheating it, add a splash of broth or water. To prevent spills, cover the stew and place it in the fridge. You can store the stew in the fridge for a maximum of four days.

Freezer

This stew can stay in the freezer for 3 months. You should freeze it in single-serving portions in containers safe for the freezer or zip-top bags that are laid flat. When you freeze the stew, the potatoes and barley will change in texture a bit — the potatoes might seem a bit grainy and the barley will become softer. It will still be good, just a little different. If you plan to freeze a batch of stew, you might want to leave out the potatoes and barley, and then add some freshly cooked potatoes and barley when you reheat.

Reheating

To reheat, either use the stovetop on medium heat while stirring a few times, or reheat in the microwave in two-minute increments, stirring in-between. If any of the items on this list have more than 20-calories, please add broth to get it back to your preferred consistency.

Make-Ahead Tips

You can brown the beef ahead of time, then store it in the slow cooker insert. In the morning, add the tomato juice, broth, and veggies and start cooking. You can put the insert directly from the refrigerator into the slow cooker base. Just add a few minutes to the total cook time since it’s starting cold.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I cook this on HIGH instead of LOW?

Sure, but the cooking method will change the texture of the meat. Stew meat cooked on HIGH usually ends up being tougher and more chewy than meat that is cooked more gently on the LOW setting. If you need to speed up the cooking process, you can set it on HIGH for about 4-5 hours, but setting it to LOW for about 7 hours will result in substantially more tender beef. If you’re cooking on HIGH, add the barley in the last 45 minutes of cooking.

Why does this recipe use tomato juice instead of beef broth?

The beef or chicken broth is pretty plain and doesn’t have the acidity and sweetness that liquid tomato juice offers. In addition, the beef or chicken broth doesn’t have the thickness that the beef and chicken broth does. Broth from stews that use only stock is not as rich, complex, or old-timey as the broth made from stews that use stock and tomato juice.

Can I use a different cut of beef?

For alternatives, try pre-packaged stew meat or cubed chuck roast. Do not use steaks leaner than chuck, like sirloin or round, as they get dry and chewy after more than 7 hours. The fat content in chuck cuts is what makes beef stay tender.

Do I have to peel the potatoes?

I do not recommend this for Russets. The skins of Russets can become tough and papery with a long cook. Yukon Golds have thinner skins that hold up better, so if you’re using Yukons, it’s totally fine to leave the peel on.

My stew meat came in large chunks — should I cut it smaller?

Certainly. Try to aim for pieces that are about 1 to 1.5 inches. Also, larger pieces take longer to cook through and to brown evenly. Smaller pieces can get too soft after 7+ hours. Cutting everything to a uniform size also means everything finishes at the same time.

Can I add more vegetables?

Sure. The recipe as it stands is on the lighter side with regard to vegetables. Without altering the rest of the recipe, you can add parsnips, turnips, frozen peas (for the last 30 minutes of cooking), green beans, or mushrooms. Keep in mind though that a significant increase in vegetables will absorb some of the liquid and result in a thicker stew.

Related Recipes

If you like this stew for dinner, you might want to bookmark these other slow cooker and hearty soup recipes:

• Crockpot Beef Barley Soup — a lighter, soup-style version with the same slow cooker barley technique
• Slow Cooker Pot Roast — same concept as this stew, but whole-roast format with gravy
• Crock Pot Beef and Noodles — chuck roast that falls apart all day, served over egg noodles
• Crock Pot Beef Stroganoff — creamy, savory, and just as hands-off as this stew