Published: Oct 20, 2023 · Last Updated: Oct 20, 2023 by Dr. Sonali Ruder · This post may contain affiliate links · As an Amazon Influencer, I earn from qualifying purchases · 49 Comments

Classic Dutch Oven Beef Stew

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When it comes to comfort food, few dishes can compete with a rich and savory Classic Dutch Oven Beef Stew. Chunks of meltingly tender beef, hearty vegetables, and a medley of herbs and spices are cooked low and slow in the oven to perfection. I'm sharing all my best tips on how to make this timeless favorite!

Classic Dutch Oven Beef Stew in a white bowl with a bowl of celery root puree nearby.

When the weather starts to cool down, I start gravitating towards comforting stick-to-your-ribs dish. Some of my favorite comfort food dishes are my healthy chicken and dumplings, French onion soup, and ultimate turkey chili.

This hearty Dutch oven beef stew is the quintessential cold-weather comfort food. It's the perfect recipe for those lazy Sunday afternoons when you just don’t feel like leaving the house.

Once you get all the ingredients seared away in the pot, simply toss it in the oven. In just a few hours, you’ll have a delicious and hearty meal that the whole family will love.

As the Dutch oven stew cooks, the rich aroma of simmering beef, earthy root vegetables, and aromatic herbs will fill your kitchen, beckoning everyone to gather around the table.

Jump to:

Why You'll Love This Dish
Secrets for Making the Perfect Beef Stew
Ingredients
Equipment
How to Make Dutch Oven Beef Stew Step-By-Step
Chef's Tips
Can You Make Dutch Oven Stew on the Stove Top?
What To Serve With Beef Stew
Recipe FAQs
More Tasty Soups & Stews
Recipe
Reviews

Why You'll Love This Dish

Hearty and satisfying: A bowl of classic Dutch oven beef stew is the epitome of comfort food, perfect for chilly evenings.
Easy: This hearty beef stew is a one-pot meal that simmers away in the oven while you relax.
Tender, melt-in-your-mouth beef: The slow cooking process ensures that you get incredibly tender, flavorful meat.
Versatile ingredients: You can customize the vegetables and seasonings to suit your taste in this flexible recipe.
Make-ahead convenience: Stews taste even better the next day, so it's a fantastic option for meal prep.
Family-friendly: It's a dish that everyone, from kids to adults, will love.

Secrets for Making the Perfect Beef Stew

No one likes rubbery, bland stew! The secrets to perfect Dutch oven beef stew lie in a few key techniques that elevate this classic dish to new heights.

1. Choose the right cut of beef

Beef chuck is the perfect cut of beef for stew. It has good fat marbling, which provides flavor. It also has a lot of collagen-rich connective tissue that breaks down as it cooks, helping the meat retain moisture.

Chuck will become tender the longer it cooks and won't dry out like other leaner cuts of beef.

2. Choose the right cooking vessel

A Dutch oven is the ideal vessel for beef stew. Its thick bottom and side walls retain heat really well and cook food evenly. Dutch ovens are also typically generously sized, which means they can hold a lot of liquid.

3. Sear the beef

Searing the beef over high heat in the pot gives the meat a deep, rich flavor thanks to the Maillard reaction. This is a chemical reaction that browns and caramelizes the exterior of the meat.

4. Create layers of flavor

Add ingredients like tomato paste, red wine, and thyme in the beginning of the cooking process to give them time to develop flavor and add complexity to the dish. Add other ingredients like fresh parsley and vinegar at the end of the cooking process for a pop of bright flavor.

5. Cook it low and slow

It's important to cook the beef stew for a couple of hours in a low temperature oven. This will give the meat enough time to break down and become tender.

If you try to rush it and boil the stew, the muscle fibers in the beef will shrink and become tough. No one wants rubbery beef stew!

6. Add ingredients in stages

Vegetables cook faster than the beef chuck so don't add them them to the stew right away or you'll end up with mushy veggies. Instead, add the veggies after about an hour and a half. That way they will be done cooking at the same time as the beef.

I like to add a pop of bright flavor to the stew at the end of cooking by stirring in a little vinegar. I also add fresh herbs like parsley right before serving.

Ingredients

Ingredient notes and substitutions (see recipe card at the end of the post for full list of ingredients):

Beef- I use boneless beef chuck roast and trim any excess fat. Chuck meat is taken from the shoulder and is one of the most popular choices for stew meat.
Vegetables- I use a classic combination of yellow onions, baby potatoes, and carrots. However you can use other root vegetables like parsnips, sweet potatoes, turnips or daikon. Other vegetables like butternut squash, mushrooms, frozen peas or pearl onions will also work.
Wine- I use a rich dry red wine such as Cabernet Sauvignon, Malbec, Pinot Noir, or Chianti to add depth of flavor to the beef stew. You can leave it out if you don't want to use wine and substitute beef broth.
Beef broth- I use reduced sodium beef broth to control the amount of sodium in the dish. You can substitute reduced sodium chicken broth.
Flour- all purpose flour thickens the stew; you can use gluten-free flour to keep the dish gluten free
Herbs- I use a combination of fresh thyme, bay leaves, and fresh parsley. You can substitute ½ teaspoon dried thyme for fresh.
Vinegar (not pictured)- a splash of balsamic or red wine vinegar at the end of cooking brightens up the flavors in the stew.

Equipment

Lodge 6 Quart Enameled Cast Iron Dutch Oven

With its even heat distribution and long-lasting durability, this Dutch oven is a must-have for any home chef.

How to Make Dutch Oven Beef Stew Step-By-Step

Steps 1-4 for making Classic Dutch Oven Beef Stew.

See recipe card at the end of the post for full recipe details.

Step 1- Pat the pieces of meat dry and season them with salt and black pepper. Sear the beef in olive oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Do this in two batches and don't overcrowd the pan. Take your time with this step- searing the beef on all sides gives it a nice caramelized crust and builds flavor in the dish. Remove the browned beef.
Step 2- Turn stove down to medium heat and add the onions and garlic to the pot. Cook until softened. Stir in the tomato paste and cook a minute or two until it darkens.
Step 3- Add the beef and its juices back to the pot and sprinkle the flour on top. Stir until flour is dissolved.
Step 4- Then, add the wine, beef broth, thyme, and bay leaf. Stir with a wooden spoon, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom of the pot. Bring the mixture to a simmer and cover the pot.

Steps 5 & 6 for making Classic Dutch Oven Beef Stew.

Step 5- Transfer the pot to the oven and braise for 1 ½ hours.
Step 6- Remove the pot from the oven and stir in the carrots and potatoes. Cover and return the pot to the oven for another 45 minutes to an hour, until the vegetables are cooked through and beef is tender.

Remove beef stew from the oven and taste for seasoning. Stir in the vinegar and adjust season with salt and pepper to taste. Garnish beef stew with parsley before serving.

Classic Dutch Oven Beef Stew in a dutch oven on a slate board.

Chef's Tips

Take the time to sear the beef on all sides in the Dutch oven. Getting a nice brown crust develops flavor. Don't overcrowd the pan- instead, sear the beef in batches.
Use a good red wine that you'd like to drink because its flavor will concentrate in the stew as it cooks. Pour yourself a glass to enjoy with the stew!
Add the potatoes and carrots after the beef has been in the oven for an hour and a half. They cook faster than the beef and you don't want them to get mushy.
I don't season the stew with salt until the very end because as it cooks, the sauce will reduce and the flavors will concentrate.
I like to stir in a little vinegar at the end of cooking. The acidity adds a pop of brightness to the stew that balances out the richness.

Can You Make Dutch Oven Stew on the Stove Top?

I prefer to cook this Dutch oven beef stew in the oven rather than on the stove. In the oven, the stew is heated from all sides rather than just from the bottom like on the stove top. This results in faster, more even cooking.

However, if you don’t have a Dutch oven or covered pot that is appropriate for the oven, this beef stew can be cooked on the stove top. The timing will be the same and it should be cooked over the lowest setting. Be sure to stir it occasionally to make sure all the ingredients get cooked evenly.

What To Serve With Beef Stew

I like to serve this classic Dutch oven beef stew on a bed of my celeriac (celery root) puree, award-winning mashed potatoes with goat cheese and caramelized onions, polenta, egg noodles or rice.

Sometimes I'll serve some crusty bread on the side to dip into the stew. You can try making my pan con tomate (Spanish tomato bread) or my cheesy cauliflower bread for a low carb option.

I also like to serve a vegetable like Brussels sprouts or my easy creamed spinach on the side or a green salad .

Classic Dutch Oven Beef Stew in a white bowl.

Recipe FAQs

How do you store Dutch Oven Beef Stew?

Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months. Reheat leftover stew in the microwave or on the stove.

Why use a Dutch oven for stew?

A Dutch oven is the ideal vessel for beef stew because of its size and they way it's constructed. Its thick bottom and side walls retain heat well and cook food evenly. Dutch ovens are also typically generously sized, which means they can hold a lot of liquid.

What is the secret to tender beef stew?

The secrets to tender beef stew are to choose the right cut of beef and to cook it low and slow. Choose a cut of beef like chuck, that will become tender and stay moist as it cooks. Be sure to cook the stew for a couple of hours at a low temperature in the oven to give the beef enough time to break down and become tender. For more tips, read the section in my blog post "Secrets for Making the Perfect Beef Stew."

Is it better to cook stew on the stove or in the oven?

The best way to cook beef stew is to sear the ingredients in a pot on the stove and then finish cooking it in the oven. In the oven, the stew is being heated from all sides rather than just from the bottom like on the stove top. This results in faster, more even cooking.

Should I brown stew meat first?

Yes, browning the beef stew meat over high heat in the pot gives the meat a deep, rich flavor thanks to the Maillard reaction. This is a chemical reaction that browns and caramelizes the exterior of the meat. This step will add lots of flavor to your delicious stew so don't skip it!

Do you cook stew in the Dutch oven with the lid on or off?

Once all of your ingredients are in the Dutch oven, put the lid on and let it simmer away in the oven or on the stove top until the meat and vegetables are tender. If you need to thicken the sauce at the end, you can always uncover the pot and simmer it uncovered for several minutes until it reaches the desired consistency.

Looking for more tasty soups and stews? Check out my collection of the best Fall Soup Recipes to get more ideas.