An easy and hearty homemade beef stew made with fork tender grass fed chuck roast and Italian gnocchi dumplings, in a smoky paprika gravy with subtle hints of clove.
I’ve been dusting off the recipe files here at the Love Shack and came across this simple, rustic, 5 Star beef stew. I really like to make something hearty and seasonal for the holidays and comfort food is always a crowd pleaser.
Always use organic grass fed beef, extremely flavorful and nutritious, a healthy choice your body will thank you for.
As with any kind of slow cooked stew you will need patience. This is not a meal you can rush as we are using tougher cuts of meat that need to simmer slowly until they tenderize and fall apart. It will taste is even better 2 days later.
Green peas and potatoes are a classic but dumplings, or ricotta Italian gnocchi make a really lovely substitute.
Can be made on your stove top, oven or slow cooker!
And tough the recipe calls for browning the chuck roast, you are free to skip this step and go on the healthier side. I’ve experimented both ways and couldn’t tell a change in flavor. Ultimately your call and don’t forget you can can even freeze it If you want.
P.S. This recipe can me made 100% cruelty-free and better for you by using meaty jackfruit instead of beef. Please consider making this popular Italian vegan stew instead.
Homemade Beef Stew
Ingredients
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 2 tbs butter
- 3 lb chuck roast cut into 1″ cubes organic grass fed
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 1/3 c all purpose flour
- 1/3 c fresh italian parsley chopped
- 6 sprigs thyme
- 3 leaves bay
- 4 whole cloves
- sea salt to taste
- freshly cracked black pepper to taste
- 1 tbsp smoked or sweet paprika
- 1 pinch red pepper flakes
- 1.25 qt water, filtered
- 3/5 c frozen green peas- thawed
- 1 c cherry tomatoes, diced
- 3/4 lb gnocchi or golden potatoes ( diced )
- 2 carrots, sliced
Instructions
- Heat up a large cast iron dutch oven over medium flame. Season the beef cubes with sea salt and black pepper and toss to coat well with 2 tablespoon of olive oil. Working in batches so you don’t overcrowd the pan, brown the beef in the hot pot. Transfer to a bowl and keep warm.
- Add the 2 tbs butter and a lug of olive oil to the pot and sautee the chopped onions until translucent (about 5 min). Add the garlic and red pepper flakes and cook one more min. Stir in the flour and paprika and cook for another minute or so making sure not to burn it.
- Deglaze the pot with the warm water whisking as you add it to break up any lumps that might form. Bring to a simmer.Add the beef cubes back to the pot, the bay leaf, whole cloves and thyme. Cover with a tight lid and allow it to simmer together for 2 1/2 hours stirring occasionally.
- Add the potatoes and carrots to the stew, turn the flame up to med-low and simmer partially covered for another 20 minutes or so until the potatoes are cooked through. Remove from heat. If using potato gnocchi add them in the last 5 minutes of cooking or boil separately then add them to the stew.
- Add the tomatoes and peas and give the stew a good stir. Cover with the lid for a few minutes until the tomatoes release their juices and the peas are just heated through.
- Adjust seasonings to your taste and serve the homemade beef stew with crusty bruschetta and sprinkled with the fresh parsley.
- OVEN METHODPreheat your oven to 375"FFollow the above steps and after you added the beef cubes back into the stew cover with a tight lid and transfer the pot to the hot oven. Cook for 2 hours then add the carrots and potatoes or dumplings/gnocchi. Cook an additional 20 minutes or so until cooked through and the beef is fork tender.
- SLOW COOKER/CROCK POT METHODAdd the beef, onion, garlic, sea salt, potatoes, carrots, cloves, thyme and bay leaf to the slow cooker. In a bowl whisk together the water with the flour and paprika. Pour over the ingredients and drizzle with the olive oil. Cook on hight for 5-6 hours or on low for 11 -12 hours.
Nutrition
Still Hungry ?
Italian Beef Stew
Beef & Butternut Squash Stew
Chicken Cacciatore
This looks amazing! I love the gnocchi addition!
Thanks Meg, gnocchi makes everything better 😉
so excited to make today !! gonna use homemade gnocchi too
How exciting, homemade gnocchi scream heavenly comfort! Yummy!
Hey! When do I add the tomatoes and peas if I’m using the slow cooker method ? I love gnocchi can’t wait to try, looks delish
Hey Alexa, you would add those right at the very end, just a few minutes before serving, enough to just heat it through. Enjoy! ~Florentina
Had to tweak. ~3 oz tom paste instead of cherry tomatoes. Also added 1/2 c red wine. The cloves send this over the top. Absolute favorite beef stew ever, which says a lot because I cook a lot. Thanks!
My pleasure Pamela, thanks you for stopping by,I’m so happy you have found new favorite meal! Enjoy! ~Florentina
Sounds delicious and can’t wait to make. When would you add gnocchi when cooking in a slow cooker? Thanks!
Kathy, you can add them already boiled If you prefer or about 25 to 30 minutes before the stew is done. I know my response is kind of late, hope it still helps someone 🙂
Sure helps me!! Making it right now & it smells amazing!
I have made this twice now, I love it ! It’s yummy! Thank you for this recipie
This sounds delicious! I’m going to make it this week. Have a couple of questions though… do you remove thyme leaves or just use whole sprigs? And I haven’t cooked much with whole cloves, do you remove them from stew before eating like bay leaves or are they edible?
Thanks!
I just use whole sprigs of thyme, the leaves will fall into the stew and you can discard the woody part easily. same with the cloves, I would just gently move them to the side as they can be quite pungent if you bite into them. However they do mellow out quite a bit in the cooking process and I find some people really enjoy the taste from chewing on them.
What gives this such a deep red color if there is just water and cherry tomatoes? You don’t use any tomato paste? Thanks!
Paprika!
I made this using smoked paprika and gnocchi and the family loved it. So easy in the slow cooker.
Sorry, also forgot to ask, can I use ground cloves? How much would you suggest?
Yes, just a pinch 1/4 tsp and work up from there if desired, it could be overwhelming if too much is added.
Curious about the amount of peas. Is it 3/5 of a cup or 3 to 5 cups? 3/5ths seemed like a really odd measurement is why I’m asking. Thanks
About one cup of peas.
Hi about to make your wonder looking stew!! Do you brown before? Or just throw everything in except gnocchi and peas?
Many thanks can’t wait to see results
This was deee-licious!!! The only thing I did different was sub a can of beef broth for some of the water and used a can of stewed tomatoes instead of cherry tomatoes. Two thumbs up
This looks so good! i love the idea of using gnocchi instead of potatoes!