Easy 10 Ingredient Beef Stew (Budget Friendly Comfort)

beef stew with carrots, beef and potatoes in a cast iron pot on a table

Super Simple Beef Stew              Beef stew in a yellow ceramic pot on a black wooden tabel                                             

Some nights call for a recipe you can almost make on autopilot- something warm, steady, and comforting that doesn’t ask much of you. This Super Simple Beef Stew is exactly that.

Just 10 ingredients, in one pot, and a slow, cozy simmer that fills the whole house with the kind of aroma that makes you exhale a little deeper.

It’s budget-friendly, beginner-friendly, and the kind of meal you can return to all winter long.

Prep time: 30 minutes                       Cooking time: 1-1 ½ hours               Serves: 4-6

Ingredients

Beef Chuck Roast or stew meat, 1 pound

Mushrooms, sliced 1 cup

Potatoes 3 medium, peeled and cut into bite-sized chunks

Carrots 1 whole or 6 baby carrots

Onion 1 small or ½ medium

Beef broth 1 ½ cups plus ½ cup for stew thickener

Water 2 cups

Salt to taste, start with ½ teaspoon and work your way up, stirring well after each addition

Flour 2 tablespoons plus one in reserve if additional thickening is desired

Oil ½ tablespoon

Directions

  1. Measure oil into a large saucepan.
  2. Add the meat and brown over medium-high heat, stirring often to prevent the meat from sticking to the bottom of the pan.
  3. Add mushrooms, potatoes, carrots, and onion.
  4. Stir the veggies into the meat juice thoroughly.
  5. Add 1 ½ cups of beef broth and water, and stir well.
  6. Turn the heat to high and bring to a boil, stirring occasionally.
  7. Add ½ teaspoon of salt and stir well. Taste the broth and add additional salt as desired.
  8. Turn the heat to low and simmer for 1 to 1 ½ hours.
  9. After simmering, turn the heat to medium.
  10. Use ½ cup of broth held in reserve and add 2 tablespoons of flour, 1 at a time, stirring vigorously with a fork to prevent lumping.
  11. Once you have a creamy liquid with no lumps, stir it into the stew continuously until the mixture thickens.
  12. If the stew isn’t thick enough, take ½ cup of broth out of the stew pot and add an additional tablespoon of flour, beating well until it is a creamy liquid with no lumps.
  13. Stir into the stew, continuing to stir as the mixture thickens.
  14. Cover and let it thicken over low heat for 5 minutes.
  15. At this point, stew is ready, or you can continue to simmer over very low heat until you are ready to serve- not more than 1 ½ hours. Stir occasionally during this time.
  16. Serve with fresh homemade biscuits or rolls of your choice. https://recipeswanted.com/quick-and-easy-biscuits-ready-in-30-minutes/
  17. Enjoy!

 

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Fran W

Hi! I’m Fran Wiedenhoeft, the creator and curator of Recipes Wanted. I’m passionate about bringing people together through food, sharing tried-and-true recipes, and discovering new kitchen tips from cooks of all backgrounds. Whether you’re a seasoned chef or just starting out, I believe everyone has something delicious to offer. Thanks for being part of our recipe community—let’s cook, share, and inspire each other!

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