Do you love beef stew? Want to prepare a delicious beef stew in a fraction of the time it would take on a stovetop? This instant pot beef stew recipe has tender beef, tender perfectly cooked vegetables all in a velvety smooth sauce. I know you are going to love this easy beef stew recipe.
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Beef Stew in an Instant Pot
Beef stew is one of those all-time comfort foods, when served with some crusty bread you really can’t ask for a better dinner. This one-pot meal can be made quickly and it tastes like your favorite traditional beef stew recipe. Best of all this cooks in under 90 minutes, so you don’t have to wait for hours while your beef stew cooks.
Instant Pot Stew – Inspired by my Grandmother’s recipe
I wanted something to remind me of my Grandmother’s beef stew. She cooked plainly, letting food’s natural flavors come through. Her homemade beef stew was one of my favorite recipes, and the best thing about this recipe was when you enjoyed it the next day because it tasted even better.
This easy instant pot beef stew is made with beef, potatoes, onions, carrots, a little garlic powder, salt, tomato sauce, chicken broth, and smoked paprika. You really can make delicious stew in an electric pressure cooker.
Instapot Beef Stew Ingredients
What one secret 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 broth does not have.
People always ask, “did you just say chicken stock?”. Yes. If you prefer beef stock or beef broth, please use it. I urge you to try your beef stew with chicken stock just once.
Here’s a list of what you need:
- Beef Chuck Roast – this is a good beef stew meat, is has so much flavor due to the marbling of the beef.
- Vegetable oil – you can use olive oil
- Kosher salt
- Chicken stock
- Tomato sauce
- Smoked paprika
- Potatoes – I like to use Russet potatoes, Yukon Gold potatoes also work well
- Carrots
- Onions – I prefer white onions for this recipe
- Garlic powder
- Worcestershire sauce – (optional) 1 tablespoon adds a nice touch
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Learn how to keep the vegetables firm in this simple beef stew
I pressure cook my stew twice. If you cook the meat and the vegetables all in one single step you will tender meat and mushy vegetables. The best stew should have tender meat and firm vegetables. The first cooking is the meat, stock, and spices. The second cooking is where we add the vegetables. Cooking the vegetables for less time means they stay firm and distinct.
How to Make Beef Stew in Instant Pot
It’s pretty easy to make delicious stew, you can make a beef stew that tastes like it cooked all day in your pressure cooker. I will walk you through the process.
- Cut your beef into bite-sized pieces. Small pieces of meat mean your stew tastes extra meaty, by increasing the surface area of the meat means more flavor comes through.
- Brown the meat first before pressure cooking it. The browning process will give your stew a depth of flavor.
- Using meat stock instead of water adds another layer of depth to the taste of your stew.
- Cooking the vegetables last results in the vegetables retaining all of their natural bold flavors. No one wants flavorless mushy vegetables.
What meat is best for beef stew?
You can use just about any cut of beef for beef stew. The cheaper cut of meat will give you better flavor! My personal favorite is chuck roast. A chuck roast is inexpensive and has enough marbling on it to give it more flavor.
Don’t buy precut stew meat because it costs more. Five minutes of work means you can save a couple of dollars a pound. Here is a breakdown of types of meat you can make beef stew.
- Chuck roast – (Chuck Shoulder, Chuck Roast, Chuck-Eye Roast, Top Chuck) – is well-marbled, and releases a lot of gelatin when it cooks, so you get a wonderful velvety texture.
- Sirloin – is great if you want a lower fat content in your stew, this is a great choice, this leaner cut of beef. You won’t get the same texture as you will with a fattier cut.
- Round eye roast (Bottom Round Roast, Bottom Eye Roast, Rump Roast, Eye Round Roast, Top Round, Round Tip Roast) – These are all variations of the same cut of roast. Inexpensive and lean, this is a great choice for a leaner stew plus these are often priced less expensively than other cuts of meat.
How long do you need to cook beef chunks in a pressure cooker?
Meat takes 30 minutes to be cooked thoroughly, in a pressure cooker. You might wonder if you want to add more meat in the pressure cooker do you need to cook it for longer? No, the meat needs to cook for 30 minutes at the proper psi to be done. Longer cooking time is irrelevant when you use more meat.
Why is my stew meat tough in Instant Pot?
If you cook your meat full time your beef should not be tough. Sometimes a particular cut of beef may have more connective tissue, and this may sauce your beef to be extra tough. To fix this you can simply cook your stew for another 5 to 8 minutes on high pressure. This additional cooking time should address the toughness of the beef.
Does beef stew get more tender the longer it cooks?
Yes, the longer beef stew meat cooks it will become more tender. It becomes tender because the connective tissue begins to break down. As the connective tissue breaks down the meat isn’t held together so firmly.
Tips for Success when making Instant Pot Beef Stew
To add richness and flavor to Instant Pot Stew
- Brown the meat first in vegetable oil or olive oil.
- Do not use water, use a meat stock
- Use meat with some fat like a chuck roast, you will get the flavor from the fat, and the gelatin will give you a nice texture.
- When you brown the meat deglaze with a bit of red wine if you desire, be sure to scrape the browned bits on the bottom of the pot with a wooden spoon to pick up all of that rich flavor.
- If you want to you can add a bay leaf or two when you cook the meat for flavor.
- Do not put flour in your Instant Pot, it will clog the pressure valve.
- If you think the stew is too thin, consider adding a cornstarch slurry to the final result.
Combine 2 tablespoons of cornstarch with 3 tablespoons of water. Stir to blend well. Add to hot stew after it has finished cooking. Stir until stew thickens. The residual heat of the stew is sufficient to thicken the cornstarch slurry mixture in the stew.
Beef Stew in 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.
How to store leftover Instant Pot beef stew
You can store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3 to 4 days. You can freeze leftover Instant pot beef stew in an airtight container or a vacuum-sealed bag for up to 3 months.
Does Instant Pot stew freeze well?
It freezes very well. Be sure to store it in an airtight container, and it will last for 3 months in the freezer. You should allow the frozen stew to thaw before reheating. You can pull the frozen stew out of the freezer and let it thaw in your refrigerator until it is ready to reheat.
How to Reheat Instant Pot Beef Stew
I recommend reheating the stew in a pot on the stove. Reheat the stew on low to medium-low heat until warm for best results
Loved this recipe? Try my other Instant Pot recipes
- Easy Pulled Pork
- Pinto Beans in Instant Pot
- How to Make Instant Pot Mac and Cheese
- French Onion Rice Instant Pot
- Corned Beef Instant Pot
- Pressure Cooker Irish Stew
Best Hearty Soup Recipes
- Best Chicken Gnocchi Soup Recipe
- Copycat Zuppa Toscana Recipe
- Low Fat Vegetarian Black Bean Soup Panera
- White House Navy Bean Soup
- Chili Make With Tomato Juice
- Luby Green Chili Chicken Soup Recipe
- How to Make Crostini to Serve with Soup
Be sure to take a look at more of my easy soup recipes and Instant Pot meals.
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.
Joanne
All the classic flavors and ingredients are in here, and it’s so fast in the Instant Pot!
lc
wow, this is so good!
Jennifer Farley
So hearty and comforting! I need a bowl of this!
Melissa Sperka
Beef Stew weather is coming!
Joanna Cismaru
This is one of my favorite recipes to do in an instant pot!
Marilyn Lee
Great recipe. But, this is what happened. I cooked the meat, sauce & stock & released pressure. Turned off IP. Added vegetables to IP. The IP had lots of sauce. Turned on pressure for 4 minutes and waited for pressure to build-I got a BURN message. Added more liquid & still got BURN message. Turned off, released the pressure that had built up. My vegetables were done & it never reached pressure again – all this in less than 5 minutes. Anyone know what happened here? I’m completely stumped. Similar thing happened when I prepared a Spanish rice recipe. I added all ingredients as per recipe, received BURN message, opened IP and my recipe was done! What??? It never reached pressure cook and all this happened within 5 minutes. Can anyone solve my puzzle? Thanks @cantstopcooking
Stephanie
I am not sure what happened here. I have never seen a BURN message before. This could be an overheating message for the Instant Pot. Since you have 32 ounces of liquid in the Instant Pot, there was enough liquid. Next time you do a similar cooking techiique of browning the meat in the instant pot, I would make sure when you add the liquid you take care to deglaze the pan by scraping up the browned bits on the bottom of the instant pot.
Now as far as the Pot not getting to pressure, I would remove the lid, and check your seal. Sometimes the silicone seal can be off my just a smidge and it will not. I have had to on more than one occasion, remove the lid, and adjust the seal.
Shirley
I cannot saute in the pot, because every time I do, I get a burn message after I add liquid and close the cover. Even when I scrape up every little bit off the bottom of the pot before I close the lid. So I do all my saute on the stove, then dump it all in the pot – no more burn message. I’m wondering if some of the pots are defective, because I know a lot of folks who saute in the pot with no problems, but there you go.
Stephanie
I am really sorry this is happening to you. I personally have had three pots in the past 8 years. I gave one away to a friend, two are still perfectly operation. I have not had that problem with any of them. Have you tried discussing this problem with the folks at Instant Pot?
Ed Hiestand
After looking at so many beef stews for the IPot, I tried this because it looked easy and had few ingredients. So good, and easy. Many compliments. It’s a keeper. Thank you.
Stephanie
Thank you.
Peilun
I made it tonight and my family loved it. I love how simple it is. Thank you for sharing it with us.
Stephanie
I am glad you and your family enjoyed this recipe.
Kathy
When I try adding the vegetables after the meat is cooked my instantpot doesn’t get up to pressure again. I don’t want to add more liquid. What am I doing wrong?
Thank you.
Laura
Yes mine took several minutes to come to pressure again after adding vegetables.
Stephanie
I think could have happened was when you removed the lid, the silicon ring slipped a tiny bit and wasn’t around that ring on the lid exactly right. When this happens to me, I remove the lid, and carefully look to see that the ring is in the right place. I adjust the ring, and put the lid back on.
Margaret
Thank you for sharing this. My first IP meal and this was a hit!
Stewart Thiel
Very good recipe! I’ve made it 6 times this winter and my family thinks it’s delicious! My fellow firefighters love it as well! I use already cut and packaged “beef for stew” and maybe cut some of it down if it’s not quite bite size. I use almost the 16 oz bag of baby carrots and don’t even mess with cutting them because they come out so perfectly tender! I also add a couple bay leaves with the 4 minute vegetable cook. I’m honestly not an organic freak, but for this I do use McCormick Organic Gourmet Smoked Paprika and Garlic Powder. I also use Organic Tomato Sauce, and Organic Chicken Stock. Either white or sweet onions work just fine! Thanks Stephanie this is the bomb!
Sharon
Found this today and made it. Just fabulous!
Rex
Made this Beef Stew is so simple and our go to from now own. My grand children love it. We’ll be making this every week. Thanks for sharing.
Sharon White
This maybe a southern thing but it’s delicious. I don’t include the potatoes in the stew. Instead I cook them separately and make a buttery creamy mash. The stew is ladled over the mash in serving bowls. So good ????
Robin Wood
This stew was amazing. So easy! Thanks for sharing this recipe. I’m new at the IP thing and really glad for this delicious dish.
Amber
My husband got me my pot for Christmas and I made this tonight! It turned out amazing! The meat was so tender and the veggies were perfectly cooked too! I only did one onion and still tasted great!
Mary Louise Shepley
Would love to get recipes for this new pot
Laura
Could I used beef stew meat instead of the meat listed?
Jene
Yes Laura! I just made some with beef stew meat, and it came out amazing! I am not a big fan of beef stew, but wanted to try out the instant pot I got for Christmas, and the stew was so good! I added baby carrots cut in half at the same time as the onions and potatoes, and they came out perfect. Thank you Stephanie for posting this!
Tracy
Stephanie! That recipe is spot on! I’m not a big fan when people take a recipe and substitute 80% of the listed ingredients, then “rate” the recipe. So, please don’t take my post as being that way Ü I DID have everything except fresh carrots. Stew, to me, is not a stew without carrots but I pressed on anyways with the recipe. It was outstanding! As I’m in the kitchen sampling the finished stew, I remember a fried rice recipe I have where you add a bag of frozen peas and carrots at the very end without cooking them! I threw my little bag of peas and carrots….stirred those frozen lil’ nuggets in and it was perfect! No mushy peas or carrots!
That recipe is going in my meal rotation for sure and I’m super anxious to try with fresh chunky carrots. Thanks for all you do!
Stephanie
Thank you for your comment about the recipe. I am glad you liked the stew! I think it is important in this recipe not to put those veggies in all at once.
Lorraine Parente
How can you make this without an Instant Pot?
Stephanie
Sure, you could cook it on the stove, or even in a slow cooker. I don’t see why not. I am not sure of the cooking times off the top of my head, It’s been years since I cooked a stew in a pot on the stove, I would guess it would take maybe 2 hours, I would put the veggies in during the last 45 minutes or so.