Classic Beef Stew cooked in a clay terra cotta dish or Dutch oven with tender fall apart beef stew meat, potatoes, carrots, garlic and herbs in a rich and savory gravy.
If you are ready for the best beef stew you have ever tasted this is the stew recipe for you.
Beef stew meat cooked with fresh vegetables in beef broth, with herbs and spices in a Dutch oven or terra cotta casserole dish is always moist and tender.
The stew meat is so buttery tender that a fork will glide right through it and it will melt in your mouth.
Ingredients Used
Classic beef stew is made with simple ingredients that when slowly cooked create the best beef stew flavors.
Scroll down to the recipe card for the ingredient amounts and detailed recipe directions.
- beef stew meat
- potatoes
- carrots
- onion
- garlic
- salt and pepper
- dried thyme
- dried bay leaves
Let's make Beef Stew
Classic beef stew should taste amazing and be very easy to make.
I am making this stew recipe in a clay pottery casserole dish today. I have also made it in a Dutch Oven.
Clay pots and Dutch Ovens do something magical to stew meat.
Get ready to eat the best beef stew you have ever cooked.
Step 1: Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large skillet and brown the meat on all sides.
Step 2: Layer the meat, potatoes, carrots and garlic in a large 8-quart clay casserole dish or an enamel cast iron Dutch oven.
Step 3: Pour the beef broth into the casserole dish.
Step 4: Place the lid on the clay casserole dish or Dutch oven.
If you do not have a lid cover the top tightly with aluminum foil.
Step 5: Cook the stew in a preheated 350 F. oven for 2 ½ hours. After 2 ½ hours remove the cover and add the cornstarch and water slurry to the broth and gently mix into the broth.
Recover the pot and return it to the oven. Cook for 30 minutes longer to allow the gravy to thicken.
Step 6: Carefully remove the Dutch Oven or Terra Cotta Cazuela from the oven and uncover.
Serve immediately with rolls or a crusty loaf of French Bread.
Recipe FAQ's
Cooking beef stew meat on a low heat and for a long time in a Terra Cotta Dish or Dutch Oven is the best way to make beef stew meat soft and tender.
Cooking beef stew in beef broth with fresh vegetables, herbs and spices like, garlic, thyme, bay with add a delicious flavor to your beef stew.
Recipe Expert Tips
- Browning the beef: Leave plenty of space between each piece of meat as you are browning it. If you pack the meat into the skillet the beef will steam instead of brown.
- Prevent browning potatoes: To prevent the peeled potatoes from browning while preparing the rest of the ingredients keep them covered in cold water until needed.
- Slicing carrots: Cut the carrots in large pieces before cooking to prevent them from becoming over cooked and mushy.
- Peeling fresh garlic: Cutting the root end off of fresh garlic cloves and smashing them with the back of a knife makes the thin garlic peel pull away much easier.
- Adding beef broth: The beef broth should be almost covering the stew ingredients so the vegetables will cook at the same rate as the meat.
- Substitute for beef broth: You can use water and a beef bouillon in place of beef broth. Use caution and omit the salt if using a bouillon instead of broth.
- Making tender stew meat: Cooking beef stew meat in a covered Dutch oven or clay casserole dish will result in the tenderest beef stew meat you have ever tasted. The meat will be so tender you will be able to cut it with a fork.
- How long to cook beef stew meat? The cooking time for tender beef stew meat will depend on how large the pieces of meat are. Small 1 to 2 inch pieces of beef will cook much quicker than large pieces of beef stew meat. If cooking smaller pieces check the meat at the 2 hour cooking mark. If the meat is not done recover the pan tightly and return to the oven.
- Thickening the gravy: I use cornstarch and water to thicken all of my gravy and soups. Cornstarch is gluten free, does not cause lumps and does not change the flavor.
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Classic Beef Stew
Equipment
- Terra Cotta Cazuela
Ingredients
- 3 lbs. beef stew meat (browned)
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 5 medium red potatoes (peel, rinsed and quartered)
- 5 medium carrots (peeled, trimmed and cut into pieces)
- 1 medium onion (peeled and cut into wedges)
- 5 cloves garlic (peeled and smashed)
- ¾ teaspoon dried thyme
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 6 cups beef broth
- 2 tablespoons corn starch mixed with 2 tablespoons cold water.
Instructions
Brown the stew meat
- In a single layer, not crowded brown the stew meat on all sides.
- Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium high heat.
- Transfer each piece of browned meat to a bowl. Repeat until all of the stew meat is browned.
Make the beef stew
- In a large 8-quart Dutch oven or 8-quart pottery or clay casserole dish (13 inch round and 4 inch deep) layer the meat, potatoes, carrots, onion, and garlic.
- Sprinkle the dried thyme, salt, and pepper over the top. Add the bay leaf.
- Pour the beef broth into the casserole dish over the stew ingredients. The ingredients should be almost covered with the beef broth.
- Place the lid on the Dutch oven or casserole dish. If you do not have a lid cover the top tightly with aluminum foil crimping it tightly around the edged of the pan.
- Cook the beef stew in a preheated 350 F. degrees oven for 2 ½ hours. After 2 ½ hours remove the casserole dish from the oven. Remove the lid or aluminum foil.
- Mix the corn starch with the water until dissolved. Pour the thickener into the stew and mix with a large spoon.
- Recover the casserole dish and return it to the oven. Cook for another 30 minutes until the gravy has thickened. Once thickened remove the stew from the oven.
- Serve the stew immediately with rolls or French bread.
Video
Recipe Expert Tips
- Browning the beef: Leave plenty of space between each piece of meat as you are browning it. If you pack the meat into the skillet the beef will steam instead of brown.
- Prevent browning potatoes: To prevent the peeled potatoes from browning while preparing the rest of the ingredients keep them covered in cold water until needed.
- Slicing carrots: Cut the carrots in large pieces before cooking to prevent them from becoming over cooked and mushy.
- Peeling fresh garlic: Cutting the root end off of fresh garlic cloves and smashing them with the back of a knife makes the thin garlic peel pull away much easier.
- Adding beef broth: The beef broth should be almost covering the stew ingredients so the vegetables will cook at the same rate as the meat.
- Substitute for beef broth: You can use water and a beef bouillon in place of beef broth. Use caution and omit the salt if using a bouillon instead of broth.
- Making tender stew meat: Cooking beef stew meat in a covered Dutch oven or clay casserole dish will result in the tenderest beef stew meat you have ever tasted. The meat will be so tender you will be able to cut it with a fork.
- How long to cook beef stew meat? The cooking time for tender beef stew meat will depend on how large the pieces of meat are. Small 1 to 2 inch pieces of beef will cook much quicker than large pieces of beef stew meat. If cooking smaller pieces check the meat at the 2 hour cooking mark. If the meat is not done recover the pan tightly and return to the oven.
- Thickening the gravy: I use cornstarch and water to thicken all of my gravy and soups. Cornstarch is gluten free, does not cause lumps and does not change the flavor.
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