Easy Peasy Slow Cooker Beef Stew

OK, so it’s a bit time consuming to chop up all the veggies, but I promise, it’s all worth it for this recipe! I like to do all my chopping the night before and I will even brown my beef the night before too. The next morning, just pop it all in your slow cooker and wahlah, you don’t need to think about dinner until it’s time to eat!

This recipe is very forgiving. It’s my own creation that I made up a number of years ago and I am always asked to share my recipe. You can change up the veggies however you wish. I’ve used mushrooms, peas, kale, spinach, and a variety of other veggies I have on hand at any given time. You can also dial the spice up or down based on your own taste. I use about a teaspoon or a little less of the crushed red pepper, but I use plenty of fresh cracked pepper.

This is also a great recipe to have the kids help out with. My daughter enjoys cutting the ends off of the green beans and peeling the carrots.

Beef Stew

1 ½ lbs grass-fed organic stew beef, cut into 1 inch cubes
1 cup tapioca flour seasoned heavily with sea salt & pepper (regular flour works too if you are not avoiding grains)
Coconut oil (use refined so it doesn’t have the coconut taste)
28 ounces organic diced tomatoes
4 cups beef broth (from scratch is best)
6 carrots, peeled and sliced
2 sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed
2-3 handfuls fresh green beans, stems removed, cut in thirds
1 medium vidalia onion, diced
1 tsp crushed red pepper (more if you’d like more of a kick!)
2-3 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
2 whole bay leaves
2 tsp basil
1 tbsp oregano
Salt & pepper to taste
1-2 cups frozen organic corn (omit for Paleo)

Toss the beef in the seasoned flour mixture (I use a zip lock and do this in small batches). Brown beef in about 1 tbsp coconut oil in a cast iron pan or heavy skillet. Do this in batches so you don’t crowd the beef and add more coconut oil as needed.

Combine the browned beef and any juices, tomatoes, broth and all other ingredients except for the frozen corn in a slow cooker. Cook on low 6-8 hours, stirring occasionally.

The stew will cook down and thicken a lot. Add the frozen veggies about 1-2 hours before serving. Discard the bay leaves before serving.

If you’re following a Paleo diet, but would still like to have rolls with your stew, I’ve got a recipe for you! Check this one out: Grain-Free Dinner Rolls
I used coconut oil instead of olive oil, and I just “splopped” them onto my silpat liner in the shape of a roll. I didn’t botter to try to make balls. Mess-free, easy and they worked out great!

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