Dutch Oven Beef Stew

Dutch Oven Beef Stew, a slow cooked comfort food, made with fork tender chuck roast and hearty vegetables in a delicious red wine based broth.

Cold, cloudy and dreary weather reminds me of comfort food, and the weather in my town is just that... cold with a little rain.  So today, I  thought this would be the perfect time to share one of my favorite comfort foods.  Although it requires a slow and long simmer, it doesn't require much effort.  It's super easy and makes for the perfect meal on a Fall or Winter like day.

So, what makes the perfect dutch oven beef stew?

• A dutch oven or heavy bottom pot
• Searing the chuck roast on both sides before braising (SO IMPORTANT)
• Building layers of flavor by seasoning each component of the stew for incredible flavor
• A slow and long simmer

Recipe ingredients:

• Chuck roast or pot roast
• Grapeseed oil (or other cooking oil with a high smoking point)
• Yellow or white onion
• Carrot
• Fresh thyme
• Fresh rosemary
• Kosher salt
• Black pepper
• Red wine (optional)
• Chicken broth (or beef broth)

How to make beef stew in a dutch oven

• Wash the chuck roast and pat dry with paper towels.  Season liberally with kosher salt and pepper unless you're on a low sodium diet otherwise do not be afraid to salt

• Add oil to your dutch oven over medium high heat and sear both sides of the chuck roast until nice and golden brown

• Remove seared chuck roast from dutch oven and place on a clean plate and set aside.  Meanwhile, add minced garlic and saute until fragrant add tomato paste and saute for a minute.  Add red wine and chicken broth (or just chicken broth).

• Add chuck roast back to dutch oven and top with sauteed veggies (largely cut carrots, sliced onion, and minced garlic).

• Place an air tight lid onto dutch oven and place in a preheated 350 degree oven.  Continue cooking in oven until meat is fork tender.  Remove dutch oven from oven after 1 hour to spoon juices over the meat.  Repeat this step at the 2 hour mark.  Continue cooking until you're able to cut the chuck roast with a fork.

TIP #1: For ultimate flavor, it's important to sear your chuck roast first.

TIP #2: If you prefer not adding red wine, that's perfectly fine chicken broth alone still adds incredible flavor to the pan juices.

What's the best cut of meat for beef stew

The best cut of meat for beef stew is a well marbled chuck roast in my opinion.  Although it's a tougher cut of meat due to the tougher connective tissue, when cooked long and slow the connective tissues begin to soften creating fork tender meat which is perfect for dutch oven beef stew.

Why your pot roast might be tough

Pot roast or chuck roast is perfect for slow cooking and if not done properly can result in your meat being tough and hard to chew. For the perfect soft and tender bite, a slow simmer or braising is the cooking method of choice for beef stew.

For the ultimate dutch oven beef stew serve over a bed of herb mashed potatoes.  It's so delicious.

You may also like these other dinner ideas:

Oven Baked Chuck Roast Recipe (Popular blog recipe) with these Oven Roasted Potatoes

Spatchcock Chicken Recipe with Cajun Spices with this Oven Roasted Broccolette Recipe

Oven Roasted Butterflied Chicken with Creamy Baked Mac and Cheese

Baked Chicken and Green Beans

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Dutch Oven Beef Stew

Dutch Oven Beef Stew, a slow cooked comfort food, made with fork tender chuck roast and hearty vegetables in a delicious red wine based broth. After a slow and long simmer, the chuck roast comes tender in a flavorful sauce.

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Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 2 hours 30 minutes

Calories: 710kcal

Ingredients

• 3 lbs chuck roast
• 2 tbsp grapeseed oil or extra virgin olive oil
• 1/2 yellow onion sliced fairly large
• 1 carrot cut into chucks
• 4 sprigs fresh thyme
• 1 sprig fresh rosemary
• 2 tbsp salt salt generously
• 1 tsp black pepper
• 3 tbsp tomato paste
• 1/4 cup red wine Pinot Nior, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot (optional)
• 3 cups chicken broth or beef broth

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• Wash and cut vegetables: Cut onion into large slices, carrots into large chucks, minced garlic cloves. Add cooking oil to dutch oven over medium high heat, add onion and carrots saute for 30 seconds or so, add garlic and saute just until fragrant. Remove from dutch oven and place on clean plate. Set aside.
• Wash and pat dry chuck roast with paper towels. Season generously with salt and pepper. Add more cooking oil to dutch oven if necessary and begin to sear chuck roast on both sides until a brown outer coating forms (about 8 minutes per side). Remove seared chuck roast from dutch oven and place on clean plate. Set aside.
• Add tomato paste to dutch oven and cook for a minute or so to cook out the rawness of the tomato paste. Deglaze the dutch oven with red wine, add chicken broth and give a big stir. *If not using wine, deglaze with chicken broth.
• Add seared chuck roast back to dutch oven and add the sauteed vegetables on top of the chuck roast. Cover with lid and place in oven and allow to cook for 2 hrs and 10 mins to 2 hrs and 30 mins. Oven times may vary. The pan juices will have reduced some and thickened at the end of the cooking time resulting in a rich and flavorful sauce.
• Using a fork or other utensil cut chuck roast into chucks. Serve over a bed of mashed potatoes or alongside vegetables.

Notes

**Please note: Nutritional values serve as a guide only as values may vary.

 

 

If not using wine, deglaze with chicken broth.

Nutrition

Calories: 710kcal | Carbohydrates: 5g | Protein: 66g | Fat: 47g | Saturated Fat: 18g | Cholesterol: 235mg | Sodium: 4421mg | Potassium: 1358mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 2639IU | Vitamin C: 16mg | Calcium: 81mg | Iron: 8mg