Classic slow cooker beef stew with gravy is hearty and full of tender beef, potatoes, and carrots in a thick and rich broth. This easy and delicious soup is the definition of comfort food. Made in the crockpot, the stew is a classic recipe that cooks to perfection with almost no prep!

a close up of crock pot beef stew with gravy including beef, carrots, and potatoes

I made crockpot beef stew for supper last night, and it was delicious. The tender roast beef cubes, the creamy Yukon Gold potatoes, the sweet carrots, and the gravy... it's so good! There is a lot to love about this Crock Pot Beef Stew.

Why you're going to love Crock Pot Beef Stew with Gravy

Easy to make: This recipe has virtually no prep. Dump it all in the slow cooker, turn it on, and in a few hours, dinner is done! The CrockPot does all the work.

Family-friendly: Kids love this recipe. It's made from a handful of simple ingredients, and the flavors are rich and familiar. There's nothing weird or unusual in this recipe. It's all standard comfort food that the whole family will gobble up.

Versatile: This recipe can be served in the gravy as a soup, or you can do what we do and serve it over noodles with the gravy acting as a sauce. Or serve it over mashed potatoes or bread! There are a lot of possibilities with this delicious saucy stew.

It's a whole meal: This beef stew is an entire meal in one pot! It's got your protein, starch, and vegetables all in one easy dish.

It makes enough for a crowd: This recipe will fill your 6-quart CrockPot, so you will have enough beef stew for a party or for leftovers for the rest of the week.

Allergy-friendly: This recipe is nut-free, soy-free, and dairy-free as written. It's easy to make gluten-free if you use cornstarch in place of all-purpose flour and gluten-free noodles to serve. You can make it egg-free by using egg-free noodles.

Less expensive: The beef cubes for beef stew is cheaper than many other cuts of beef, making this a really frugal option for a meat-based meal.

crock pot beef stew with gravy served over egg noodles

What you'll need to make Crockpot beef stew

Equipment

The only equipment you'll need, aside from standard kitchen tools like measuring cups and spoons, is a Crockpot or other slow cooker.

Ingredients

See the printable recipe card at the bottom of the page for all measurements and nutritional information.

Lean beef round, cut into cubes - You can buy stew meat already cubed or ask the butcher to cut a beef chuck roast into cubes. They will cut it for you for free. You could also buy beef tips, but there's no need to use an expensive cut of meat since it will be cooking all day and will get really nice and tender.
Salt & black pepper - This is to season the beef.
All-purpose flour - This coats the beef and helps to make the gravy.
Low sodium fat-free beef broth - This is the liquid in your stew. I prefer low sodium broth so that I can season the stew to my own taste.
Worcestershire sauce - This adds an umami flavor to the stew. You'll miss it if you leave it out, but you could substitute soy sauce in an equal amount and get a similar flavor.
Bay leaf - You'll remove this before serving, but you need it in the recipe. I don't understand the magic that is bay leaves, but trust me when I tell you that it gives the stew a delicious flavor.
Paprika - Paprika is made from red bell peppers that are roasted, dehydrated, and ground into powder. (That blew my mind when I learned it!)
Chopped onion - This will cook to nothing in the Crock Pot, but it gives the stew a sweetness that you will miss if you leave it out. Alternately, you can use onion powder but it won't taste the same as using real onion.
Quartered potatoes - I prefer to use Yukon Gold potatoes because they are rich and creamy, but you could also use baby red skin potatoes or your favorite variety of potato. You don't have to peel gold or red potatoes because their skin is very tender and edible. I would not recommend Russet potatoes for beef stew because they have a high starch content and tend to turn to mush in the slow cooker.
Baby carrots - You can slice these if you want to or leave them whole. I like to leave them whole because if they're sliced, they sometimes fall apart in the Crockpot.
Egg noodles - These are optional, especially because the stew contains potatoes. But I love to serve my beef stew over noodles. The noodles catch all that delicious gravy and the whole meal is just so tasty.

How to make Crockpot beef stew

Place beef stew meat in crockpot.
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Mix flour, salt, and pepper and pour mixture over meat.
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Stir and coat meat with flour.
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Add the potatoes, carrots, and onions to the crock.
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Stir to mix well. Pour the broth over everything.
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Sprinkle with the spices and throw the bay leaf on top.
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Cover and cook on low for 7-8 hours or high for 3-4 hours, or until the meat is so tender it almost falls apart. (The meat will be MUCH more tender and delicious if you cook it on low. High will work but is not preferable.)
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Before serving, prepare 12 oz of whole wheat egg noodles according to package directions. Serve stew over noodles. Garnish with fresh parsley if desired.
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Tips for the best beef stew with gravy

Don't cut the beef cubes too small. If you are cutting your own beef, you want the cubes to be a little bigger than bite-sized. Aim for 1½ to 2-inch pieces. If you're using stew beef from the butcher shop, just go with whatever size they are.

Variations of the best beef stew recipe

You can add a clove or two of garlic to the stew. Press it with a garlic press or mince it very finely and mix it in with the beef broth.

You can throw a packet of onion soup mix in with the beef broth. Just mix it right in. I love the flavor that onion soup mix gives chuck roast.

You can replace one cup of the beef broth with dry red wine or Guinness beer to add a whole different flavor to your beef stew.

Some beef stew recipes will tell you to brown the beef before adding it to the CrockPot, and this does give a better flavor to the stew. I personally don't do it because I'm all about saving time, and the stew is really good even without browning the beef. But if you have the extra time, it will make a good thing even better.

To brown the beef, heat a tablespoon of olive oil over medium-high heat in a large cast iron skillet. Toss the beef in flour mixed with salt and pepper and add the beef to the hot oil. Brown it just long enough to sear the outside of the beef, but not long enough to cook it through. Then toss it into the CrockPot and continue with the recipe.

If you brown the beef, you will want to use some of the beef broth to deglaze the skillet. This means that you'll add the broth to the hot skillet and then use a wooden spatula or spoon to scrape up all the browned bits of meat from the bottom of the skillet. That stuff is called the fond, and it is some of the most flavorful bits in the recipe. Scrape it up into the broth and then pour the broth into the CrockPot.

We prefer our beef stew with just carrots and potatoes, but you could add other vegetables if you'd like. Green beans might be good, as would frozen peas. (No need to thaw as they will cook in the CrockPot.) You could also add celery if you like that. Like the onions, it will cook away to mush that will mix in with the gravy.

The gravy in this stew recipe is fairly thin. If you want it to be thicker, you could make a cornstarch slurry by mixing 1 tablespoon cornstarch with 1 tablespoon warm water until it's a smooth paste. Thoroughly mix this into the beef stew in the Crock Pot, turn the pot to high, and cook for about 30 minutes. The sauce will thicken right up.

a close up of beef stew with gravy in the crock pot

Storing leftovers of this crockpot beef stew recipe

Do not mix the leftover beef stew with the noodles until you are serving it. If you mix it and then put it in the fridge, the noodles will soak up all the gravy, and then your stew will be dry.

Beef stew is better the second day, so plan for leftovers!

When the beef stew is completely cooled to room temperature, transfer it to an airtight container and store in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.

To serve, place a bowl of stew in the microwave for 30 to 60 seconds or until heated through.

You can also freeze beef stew, but you'll want to remove the potatoes before freezing. (Potatoes get mealy and weird in the freezer.) Transfer the stew to an airtight container and store in the freezer for up to 3 months. To serve, place in the refrigerator overnight to thaw and then heat as directed above. You may want to add some fresh potatoes when you reheat the stew.

Frequently Asked Questions

What's the best cut of beef to use for beef stew?

I prefer beef chuck roast for beef stew because it has nice marbeling, and it's cheap. This is the same cut of beef I use for pot roast. It's a tough piece of meat, but when cooked at a low temperature for a long period of time, it becomes fall off your fork tender and has a wonderful flavor.

If you're concerned about how to cut a chuck roast into beef cubes for your beef stew, try putting it in the freezer for an hour before cutting. It will solidify just enough that cutting it will be easy. Or, do what I do and ask the butcher to cut it for you. They'll do it for free.

Can you put raw beef in the slow cooker?

Yes, the temperature of the slow cooker is high enough to make the beef safe to eat, even on the low setting.

How long do you cook beef stew in the Crock Pot?

The best way to cook this recipe in the slow cooker is for 7-8 hours on low. You technically can cook this beef stew on high for 3-4 hours, but the meat will not be as tender and delicious as it will be if you cook it for a longer time at a lower temperature. The beef stew is done when the beef is so tender that it almost falls apart.

Do you have to sear the beef in a skillet to make beef stew?

Nearly every beef stew recipe on the internet is going to tell you that searing the beef is essential to making beef stew. And I will not argue that searing the beef DOES improve the flavor of the stew. However, it is not essential, and your beef stew will taste great even if you put the beef into the slow cooker completely raw. I do it all the time, and my family loves my beef stew.

How can you thicken beef stew gravy?

Why is the beef in my beef stew tough?

This one has a very simple answer. It's not cooked enough. Turn the CrockPot back on and cook it another 30-60 minutes. It will get tender once it has cooked long enough.

What do you serve with slow cooker beef stew with gravy?

I like to serve beef stew over noodles, but otherwise, I don't add anything else to it. It's got potatoes, vegetables, and beef all in one pot. It's a full meal!

If you feel the need to add additional vegetables, I would suggest either balsamic roasted beets or garlic roasted asparagus. They're both delicious and would complement the beef stew nicely.

Crock Pot Beef Stew with Gravy

Why you're going to love Crock Pot Beef Stew with Gravy