Crock Pot Beef Stew With Mushrooms

Beef stew with mushrooms served in a skillet.

This Crock Pot Beef Stew With Mushrooms is rich, deeply savory and packed with layers of flavor. I start by browning the beef and mushrooms separately, then build the stew in the same skillet before letting the Crock Pot do the slow cooking.

Course Soup, Stews and Chilis

Cuisine American

Prep Time 20

Cook Time 7

Total Time 7 20

Servings

Calories 331kcal

Author Lea Ann Brown

Equipment

6 qt. Slow Cooker

Ingredients

2 Tablespoons Neutral oil Canola oil works well here.
3 pounds beef chuck roast large chunks of fat trimmed off. Meat cut into 2' cubes.
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 ½ teaspoons kosher salt divided
16 ounces mushrooms White Mushrooms or Baby Bella. Quartered if large. Leave small mushrooms whole.
1 ½ cups Sweet onion Chopped or sliced
3 medium carrots Peeled and cut diagonally into ½-inch pieces. Or 2 carrots and 1 parsnip.
6 garlic cloves smashed
1 cup dry red wine
1 tablespoon coriander seed
1 bunch flat leaf parsley
1 teaspoon dried thyme or 1 tablespoon fresh
2 bay leaves
1 ½ pounds small potatoes Red potatoes or Yukon gold work well here. cut any larger potatoes in half.
6 cups beef broth I use three 14.5 cans and make up the small amount of difference with water.
1 tablespoon tomato paste A generous tablespoon is even better here.
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons whole-grain mustard
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar

Instructions

Heat a large skillet over medium high heat. Once the pan is hot, add 1 tablespoon of the oil. Sprinkle beef with pepper and 1 teaspoon salt. Add half of beef to skillet, and cook, until browned on both sides, 3 to 4 minutes per side. Transfer beef to the slow cooker. Repeat with remaining 1 tablespoon oil and remaining half of beef.
Add mushrooms to the skillet, and cook, stirring often, until browned, about 5 minutes. Transfer the mushrooms to a plate, cover and refrigerate.
Add onions and carrots to the skillet. Cook, stirring occasionally until onion begins to brown, about 5 minutes. Add smashed garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute.
Add the red wine and cook until the liquid has almost evaporated, about 4 minutes. Stir and scrape to loosen browned bits from bottom of skillet.
Add red wine vegetable mixture to slow cooker with beef. Stir in coriander seed and parsley bundle. Add thyme, remaining salt, bay leaves, potatoes, tomato paste and beef stock. Cover and cook on LOW for 7 hours.
Stir in the red wine vinegar, grainy Dijon mustard and mushrooms. Make the flour thickener: Remove about 1 cup of hot broth from the slow cooker and whisk it gradually into the flour until smooth. Stir this mixture back into the stew. turn up heat to high and cook for an additional 15 minutes to thicken the broth.
Remove the coriander seed bundle and throw away. Ladle into bowls and garnish with chopped chives or chopped flat leaf parsley.

Notes

Tips for Success:

Don't overcrowd the beef: If you crowd the skillet, the beef steams instead of browning.
Don't skip the mushroom browning
Use LOW for the best texture: The long, gentle cook gives chuck roast time to become tender.
Don't judge doneness strictly by the clock: Fork tenderness matters more than an exact number of hours.
Don't thicken the stew too early: Let the slow cooker develop its flavor before finishing the broth.
Taste before serving: This is where the mustard/vinegar balance can be adjusted.

Nutrition