Beef stew recipe for crock pot cooking and advantages of using crock pot

The best beef stew recipe for crock pot preparation when cooked properly will result in a delicious mouth watering meal. Crock pot meals allow ingredients to cook at a very low temperature. Which of course means it will take several hours before the meal is fully cooked.

The results however, will be well worth the wait!

No matter what you decide to cook, like beef for example. The goal is always the same. It has to taste good! To accomplish this, you'll have to add some kind of seasoning. But just adding seasoning is not enough. In order for the beef to absorb the flavors of the seasoning as well as the natural flavors from the vegetables it needs to cook slowly.

Have you ever noticed how full the aroma of food that has been cooking in a crock pot for hours can fill up a room or home? You don't just smell "something". You smell the sage, the garlic, the onions, the thyme...it is so intense you can almost taste it! That's the beauty of cooking in a crock pot. The satisfaction one gets from a meal doesn't rely only on taste. The full experience must include a meal that smells as good as it tastes.

You can add your ingredients, turn on your crock pot and let it cook for the next several hours on it's own. (6 to 10 hours is typical) You can attend to other things while you're meal is cooking.

Is cooking your meals in a crock pot healthier? Well that would depend on what you're cooking and the ingredients you choose to add. So in terms of a healthy diet you should make the same choices you would with or without a crock pot. This could mean, using a leaner cut of beef. Or using a salt substitute if you're on a low sodium diet for instance.

The best recipes call for fresh natural ingredients. But you can also use frozen vegetables if buying fresh is not an option.
If time is an issue, shop for and prepare your vegetables in advance. Washing fresh vegetables is not time consuming, but it is necessary. Of course you'll need to spend a short amount of time to peel, chop and cut up your vegetables and meat into appropriate portions.

One side note when including meat in your recipes. Both chicken and pork must be cooked thoroughly. Chicken contains bacteria and pork has parasites that are destroyed during the cooking process. Eating under cooked chicken or pork can result in food poisoning. The best rule of thumb is to use an internal meat thermometer. Also by cutting into the chicken or pork you can check for any pinkness. This is a sure sign the meat is under cooked.

Beef, for the most part can be eaten safely rare.

Saving money is on everyone's minds these days. Preparing your meals using a crock pot provides more servings at a much cheaper cost than eating out.

Here are two delicious and easy to prepare crock pot recipes for beef stew and beef barley soup.

A pound to a pound and a half of beef stew meat
One can diced tomatoes, undrained (12-14 ounces)
2- 3cups of frozen stir fry bell peppers and onions or use fresh if you'd like
4 medium red potatoes
salt and pepper
1/3 cup flour
2 cups water

Feel free to add additional ingredients based on your own preferences.

After washing the potatoes cut them up into small bite size pieces and place in your crock pot. Now take your flour, salt and pepper and mix them up really well. Take your stew meat and coat each piece in the flour mixture. Now put your beef in the crock pot along with the tomatoes and water. Be sure to stir everything thoroughly before you cover the crock pot. Let it cook for about 7 - 8 hours on the low temperature setting. Make sure your potatoes and beef are tender. If not another hour of cook time should do it. Finally add the vegetables cover again and allow them to cook another 30 minutes.

Serves 4 - 6

A pound of beef round steak (boneless)
Pearl barley about a half cup (uncooked)
1 cup sliced carrots
One small 4 ounce jar of sliced mushrooms, drained
One jar of mushroom gravy (12oz size should suffice)
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 cups frozen green beans
1 chopped onion
Thyme leaves (dried one half teaspoon)
1/4 tsp. pepper
3 cups water


Cut steak into cubes about one inch each. Mix all ingredients and place in crock pot. That's it! Just cover and cook for 10 -12 hours on low.

Serves 6

No matter what culinary delight you decide to prepare for yourself or your family. Whether it's a hearty slow cooked beef barley soup or the beef stew recipe crock pot meal we've shared with you here. You'll find crock pot cooking is convenient, inexpensive and deliciously habit forming.


Bon Appétit!