Instant Pot Beef Stew - a delicious stew made with beef and vegetables. Tender and rich in flavor, this beef stew is pure comfort food!
This stew is pure comfort food, especially served with Cheesy Garlic Bread or Skillet Rolls.
Beef stew is one of those dishes that comes to your mind when you think about comfort food. A big bowl of it will always warm the soul and body. My slow cooker version is perfect for lazy weekends and always comes out great! Now, I can make it in my pressure cooker in under 1 hour. This Instant Pot Beef Stew is the best you will ever make! It tastes like it was simmering on the stove whole day but instead, it cooked in your Instant Pot in 50 minutes! It has tender stew meat, chunks of potatoes, carrots, and celery and the combination of mushrooms and beef stock make for an extra flavorful broth. Add Guinness stout beer or red wine to deepen the flavor.
Ingredients
- beef stew meat
- salt and pepper
- onion
- garlic
- mushrooms (optional)
- russet potatoes
- carrots
- celery
- beef stock
- red wine or stout beer (optional)
- brown sugar
- tomato paste
- bay leaf
- thyme
- cornstarch
- water
Instructions
- Prepare carrots and potatoes, by cutting them into large chunks. Dice celery, onion, and slice mushrooms. Mince garlic. Season meat with salt and pepper.
- Brown meat on "saute" setting. Remove onto a plate.
- Add diced onion, minced garlic, and sliced mushrooms. Saute veggies until the onions are almost translucent. Press the "cancel/off" button.
- Add potatoes, carrots, celery, and meat back into the pot. Stir. Add beef stock, Guinness stout beer if using, brown sugar and tomato paste. Stir everything together.
- Set timer to 30 minutes.
- For best results, let the Instant Pot release pressure naturally.
- Whisk cornstarch with water. Add cornstarch mixture and stir well.
Do I have to brown the meat before pressure cooking?
Browning the meat adds flavor to the stew. It is not a completely necessary step. You can place everything in the Instant Pot and cook.
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Can I freeze this stew?
Yes! To freeze, cool the stew completely and place it in a freezer-safe container. Freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw it in the fridge, then place with 1 cup of water in the Instant Pot. Set timer to 10 minutes.
Cooking time
To make a delicious beef stew with tender meat and perfectly cooked potatoes and carrots, I cooked this stew for 30 minutes on HIGH pressure. Any time you cook with beef meat, I recommend letting the IP release pressure naturally. The meat will have the best texture.
More Instant Pot recipes:
- Instant Pot Pot Roast
- Instant Pot Pork Tenderloin
- Instant Pot Beef and Broccoli
- Instant Pot Beef and Broccoli
- Instant Pot French Dip Sandwich
- Instant Pot Meatloaf
To learn more about the Instant Pot, check out my Guide for Beginners. If you experienced the “burn” message while using your IP, check out my Instant Pot Burn Message post to learn how to fix the issue and prevent it in the first place.
If you like this recipe and make it, snap a photo and share it on INSTAGRAM! Tag me @crunchycreamysweet so I can check it out and leave a comment! 😀
Instant Pot Beef Stew
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1.5 lbs beef stew meat
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 medium yellow onion
- 2 cloves of garlic
- 3 white mushrooms washed and sliced
- 1 lb russet potatoes peeled and cut into large chunks
- 3 carrots peeled and cut into chunks
- 2 celery stalks diced
- 1 cup Guinness stout beer or red wine optional
- 3 cups beef stock
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
- 3 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 teaspoon fresh thyme or ½ teaspoon dried thyme
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- 2 tablespoons water
Instructions
- Make sure the stainless steel insert is in your Instant Pot.
- Prepare carrots and potatoes, by cutting them into large chunks. Dice celery, onion and slice mushrooms. Mince garlic. Season meat with salt and pepper.
- Press “saute” setting on your Instant Pot. Wait 2 minutes, then add olive oil. Place stew meat in the Instant Pot. Let it brown for 4 to 5 minutes. Remove onto a plate.
- To your Instant Pot, add diced onion, minced garlic and sliced mushrooms. Stir, trying to scrape the bits from searing the meat from the bottom of the pot. Saute veggies until the onions are almost translucent. Add ¼ cup of beef stock and deglaze the bottom of the pot. Press "cancel/off" button.
- Add potatoes, carrots, celery and meat back into the pot. Stir. Add Guinness stout beer (if using) and remaining beef stock. Add brown sugar and tomato paste. Stir everything together. Place bay leaf and fresh thyme on top.
- Close lid, set valve to "sealing" position. Make sure the Instant Pot is set to cook on HIGH pressure. Press the "manual" or "pressure cook" button. Set timer to 30 minutes. It will take about 10 minutes for the IP to come to pressure.
- For best results, let the Instant Pot release pressure naturally. If you are in a hurry, wait 7 to 10 minutes, then switch valve to "venting".
- Whisk cornstarch with water.
- Open the lid carefully away from your face. Add cornstarch mixture. Stir well.
Video
Notes
- Please note, that the nutrition value can vary depending on what product you use. The information below is an estimate. Always use calorie counter you are familiar with.
- If not using stout beer or wine, use more beef stock.
Susi says
Excellent stew! We will definitely make again.
The timings did not represent actual time - I have adjusted to 15 minutes of prep and 40 minutes to cook since the cooker heats up for 10.
Chris1 says
3 mushrooms?
Anna says
Hi Chris! Yes, I used 3 mushrooms. You can add more if you like.
Shanna says
How much cornstarch do you use? It isn't listed in the ingredients list and I know nothing about cooking. lol