Get warm and cozy with this Instant Pot Beef Stew with root veggies- a hearty, comforting one-pot meal that is keto-friendly, easy to make, and full of depth and flavor.
I realize there’s something incredibly honest about trees in winter, how they’re experts at letting things go.
Jeffrey McDaniel
You will Love This Cozy Instant Pot stew
Incredibly tender and savory, this Instant Pot Beef Stew is a cozy one-pot meal. Using the instant pot makes this quick and easy without sacrificing texture or flavor.
The secret to the best beef stew is pressure cooking the meat first, then adding the veggies at the end of cooking. This unique technique makes for melty tender beef without overcooking the root vegetables!
Eating root vegetables is a beautiful way to nourish our bodies in sync with the season, letting ourselves ground in and receive the moments as they are, making it easier to embrace the chill and take time to nourish our own roots.
Instant Pot Stew Ingredients
- Beef stew meat: Or 1-inch cubed chuck roast. We have not tried it with bottom round, chuck steak, beef shoulder, or pot roast, but these are also known for being used in stew if you want to give one of these a try!
- Root vegetables: You’ll need 4 cups or 1 1/2 pounds of combined root veggies. We used red potatoes, parsnip, rutabagas, and carrots.
- Aromatic vegetables: Shallot, celery stalks, and garlic cloves give this stew a flavorful base.
- Red wine and balsamic: Add acidity and depth of flavor to the stew.
- Dijon mustard: For a bright and tangy taste that elevates the stew.
- Whole tomatoes in juice: To create a rich, subtly sweet, and juicy sauce.
- Beef broth: For a savory sauce that helps the vegetables become tender and rich.
- Fresh thyme, bay leaves, salt, and pepper: For seasoning the vegetables and the stew. Sub dried thyme if you wish.
- Fresh Italian parsley: For fragrant, fresh, herby flavor to garnish.
How to Make Beef Stew in Instant Pot
Step one: Dab the meat chunks with paper towels to soak up excess moisture. The less moisture the better the sear, resulting in optimal texture and flavor. Season generously with salt and pepper.
Step two: Set instant pot to saute. Add grapeseed oil and sear beef chunks in two batches. When done, remove from the pot and set aside.
Step three: To the pot, add olive oil (if needed), shallots, celery, and garlic. Sauté for about 2 minutes.
Step four: Add red wine, balsamic, dijon, tomatoes, beef broth, thyme, bay leaves, salt, and pepper, and mix, scraping down the edges. Use a wooden spoon to crush the tomatoes against the side, breaking them up.
Step five: Add beef, then with the lid on and the steam valve sealed, cook on high pressure for 30 minutes. Prep the root veggies.
Step six: Allow to naturally release for 15 minutes.
Step seven: Add the root vegetables to the pot and set to low pressure for 3-4 minutes, depending on your preference of doneness. I used vegetables cut into 1- or 2-inch pieces, but if you chop them smaller, it may require less cooking time.
Step eight: Manually release the steam valve. Serve in bowls with fresh parsley to garnish.
Pressure Cooker Beef Stew Variations
- Vegetables: You can get as creative as you’d like here! Peruse your fall or winter farmers market for in-season produce. Onion, frozen peas, and green beans also make great additions.
- Potatoes: If you prefer, you can swap the root vegetables for just potatoes if you happen to have a bunch of Yukon gold potatoes or russet potatoes.
- Herbs: Add more woody herbs, like rosemary!
- Beef substitutes: Try this stew with lamb, turkey, or chicken!
- Make it vegetarian: You can leave out the meat and simply make a hearty vegetable stew.
- Thicken it: We like a more brothy stew, but if you want to thicken it you can add a cornstarch slurry by whisking a little cornstarch or flour with liquid and adding to the pot.
Instant Pot Stew Serving Suggestions
We love serving this cozy, classic beef stew with our Sourdough Biscuits or Popovers. Bread is great for dipping into the stew and soaking up all of the rich, savory flavor.
This stew is the ultimate comfort food when served over top of our Instant Pot Mashed Potatoes or Garlic Mashed Potatoes. Or serve with Creamy Polenta!
Instant Pot Beef Stew Recipe Tips
- Cube your own meat: Cubing your own meat assures that you know for certain what cut of meat you are using. I often opt for stew meat already cut from my friend who raises grass-fed beef here on San Juan Island. I know for certain from him I am getting the good stuff. Chuck roast is a good choice if cubing your own.
- Make sure your beef stew meat is not much larger than 1-inch chunks. Of course, they are not going to be perfectly square!
- How to pat the meat dry: Put a couple of layers of paper towel on a plate, spread meat chunks out on top in a single layer. Thoroughly pat dry with another double layer of paper towel, removing as much moisture as possible. You may need to change out the bottom layers. (Alternatively, you could use a cloth towel, making sure it is smooth and has no fuzzy bits- laundering in hot water when finished.)
- Season the stew meat with salt and pepper just before searing. If you do it too far ahead it can draw out too much moisture.
- Use a high heat oil with a low smoke point like grapeseed or avocado oil.
- Have your pan fully heated to medium heat before you put the meat in.
- You will most likely need to cook the meat in two batches. You want to give space, crowding can result in the meat releasing too much moisture and you may not get the sear to fully develop. The oil can tend to collect on the edges of the instant pot, it is good to lift up the inner pot with hot pads and give it a swirl to redistribute during the cooking process. You can sear all sides of the meat, though I find two sides to be sufficient.
- Once you place meat in the pan – do not move around – let it be for a least 4-5 minutes. It may seem like it is sticking to the pan, but once it develops a good crust, it will lift right off.
How to Store Leftover Vegetable Beef Stew
Before storing beef stew, let is cool completely, then transfer to an airtight container and place in the refrigerator for 3-4 days. Simply reheat leftovers on the stovetop or in your instant pot.
Freezing Vegetable Beef Stew
You can freeze beef stew for up to 3 months. Let cool, then transfer to a freezer-friendly bag. Thaw completely before reheating on the stovetop or in your instant pot.
Beef Stew Pressure Cooker FAQs
Caramelizing intensifies the flavor. There is this thing called the Maillard reaction that occurs during high-heat cooking, which is a chemical transformation of sugars and amino acids resulting in rich deep color, heightened flavor, and a more palatable texture.
Use stew meat or beef chuck roast. These are the best choices for preparing stew! When cooking in the instant pot, it is especially important to make sure the beef is cut into the same size pieces so that it cooks evenly. And don’t skip the searing step! This helps the meat cook and achieve delicious texture and flavor, before continuing to cook in the broth.
The pressure cooker results in optimal rich flavor! Because the slow cooker takes longer, you risk over-cooking the meat and vegetables. The flavor may turn out bland and the meat dry when overdone.
Once the beef is done searing, you’ll start with your aromatics to create a flavorful base. The root vegetables can be prepped while the aromatics and beef cook. They are added last and cooked to desired doneness.
Tender and savory Instant Pot Beef Stew with Root Vegetables is rich, satisfying and nurturing with all the ease of a one-pot meal. A bit of searing, chopping, and a little time… add Sourdough Biscuits or Popovers and dinner is served!
Enjoy this delicious Beef Stew and let us know what you think in the comments below.
Wishing you so much health and vitality!
More recipes you may like!
Beef Stew in Instant Pot
- Prep Time: 30 mins
- Cook Time: 75 mins
- Total Time: 1 hour 45 minutes
- Yield: 6 cups 1x
- Category: Dinner recipes, Beef, main, one pot meal
- Method: Instant Pot
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Gluten Free
Description
A homey and comforting beef stew with perfectly cooked root vegetables using the instant pot. Incredibly tender, rich, and satisfying all in about an hour and a half.
Ingredients
- 1 pound beef stew meat or 1 inch cubed chuck roast
- 3/4–1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2–1 teaspoon cracked pepper
- 1 tablespoon grapeseed oil (or other high heat oil)
- 1/2 cup shallot, chopped
- 2 celery stalks, chopped
- 4 cloves garlic, chopped
- 1–2 teaspoons olive oil
- 1/2 cup red wine
- 3 tablespoons balsamic
- 1 1/2 teaspoons dijon mustard
- 1/2 cup whole tomatoes in juice
- 1 cup beef broth
- 1 tablespoon fresh thyme or 1 teaspoon dried
- 2 bay leaves
- 1/2 teaspoon salt, adjust to taste
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper, adjust to taste
- 4 cups or 1.5 pounds of combined root vegetables: 3 red potatoes, 1 parsnip, 2 rutabagas, 2 carrots – cut into 1-2 inch chunks- see notes. Prep these while beef is pressure cooking.
- 1/4 cup fresh Italian parsley, coarsely chopped
Instructions
- Pat the meat chunks off with paper towels, soaking up any moisture. The less moisture the better the sear, which will give the meat better flavor and texture. Season generously with salt and pepper.
- Set instant pot to saute function. Add oil and sear beef chunks in two batches, remove beef from pot and set aside.
- Saute shallots, celery, garlic, olive oil (if needed) among all the leftover bits in the pot for about 2 minutes.
- Add red wine, balsamic, dijon, tomatoes, beef broth, thyme, bay leaves, salt, and pepper. Mix around, scraping the bottom of the pot to get off any stuck bits. Smash up the tomatoes against the side to break them up a bit.
- Add seared beef. Cook on high pressure for 30 minutes, making sure to seal the steam valve. Prep your veggies.
- Allow to naturally release for 15 minutes.
- Add the root vegetables in with the stew and set to low pressure for another 3-4 minutes, depending on your preference of doneness. (see notes)
- Manually release the steam valve. Add fresh parsley and serve with sourdough biscuits!
Notes
Adjust the secondary cook time according to how your vegetables are cut. I kept mine in 1-2 inch chunks. If you opt for smaller vegetables go for the lesser time.
An alternative short cut if you are going to cut your own chunks from chuck roast- sear the entire roast in a Dutch Oven on both sides and then cut when it is cool.
Though we have not tested these cuts, they are known to be used for stew: bottom round, chuck roast, chuck steak, beef shoulder, pot roast.
Yes! This can be done in a slow cooker. Sear meat in a pan, briefly saute shallots, celery and garlic. Add all ingredients, except parsley, to slow cooker. Cook on high 6-8 hours. Stir in parsley when ready to serve.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cup
- Calories: 238
- Sugar: 8.7 g
- Sodium: 641.7 mg
- Fat: 6.5 g
- Saturated Fat: 1.8 g
- Carbohydrates: 25.8 g
- Fiber: 5.4 g
- Protein: 20 g
- Cholesterol: 49.9 mg
Love this recipe! Tender meat with vegetables that still hold a bite
So glad you are enjoying this one Kathryn!
So good!
wonderful!
I LOVED this recipe! I subbed venison for beef and actually cooked my veggies twice as long. I used really firm root veggies and I wanted them well done. We ate it over the top of mashed potatoes and everyone loved it!!
Awesome! Thanks for sharing!
Do you think I could sub ground beef for this recipe? If I could it in big chunks? thanks!
Sure, though I have not tried it. Here is what I might do- just brown the meat first (like in the searing step) with salt and pepper. I also might just let it crumble? Pressure cook for only about 5 minutes, still allowing it to naturally release before adding the veggies.
I’m new to instant pot cooking and this was the first beef stew I’ve made. It was tasty and the beef pulled apart easily but was kind of tough and chewy. I used a package of “stew beef” from the grocery store and I’m not sure what cut it was. Would that have made a difference?
Btw the potatoes and carrots were done to perfection.
Oh sorry about that Maria! The cut and quality of the meat does make a difference, sometimes it is hard to know from the package of stew meat. An alternative is to cut your own from a chuck roast. Did you make sure to give it a good sear before pressure cooking? And let the pot naturally release? Also it may have softened up with more time in the instant pot. You can test the meat after cooking and then cook for another 5-10 minutes if it is not fork tender.
I usually make the cream of mushroom soup and dry onion soup mix beef stew, this was a completely different variation for our family. The balsamic vinegar and dion mustard, parsnips and rutabaga made this an adventure. We liked it a lot!
Oh awesome! Thanks for giving it a try!
Looks yummy..can I make this on a stove?
I really don’t see why not? Give it a go. It will take a little longer to cook to get the beef tender.
Don’t hesitate to make this! Love “ feasting at home” recipes.
I’ve made this on repeat for my family and company alike. ALWAYS a hit…even with my picky pants teenage son. I literally hide the leftovers in the back of the fridge so I can eat it the next day for lunch. I tell everyone about this recipe and have sent it to probably a dozen people. Trust me….make this!
Hi Sylvia, can I substitute the red wine for something else? I am currently pregnant and not drinking alcohol.
You could try a red grape juice.
The alcohol will cook off.
Hi Tonia and Sylvia,
Thank you for this amazing beautifully aromatic rich stew recipe. Our house smelt amazing, and the stew tasted totally amazing. I doubled the meat ingredients and roasted the vegetables separately which were then added to the stew at the end when serving. I now additionally have enough beautiful meat stew left over to make a super tasty pie with. Totally fab meal – we will definitely make again (and again, and again …..) 😋
Wonderful!
I saw that this recipe was listed as “keto friendly” but I’m not so sure with the potatoes, what would you supplement or adjust the veggie blend to make it keto?
What if you just left them out and added another ¼ pound of beef?
What about turnips? They are keto friendly?
I think turnips would be delicious!
Sylvia, Sylvia, Sylvia.
You’ve done it again. Everyone in my house thinks I’m a culinary artist, but they’ve all been fooled.
All I do is follow your recipes.
I made this stew and had never tried rutabagas (they were incredible). I ended up cutting up WAY more veggies then I needed. So I simply roasted them as veggie toppers for the stew. I added a bit more meat and veggies and doubled the liquids. It came out incredible to say the least.
I had a roommate ask if he could have multiple helpings, and even later told my boyfriend that it was the best stew he’s ever had. He even said at the table that “this is how you imagine stew should taste.” So needless to say? This one will be made again and again.
Thanks for all of your recipes. The always please the masses!
Love this- and glad the recipes are working for you!
I made this using an InstantPot at my sister-in-law’s for the very first time. Sylvia, your directions were perfectly clear, and the beef stew was a hit. I loved the rich flavors even without the tomatoes and potatoes (Nightshade allergy). I substituted white sweet potatoes, and served the stew over polenta (for me), and mashed potatoes for my husband and his sister. Keeper recipe. Thanks for including slow cooker/stovetop instructions!!
Wonderful Peggy! Love you adapted and made everyone happy!!
The beef was so flavorful and tender. I will definitely make this again. Delicious!
So happy you liked it!
Excellent recipe! I cannot eat nightshades, so I used garnet yam and carrots and replaced the tomato with umeboshi paste (like a 1.5 tsp). It was quite delicious!! Thanks!
Wow, that sounds amazing! I love it.
This looks delicious and I can’t wait to try it out. I do not have an instant pot, I suppose I could just use a regular dutch oven and just cook for a longer time?
Thanks for all of your wonderful recipes, I am a huge fun!!
Francesca
Yes, definitely!
Very good stew with lots of flavors. The balsamic and mustard gave it a nice tang. Used carrots, golden beet, and rutabaga for the root vegetables.
Glad you enjoyed it! The beets sound yummy!
Delicious and easy! My toddler said “this is the most delicious meal, please make it again!” We try not to eat a lot of meat, but I will say this dish has way more veggies than meat and our toddler ate way more of them than usual.
It takes a while to cook, but it’s mostly hands off time so as long as you’re aware of the total time, it’s no big deal. Next time we will try to do 1.5 times the recipe and maybe do extra veggies in the stew and serve with mashed potatoes. Either way, will definitely make again!
yay! I consider it a double win when you can please the kids and have them eat their veggies! and yum…mashed potatoes, can’t go wrong there!
Nicely balanced flavours with the root vegetables and sauce was rich and creamy.. I served it with savory scones. Great comfort food.
Wonderful! Thanks so much for sharing.
This was one of the best meals I’ve made. The meat and vegetables were so tender, and the flavor was also great.
So good to hear! Thanks Eileen.
This root veggie beef stew was Devine! The flavor was rich and flavorful. The veggies just the right amount of doneness. And in the instant pot so quick and easy! I’ll be doing this again soon!
super Josie! thanks so much😊
So this is a pretty great recipe! I only did one rutabaga (never had one before but it’s great!). Two seemed like too much and I got medium sized ones. The recipe doesn’t mention this but you definitely want to take the peel off of the rutabaga. I did four minutes for the root vegetables and wish I would’ve done 5-6, but it still came out edible and delicious! Next time will chop the root veggies to half inch size as I did about 1 in pieces this time. The fresh parsley is a great call. Thanks!
super helpful feedback and great suggestions. glad you liked the rutabaga!
My kids gave this an 11 out of 10! I don’t eat meat but I cook it for my children, so I don’t know what this tastes like. However, it looks and smells amazing! The kids said it’s great 🙂 And they had two big bowls each!
Very simple and easy to put together. And SO fast in the Instant Pot!
Thank you for this!
awesome Kamilah!
How hard would it be to add a note for those of us that still use a MirroMatic stove top pressure cooker, indicating pressure (5-10-15 psi) and time in minutes?
I don’t own an Instapot & don’t intend to get one. Is its “high” pressure 15 psi? low 5 psi? or what? Recipe sound delicious, but have some concerns about cooking it.
Please advise. Thanks.
Hi Jim- both Tonia and I don’t have the kind of stovetop pressure cooker that you have. I bet if you found a similar recipe for a pressure cooker beef stew recipe online, and used it as a guide- as far as timing only-you could try subbing these ingredients? That’s what I would do. Sorry and let us know if you try this and if you can, please leave any notes- I bet others would find this useful too!