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Sonoma Family Life Magazine

Cook Up a Hearty, Simple Stew

By Momma Chef

This recipe dates back at least 15 years, to when I was on a slow-cooker kick. I had just been gifted a cooker and found a stapled book of recipes at the bottom of the box. I saw the recipe for beef stew and thought, “Why not?” Believe me, unlike my recipes, it included more than six minutes of prep, for sure! I chopped, sliced, and diced; I seared and used multiple pans. The stew turned out great, but even in those bygone days before kids, I needed a recipe with less prep and one pan. Voila! I created a way to make delicious beef stew without all the fuss. 

Hearty Beef and Veggie Stew

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil 

• 2½ pounds beef stew meat, cubed

• 2 large carrots, peeled and diced

• 3 medium-sized potatoes, diced

• 2 cups tomato juice

• 2 cups beef broth

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 300°F, and set a rack in the lower-middle position.

2. In a large Dutch oven, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat.

3. Add the cubed stew meat and sear for about 3 minutes per side.

4. Remove the pot from the heat, and add the carrots, potatoes, tomato juice, and beef broth. Stir everything together and cover the pot.

5. Carefully put the pot in the oven, and cook for 2 hours or until the meat is very tender.

6. Remove from the oven, and season with salt to taste.

Serves: 6

Tips

1. Alternatively, you can make this in a slow cooker. First, sear the meat with olive oil in a pan, per the instructions above. Then add the meat, carrots, potatoes, tomato juice, and beef broth to the slow cooker. Cook on low for 6 hours or high for 3 hours, until the meat is very tender.

2. Carrots and potatoes are my favorite veggies to use in the stew, but you can use others, such as peas, canned tomatoes, or any of your favorites.

Karen Nochimowski, the mom behind MommaChef.com, has loved cooking for as long as she can remember. All Momma Chef recipes are made with six or fewer ingredients and take fewer than six minutes of prep time. Karen’s first cookbook, Six-Minute Dinners (& More!), is filled with more than 100 simple and delicious recipes made with six or fewer ingredients, including nut-free and allergy-friendly options, to help busy families get dinner on the table with ease.