Beagles and Beef Stew

I have made a basic beef stew twice in the last two weeks- once in the oven and once in my slow cooker. The stew from the slow cooker was superior, for I found the beef in the oven stew dry. The cooker was so much better that I will be looking for a larger crock pot at the next estate sale I go to. What a help it will be with this years pot lucks.

This basic stew for two is so much better than anything in a can. And I have served it to young people who raved about it. And ate it all. In other words, it is a family meal.


You need:


1 cup stew beef

Sea salt or kosher salt to taste

2 yellow potatoes

2 large carrots

2 cloves of garlic

1 tablespoon tomato paste

1 tablespoon of all purpose flour

1-2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar

1/4 stick unsalted butter

Herbs de Provence

1 cup of chicken or beef broth



Brown the beef in half the butter. When done, put it in the crock pot. Then de-glaze the pan with the apple cider vinegar. Pour the cider and the brown bits from the pan in with the beef.


Peel the vegetables and dice them. Chop up the garlic or put it through a press. Add to the stew. Add the broth, a few shakes of the herbs, and the rest of the butter. Mix in the tomato paste. Add salt to suit your taste.

When the vegetables have cooked though ( about two hours in my cooker) and the stew is almost ready, blend in one tablespoon of flour (Mix well). Cook another five minutes, then allow to cool. A tip- sprinkle the flour evenly over the stew. Do not just dump it in.

Serves two or three. Double or triple ingredients if you are serving more.

I will say a word about my slow cooker. It has no finesse with cooking temperatures. It only has two states of being. On. And off. I think a stew left for more than a few hours might be in danger. A more sophisticated cooker on low might let you nurse a stew all day. I assume you know your slow cooker better than I do-

As you can see this stew also has the Beagle Seal of Approval.