So you might be asking what is Instant Pot beef stew. The Instant Pot is a pot that functions as a slow cooker, a pressure cooker, a rice cooker, it makes congee and more, and how does it work? It works brilliantly.
I was looking to replace my pressure cooker with something that could multi-task. I found it. No, this isn’t a paid endorsement. It is someone that is triumphal with the results. I have made several recipes this weekend with it, and I have been happy with all of them. If you know me, you know I can’t make rice on the stovetop. I try, I fail. So the rice here is cooked very well, and it does so much more quickly than in my rice cooker.
Tonight, I had to cook a roast. I often go grocery shopping before the weekend starts and Sunday night I am often cooking things for the week. This week it was stew. I made beef stew tonight that was excellent, and honestly some of the best that I have ever made. In about an hour I had beef that was so tender you could break it apart easily with a fork.
Instant Pot Beef Stew – Inspired from my Grandmother’s recipe
Tonight’s inspiration was simplicity, and I wanted something to remind me of my Grandmother’s beef stew. She cooked plainly, letting food’s natural flavors come through. So tonight’s pressure cooked stew was beef, potatoes, onions, carrots, a little garlic powder, salt, tomato sauce, chicken broth, and smoked paprika, and that was all. What I ended up with was a savory stew that I will enjoy for this week.
Instant Beef Stew – One Crazy Ingredient
What one crazy ingredient is in this recipe? Chicken stock. I use chicken stock as the stew base. I think the flavor of the chicken stock adds a richness and nice flavor profile that beef stock does not have. People always ask, did you just say chicken stock. Yes. If you prefer beef stock, please use it. I urge you to try your beef stew with chicken stock just once.
Learn how to keep the vegetables firm in your beef stew
I did pressure cook my stew twice. The first time through it was simply salt, tomato sauce, and chicken broth. I wanted the meat to have a head start on the vegetables, so I put them in first. I cooked these for 15 minutes, and then I put in the veggies and cooked for 30 minutes. What I ended up with was a flavorful stew that you would have thought was on the stovetop for an afternoon.
Beef Stew in the Instant Pot is flavorful
What I like about using the Instant Pot it is that is a safe, easy way to pressure cook. The flavors stay trapped within the liquid, so you get a nice flavorful stew. This stew cooks quickly, and the pressure cooker is relatively silent when in operation. It will even switch to a warm mode once the food is cooked. I browned my meat right in the pot, then put on the lid, set the timer and walked away until it beeped. Brilliant. This is the working person’s dream.
Want to see more about the Instant Pot? Read my article about Should You Buy An Instant Pot
Instant Pot IP-LUX50 6-in-1 Programmable Pressure Cooker, 5.28qt, Latest 3rd Generation Technology, Stainless Steel Cooking Pot and Exterior
Loved this recipe? Try my other Instant Pot recipes.
Pulled Pork
Refried Beans
Instant Pot Macaroni and Cheese
Instant Pot – Stick of Butter Rice
Instant Pot Corned Beef
If you are still wondering if you should get an Instant Pot you can read my blog post about Should You Get an Instant Pot?
Instant Pot Beef Stew
Ingredients
- 2 1/2 pounds chuck roast cut into bite sized pieces
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 16 ounces chicken stock
- 16 ounces tomato sauce
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 2 pounds potatoes, cut into bite-sized pieces
- 8 ounces carrots, cut into bite-sized pieces
- 2 large onions, cut into bite-sized pieces
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
Instructions
- Cut beef into bite-sized pieces. Season meat with salt. Brown bite-sized pieces of roast in the Instant Pot on saute in vegetable oil, you may need to do this in small batches.
- Once the meat has browned add tomato sauce and chicken stock. Cook the meat on the manual high setting for 30 minutes. Perform a quick release.
- Then add the garlic powder, smoked paprika, vegetables and cook on the manual setting for 4 minutes.
- When the stew finishes you can either perform a quick release or a manual release.
Gloria says
I made this tonight and it was great with a few minor changes…I didn’t have smoked paprika so I used 1/2 tsp Chipotle powder and also added 1 cup of Bisto brown gravy because my husband is not a tomato sauce fan but left it in because I am. I used everything else and we loved it! I will be making this again for the winter months! Thank you!
Stephanie says
I am happy you enjoyed it. I will have to try this with chipotle! I love chipotle!
Diane says
Excellent flavor. Potatoes overpower rest of ingredients so felt like potato stew. Actually felt more like a soup than a stew. So I threw in a bag of frozen meatballs and 4 ounces of merlot and added another 5 minutes at the end.
I think the instructions meant to remove meat after cooking at empty the oily water in the pot. I didn’t know to do that so it’s also a bit to oily for my taste.
In all, the flavor blend is delicious. Couldn’t be much easier to make.I’ll make it again with adjustments.
Stephanie says
Thank you for your comments. Each roast you buy is different and can have different amounts of fat. I’ll be sure to modify that in the directions.
Frances Watson says
you said put the meat back in the pot, when did you take it out and why?
Stephanie says
You may not be able to brown all of it at once. You may need to brown some of it in small batches.
Jami Simon says
This recipe was absolutely delicious. I will definitely be making it again.
Debbie says
Trying this today- first time using and am a bit nervous- hope it turns out ok
Stephanie says
How did it turn out?
Christopher Levy says
MAN this was good. THANK YOU. Easy to use. Simple. Nice video. LOVE YOUR SITE!!
Stephanie says
I am glad you liked it.
Debbie says
Success!!
Stephanie says
Awesome!!
Gina Beninato says
Hi
How do you make this in a 3Qt instant pot?
Thank you
Stephanie says
The directions would not change. I am not 100% sure if it would all fit though. Just make sure you do not fill above the max fill live.
Carrie says
This is my go to recipe for IP Beef Stew. I add celery and mushrooms…and stir in some frozen peas and thicken with a little constarch slurry on sauté at the end. I have also substituted some of the liquid with 1/2 cup red wine. I cook veggies for 3 min with perfect results.
Stephanie says
I am so glad you like this recipe!
Beth says
I made this with Elk meat and added a bay leaf. It was delicious!
Laurie says
Just made this recipe for my family and it was amazing. The only thing different was that I added chopped fresh garlic after the beef was seared. I just received my instant pot for Christmas and this was my first recipe to try. My family all enjoyed it.
Stephanie says
I am glad you liked it!
Cindy says
Very good stew. I made a few changes though. I coated the meat with flour, used V8 and dumped in veggies with meat. Cooked on high 35 minutes. Manual release 15 minutes. Inused russets and the potatoes were not mushy.
Catlin says
Can I use frozen beef already cut into chunks without thawing first?
Cullin Hall Sr says
I came here to ask same thing did you find out?
Angie says
Also wondering this!
Marie Krysnoski says
Did you find out the answer?
Cathy Pollak says
The instant pot is such a lifesaver! Love this recipe.
Lori @ RecipeGirl says
I’m loving my Instant Pot for quick dinners- this is a great recipe!
Aysegul Sanford says
I have already made this over 5 times and it was perfect every time. This is my got- recipe for Instant pot stew.
Thanks for sharing.
Stephanie says
So glad you enjoyed it.
Liz says
I was wondering how the veggies didn’t overcook—genius recipe! I’ll be making this a lot this winter!
Erin says
I love the instant pot, and this is such a great hearty stew recipe.