This hearty Amish beef stew is rich, savory, and packed with tender beef, hearty vegetables, and a flavorful, slow-simmered broth that melts in your mouth. It's perfect comfort food for a cold or rainy day!
You can fix it in the morning and have an amazing dinner waiting for you in the evening. Serve with homemade biscuits and you've got a perfect meal everyone will love. It will warm you all over, as you enjoy every delicious bite.
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Ingredients
- All-purpose flour is used to coat the beef before browning. It helps to thicken the stew as it cooks.
- Vegetable oil is used for browning the beef. It helps create a nice crust on the meat.
- Beef stew meat is the main protein in the stew, providing hearty flavor and texture.
- Carrots add sweetness and texture. They also provide vitamins and fiber.
- Potatoes add starchiness and contribute to the heartiness of the dish.
- Celery adds a savory depth of flavor and crunch.
- Onion provides a savory base flavor.
- Green beans add nutrition, color, texture, and a slightly sweet flavor.
- Petite diced tomatoes add acidity and depth of flavor.
- Jalapeno pepper adds heat and a hint of spice. It's optional, so you can adjust based on your preference for spiciness.
- Garlic cloves add a pungent flavor and aroma. (They can be replaced with a teaspoon of garlic powder.)
- Beef broth provides the liquid base for the stew and enhances the beef flavor.
- Seasonings (season all, thyme leaves, Tony's creole seasoning or seasoned salt, black pepper, paprika, bay leaves) add layers of flavor, including savory, herbal, spicy, and smoky notes. Feel free to adjust to taste.
- Salt enhances the overall flavor and helps balance the flavors.
Each ingredient contributes to the overall taste and texture of the stew, resulting in a comforting and flavorful dish. This recipe, however, is versatile. So feel free to adjust vegetables and seasonings to taste.
Slow Cooker Beef Stew
As you're getting your day started, just prep the ingredients and toss them into your crockpot.
You can cook the stew all day long at low temperatures in your slow cooker. Or if you're in a hurry, you can turn it on high, and it should be ready to eat in as little as four to five hours.
You might say, "But the Amish couldn't make slow cooker beef stew because they don't have electricity."
I was New Order Amish, and we had electricity, so we made beef stew in the crockpot. Although you are right, a lot of them do not have electricity, so they would have to cook the stew on the stovetop or bake it in the oven.
How to Make Amish Beef Stew
I start by covering all my beef cubes in flour, then frying them in an oiled skillet till browned. The flour helps to thicken the stew. If you don't want yours thickened at all, just skip the flour. You can fry the meat without the flour. Or you can even skip the frying step altogether and just toss the meat in raw if you're really short on time.
Cutting up all the veggies takes a little time. Just peel and chunk the potatoes and carrots and cut your onion and celery into bite-size pieces.
Layer all your ingredients into a crockpot, and add a bit of water to almost cover it all. Place the lid on top, turn to the low setting, and let it cook for 6 - 8 hours.
Homemade biscuits are really yummy served with stew. So about a half-hour before dinner time, I mix up a batch of biscuits (click here for the recipe to make fluffy Amish biscuits). It's a warm, comforting, and hearty dinner everyone loves!
Can I Make Amish-style Beef Stew Without a Slow Cooker?
The answer is "Yes". You can make this beef stew without a slow cooker as most Amish would. You can cook it on the stovetop. Just place your stew in a heavy pot or Dutch oven and bring it to a boil. Then reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer for approximately 3 hours.
You could probably even bake this in your Dutch oven or any ovenproof dish. I've never tried it though, so I'm not sure about baking time and temperature.
Comfort Food
Winter is the perfect time for making stew, soups, and everything comfort food. There's something about eating hot soup on a cold day, it warms you and makes you feel good.
I love making stew, cheesy chicken chowder, or hearty casseroles like this Easy Macaroni Casserole with Chicken, Ham, or Beef. With one-pot dishes, getting dinner on the table doesn't take long.
Beef or Venison
Growing up on a farm, we always had lots of beef in our freezer. But now, I'm not so lucky. Beef is expensive, although stew meat chunks aren't as expensive as some of the cuts.
My husband is a hunter. He likes getting out in the woods and harvesting a deer if he's lucky enough to find one. And now the last two years our oldest son has been hunting as well and brought home some meat. I'm always glad for extra meat in the freezer. And whenever we cut up the venison, I always cut some stew meat chunks as well.
Venison has a bit of a wild taste. But if processed properly and cooked with garlic and onions, there's really not a lot of difference in taste. I use venison in this stew recipe whenever I have some.
More Recipes for Amish Comfort Food
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Links to items you may need...
Crock Pot SCV700-B 7 Quart Black Oval Slow Cooker by Crock-Pot
I hope you get to try this amazing Amish beef stew recipe. If you try it, I'd love to hear from you in the comments below. Thank you!
📖 Recipe Card
Amish Slow Cooker Beef Stew
Ingredients
- ⅓ c. all purpose flour
- 1-2 tbsp. vegetable oil
- 1 lb. beef stew meat chunks
- 4 - 5 large carrots -cut into bite size chunks
- 5-6 potatoes, depending on size -cut into bite size chunks
- 2 celery stalks -cut into bite size chunks
- ½ onion -cut into bite size chunks
- 2 c. frozen green beans -can also use canned beans
- 1 can petite diced tomatoes
- 1 jalapeno pepper diced, optional
- 3 garlic cloves minced
- 3 c. beef broth
- 1 tsp. season all
- 1 tsp. thyme leaves
- ¾ tsp. Tony's creole seasoning or seasoned salt
- ½ tsp. black pepper
- ½ tsp. paprika
- 2 bay leaves
- salt to taste
Instructions
- Place flour in a zip lock bag, add meat chunks and shake to coat. Or you can just toss in a bowl.⅓ c. all purpose flour, 1 lb. beef stew meat chunks
- Heat oil in large skillet over medium high heat, add meat chunks and fry till browned on all sides. Add broth, scraping pan to get all the bits.1-2 tbsp. vegetable oil, 3 c. beef broth
- Peel carrots and potatoes.4 - 5 large carrots, 5-6 potatoes, depending on size
- Chunk all the vegetables into bite size pieces.2 celery stalks, ½ onion
- Place your vegetables and meat/broth mixture into your crock pot. It doesn't really matter what order.2 c. frozen green beans, 1 can petite diced tomatoes, 1 jalapeno pepper, 3 garlic cloves
- Add seasonings, and a bit of water to almost cover your ingredients.1 tsp. season all, 1 tsp. thyme leaves, ¾ tsp. Tony's creole seasoning or seasoned salt, ½ tsp. black pepper, ½ tsp. paprika, 2 bay leaves
- Turn the crock pot on low setting and let it cook for about 6 - 8 hours. Do not open lid more than about one time to give it a stir.
- Remove the bay leaves when ready to serve. Add salt to preferred taste.salt to taste
Anna
A fall favorite!