Quick Easy Instant Pot Beef Stew Recipe

Beef stew is hearty, savory, warming, and comforting, an ideal meal for a family weeknight dinner. Thanks to the Instant Pot, it’s easy to prepare and get on the table quickly. Back in the 1940s and 1950s, many families made beef stew with more affordable cuts of meat, making it a budget-friendly classic that still holds true today.

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I love making a healthy beef stew for my family because it lets me load up on vegetables without relying too heavily on meat. Every bowl is packed with hearty, nourishing ingredients, and the veggies really shine. I like serving my beef stew over egg noodles, especially a hearty whole-wheat variety, which adds extra fiber, and makes the meal even more satisfying.

How I Make Weeknight Dinners Easier with a Little Pre-Prep

One of the hardest things for a mom with little ones is getting a nutritious meal on the table that’s both healthy and kid-approved. It can be a real challenge to have everything ready at the same time while also making sure it’s flavorful enough for you and your husband to enjoy too.

One of the best tips I learned as a busy mom with little ones, especially during the years I was home most of the day, was to start dinner prep at lunchtime. While the kids were napping or playing, I’d jump into action and get most of the work done early. This beef stew recipe is perfect for that kind of flexible prep; it’s easy to pull together anytime during the day.

If you’re a working mom juggling everything outside the home, you know how precious that short window between work and bedtime truly is. I used to resent spending an hour or more cooking over the stove, only to end up chained to the dishwasher afterward.

By the time dinner was done, it was already 7:00, and I had barely an hour left for snuggles, playtime, or simply soaking up those sweet little moments. Most nights, I was so exhausted I’d just collapse on the couch with the kids and turn on a movie.

If this sounds like you, you need an electric pressure cooker.  (I wish I had one when my girls were little. Lucky for me, I did get one when the girls were in junior high, and our baby Joey was born.

Ingredients Needed for Instant Pot Beef Stew

• 2 tablespoons Olive Oil
• Salt and Pepper
• 3 pounds of Beef Stew Meat
• 1 bag of Frozen Pearl Onions (or one large onion chopped)
• 3 Garlic Cloves Minced
• 1 cup of fresh Mushrooms chopped
• 6 Carrots, large chop
• 1 cup of Red Wine (Yellow Tail Cabernet Sauvignon)
• 2 cups Beef Stock
• 2 tablespoons of tomato Paste
• 1/2 teaspoon dried Thyme
• To thicken the finished Stew: 2 tablespoons of Flour and 2 tablespoons of softened butter mixed together.

How to Make Instant Pot Beef Stew

1. Season the beef with salt and pepper. Put oil in a heated pot to brown meat in the pressure cooker pot. Add the garlic and onions. Add the rest of the ingredients except for the flour and the butter.
2. Secure the lid
3. Set the timer for 30 min.
4. When the timer is done, vent and take off the lid.
5. Mix the flour and butter into a paste. Add some of the liquid from the stew and mix to a thin mixture. Then mix this into the pot and set it for 6 minutes with the lid off. This will thicken the stew.

Costco and My Instant Pot

This month, when I was craving beef stew, we happened to be at Costco, where everything comes in giant quantities. It was freezing outside, and I didn’t feel like running around to other stores, so I decided to get everything I needed right there.

I came home with oversized bags of potatoes, celery, mushrooms, onions, and a big pack of beef stew meat, more than enough to make a few batches and keep us cozy all week.

I brought out my electric pressure cooker and started preparing the beef stew that night. Next, I grabbed some freezer Ziplock bags and chopped up all the vegetables from Costco. With just an hour of work, I had three extra bags of prepped vegetables and three extra bags of beef stew meat ready for the freezer.

That night, we enjoyed a warm beef stew for dinner, and now, on especially busy workdays, I can simply toss everything into the electric pressure cooker and have dinner ready, no extra effort required.

Make a Delicious Beef Stew In your Crockpot New Recipe

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