Our Best Beef Stew Recipes

Austrian Beef Stew with Paprika and Caraway (Rindsgulasch)

A dish that tastes as though it demanded far more effort than it actually did.

Spanish Beef, Red Pepper and Paprika Stew

This savory, meaty stew gets a hit of salty flavor prosciutto. Paprika adds earthy flavor as well as a rich, brick-red color.

By Julia RackowApril 7, 2020

Beef and Leek Stew with Smoked Paprika

Spanish flavors give character to this beef stew. Smoked paprika lends rich color and a complexity that makes the dish taste as though it demanded far more effort than it actually did. Woodsy sherry vinegar and an infusion of additional smoked paprika

By Julia RackowOctober 13, 2020

Chinese Beef Stew with Chickpeas and Star Anise

This hearty, aromatic stew is our adaptation of a recipe from “Hot Sour Salty Sweet” by cookbook authors Jeffrey Alford and Naomi Duguid, who explain that the dish comes from the Hui people of Yunnan province in western China. We use beef shanks in ou

By Courtney HillOctober 15, 2019

Cumin-Garlic Beef Stew

The Moroccan dish called tangia is named for the urn-like clay vessel in which it traditionally is cooked. It’s a meat-centric dish typically seasoned with saffron and cumin but not herbs, and it gave us the idea for this recipe. Dried apricots absorb

By Julia RackowOctober 13, 2020

Nihari-Inspired Beef Stew

Nihari is a richly spiced South Asian stew, often made with a special spice blend called nihari masala, and with genrous amounts of browned onions and fresh ginger. Our much-simplified version depends on readily available garam masala (an Indian spice

By Julia RackowOctober 13, 2020

Peruvian Beef and Cilantro Stew

Seco de carne is a classic Peruvian meat and vegetable stew, and a perfect contender for cooking in an Instant Pot, either quickly under pressure or using the slow-cooker function. Fresh cilantro is a defining flavor of the dish. We blend an entire bu

By Calvin CoxSeptember 30, 2021

Pakistani-Style Spiced Beef Stew

An Instant Pot version of Pakistan’s rich, aromatic beef stew nihari.

By Julia RackowApril 7, 2020

Beef Stew with Paprika and Caraway

This simple stew, our version of Austrian goulash, derives much of its bold flavor and rich color from sweet and hot paprika, so make sure the paprika you use is fresh and fragrant. For the deepest, earthiest flavor, we recommend seeking out true Hung

By Diane UngerApril 7, 2020

Beef Stew with Olives and Orange

This unconventional, but easy beef-stew method yields deep. We skip the step of browning the meat, add a only minimal amount of liquid (sometimes none at all) and use the steady heat of the oven instead of the stovetop for simmering. Because the ingre

Lebanese-Style Beef and Spinach Stew

Inspired by the Lebanese dish yakhnet sabanekh, this hearty, homey stew of ground beef and spinach, plus a few alliums and spices for flavoring, comes together quickly and easily. Toasted nuts (almonds are great, pine nuts even better) sprinkled on ju

By Courtney HillNovember 15, 2022

Pepper-Lemon Beef and Spinach Stew

This rich, yet brightly flavored stew is our Instant Pot take on a recipe from “The Cooking of the Eastern Mediterranean” by Paula Wolfert. It’s unusual in that at the end of cooking, the braising liquid is lightly thickened with egg yolks, which give

By Rose HattabaughJune 11, 2021

Coriander-Cumin Beef Stew with Lime

This hearty, fragrant stew is a simplified Instant Pot version of a recipe from Hawa Hassan. Large chunks of beef chuck are pressure-cooked or slow-cooked—depending on your preference—with aromatics, tomato paste and spices until the meat is tender; t

Greek-Style Beef and Orzo Stew

In the Greek comfort-food dish called youvetsi, the meat (usually beef or lamb) and orzo share equal status. In our version, the cinnamon-spiced tomato sauce is rich with the juices released by the beef chuck during simmering. We cook the orzo directl

By Julia RackowOctober 13, 2020

Spanish Beef Stew with Mushrooms and Sherry

A corner of the Andalusia region in southern Spain is home to sherry, the unique fortified wine that is produced in an area known as the Sherry Triangle. The city of Jerez de la Frontera—commonly shortened to Jerez—is one of the points of that triangl

By Courtney HillDecember 17, 2021

Babylonian Lamb or Beef and Turnip Stew

The starting point for this dish comes from the translation of a recipe from the Yale Babylonian culinary tablets. To create a fragrant, full-flavored stew, we approximated and adjusted ingredients, and we turned to the oven for steady, constant simme

By Diane UngerOctober 12, 2020

Persian Beef, Herb and Kidney Bean Stew

This classic Persian stew, called ghormeh sabzi, often is regarded as Iran's national dish. Dried limes and an assortment of fresh herbs that are fried give the sauce a unique flavor and an unusual deep-green hue. In our simplified version, we streaml

By Julia RackowApril 7, 2020

Cumin-Spiced Beef and Sweet Potato Stew

This hearty stew is all about flavor balance. The natural sugars in the tomatoes and sweet potatoes counter the meatiness of beef chuck. Alliums and cumin tie together the sweet and savory flavors, while lime juice adds brightness. Sour cream is a coo

Spicy South African Beef Stew with Olives

This beef stew from South Africa, called trinchado, likely originates with the Portuguese in neighboring Mozambique and Angola. Worcestershire sauce—though neither South African nor Portuguese—is a common ingredient for the dish. It adds its character

Mexican Beef and Tomatillo Stew (Fast & Slow)

This dish, called entomatado de res, pairs tangy, fruity tomatillos with beef to make a simple one-pot version of a Mexican classic. We add the tomatillos at the end to keep their flavors bright and fresh. Yukon Gold potatoes simmered with the beef ma

By Julia RackowApril 7, 2020

Moroccan Beef, Tomato and Chickpea Stew (Harira)

Harira is a Moroccan stew—or a thick, hearty soup—traditionally served during Ramadan as a way to break the fast. Made with meat, tomatoes, spices and chickpeas, harira is warming and deeply satisfying, so it’s no surprise it’s served year-round in ho

By Diane UngerAugust 12, 2022

Greek Beef and Tomato Stew with Orzo (Giouvetsi)

Deep flavor payoff is worth the time for this heap of tomatoey, spiced beef chunks, on a bed of orzo.

By Diane UngerApril 1, 2022

Greek Beef Stew with Tomatoes, Onions and Allspice

This recipe is a simpler, lighter version of the rustic Greek stew known as moshari stifado, which gets its unique character from a combination of tomatoes, onions and spices, namely allspice and cinnamon. The flavors are savory-sweet, warm and comfor

By Courtney HillApril 7, 2020

Beef and White Bean Stew with Tomatoes and Dill

This hearty one-pot dinner combines dried navy beans and beef shanks, which cook at the same rate. Pomegranate molasses adds a bright, tangy, slightly fruity finish that perks up the other flavors. Look for it in bottles in the international section o

Tuscan Beef and Black Pepper Stew (Fast & Slow)

The simple, generously peppered beef stew known as peposo alla fornacina is said to have been created by 15th century kiln (fornacina) workers in Tuscany, Italy. Chianti is the best-known wine produced in that region and is the traditional choice for

By Diane UngerApril 7, 2020

Vietnamese Beef Stew with Star Anise and Lemon Grass (Bò Kho)

In Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, Nguyên Thį Thúy, literature teacher and home cook, showed us how to make bò kho, a fragrant beef stew that marries local ingredients with French culinary technique. Though recipes for bò kho vary from cook to cook, star a

By Diane UngerDecember 14, 2020

No-sear Lamb or Beef and Chickpea Stew

The mess, time and trouble required to brown meat for a stew left us longing for a better way. Did we really need that step to get big flavor? Then we discovered a world of alternatives from cultures where cooks skip the browning and instead build lay

By Matthew CardNovember 28, 2016

French Beef or Lamb and Vegetable Stew with Tarragon

This French stew, known as navarin d'agneau, is satisfying yet light, thanks to the vegetables that counter the richness of the meat and the white wine adds bright acidity. Fennel seed and tarragon bring licorice notes that accentuate the fresh, grass

By Courtney HillApril 7, 2020

Mochitlán-Style Beef Stew with Red Chilies and Chickpea

Each year in Mochitlán, in southwestern Mexico, a festival is held to honor Santa Ana, the town’s patron saint. As part of the celebration, the townspeople prepare an elaborate stew called huacaxtoro (also spelled huacashtoro) using the meat of bulls,

By Courtney HillJune 2, 2022

Brazilian Black Bean Stew with Pork and Beef (Feijoada)

During a visit to São Paulo, we learned that there are as many versions of Brazilian feijoada as there are cooks who make it, but one thing is constant: It is hearty, soulful fare. Feijoada can be an elaborate celebratory meal made with a dozen or mor

By Courtney HillJanuary 25, 2022

Tuscan Beef and Black Pepper Stew (Peposo alla Fornacina)

The simple, generously peppered beef stew known as peposo is said to have been created by 15th century kiln (fornacina) workers in Tuscany, Italy. Chianti is the best-known wine produced in that region and is the traditional choice for peposo, but any

By Diane UngerAugust 6, 2018

Malaysian Beef Stew with Toasted Coconut and Lemon Grass (Beef Rendang)

Beef rendang is one of Malaysia’s best-known dishes. The stew features tender chunks of beef in a rich coconut sauce that’s aromatic with red chilies, lemon grass, shallots, garlic and turmeric. Coconut milk or cream is used for simmering, but the ste

By Rose HattabaughAugust 16, 2024

Sichuan Red-Braised Beef

This spicy, red-braised Sichuan beef has all of the spicy-salty-savory-umami flavors we love in Sichuan cooking.

By Diane UngerFebruary 6, 2024

Slavonian-Style Shepherd’s Stew

From the Slavonia region of Croatia, čobanac is a meat-centric stew rich with paprika and thickened in part by shredded root vegetables that break down during a long, slow simmer. Though referred to as shepherd’s stew (čoban translates as shepherd), t

Beef, Orange and Olive Stew (Boeuf à la Gardiane)

Our version of this hearty stew from Camargue, in the south of France, uses chuck roast, a well-marbled cut. It gets robust flavor from Provençal ingredients—red wine, olives, anchovies and garlic. Orange is traditional, too; it lends the braise a bal