Delicious Instant Pot Beef Stew

 

 

 

Not too long after I moved into my new place, I purchased myself an Instant Pot. This is the model I bought here.  It is a multi use pressure cooker. I can even make yogurt in it if I want to.

I am ashamed to say that today is the first time I used it, inspired by my sister having used hers to make a stew yesterday.  It sounded so nice, I thought I would give it a go!

 

I picked up some stewing beef at the grocery store yesterday. I was shocked at how expensive meat it getting.  I paid $7.69 for .388 kg, which is not even a pound. 

Stewing beef sells for $19.82 a kilo here, which is 2 1/4 pounds.  Outrageous when you think that stewing beef is not even the best quality beef around. I do not know how families can make ends meet and feed themselves these days! 

 

That is where making something like a stew can be a delicious economy.  You don't need a lot of meat and by adding a lot of vegetables to it, you can stretch that meat even further!

My recipe today makes four servings out of one pound of meat, and nobody will feel shortchanged because there are loads of delicious vegetables and there is lots of tasty gravy, ready to be mopped up with bread and butter.

This is a meal made in heaven.

 

One thing which I did differently than the usual here, was to use a package of fresh potato gnocchi.  This is the brand I used.  I am a huge fan of gnocchi.  Little potato pasta dumplings that you can use almost like potatoes.

I have always used them just like potatoes myself. I boil them and fry them with onions, etc.  They always come out most delicious! 

 

The gnocchi add a lovely heartiness to the stew and doesn't break down like potatoes do. You add them at the very last. They only takes about 2 minutes to cook.  

I really love the way they hold together in things like this.

 

WHAT YOU NEED TO MAKE INSTANT POT BEEF STEW

Aside from the Instant Pot, very simple ordinary kitchen ingredients. It looks like a lot but most of them are seasonings/flavorings.

• 1 pounds boneless stewing beef, cut into 1 inch cubes
• 1 TBS oil
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp black pepper
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder (not salt)
• 1/2 tsp onion powder (not salt)
• 1/2 tsp dried summer savory
• 1/4 tsp dried thyme
• 1 bay leaf, broken
• 1/4 cup tomato ketchup (61g)
• 1 TBS Worcestershire sauce
• 1 TBS Balsamic vinegar
• 1 1/2 cup beef stock (360ml)
• 4 1/2 cups peeled and prepped vegetables (see note)
• 1 package refrigerated fresh potato gnocchi (4 serving size)
• 2 TBS flour
• 2 TBS cold water

 

I used the Knorr beef stock concentrate for this. Ordinary tomato ketchup (adds a nice tang) as does the Worcestershire sauce.  Normally I would add sweet pickle juice to my stews, but lacking that, today I added balsamic vinegar with excellent results.

I used a variety of vegetables for my stew.  Parsnips, carrots, onion, rutabaga and celery.  The onions and celery break down quite a bit and are not really all that discernable in the end.

 

I left my vegetables quite chunky because I didn't want them breaking down too much.  Although the instant pot does cook the stew in a fraction of the time that you would normally need to cook a stew, it's still long enough to break down your vegetables.

I love soft vegetables in my stew, but not mush.  So, do keep them in largish chunks.

 

HOW TO MAKE INSTANT POT BEEF STEW

It's really easy and quite quick, once you get over your initial fear of pressure cooking. If you follow the instructions that come with your instant pot, you needn't fear!

Add the cooking oil to the Instant Pot insert. Select sauté, adjust to normal. Add the beef cubes, cooking in two batches. Cook 2 to 4 minutes on one side until browned. Repeat on the second side.

Once all of the meat has browned return it to the pan along with all of the herbs and seasonings, along with the broken bay leaf. Give it all a good stir and cook for a few minutes. Select CANCEL.

Place all of your prepped vegetables on top of the beef in the pan.

 

Whisk together the ketchup, Worcestershire sauce, Balsamic vinegar and stock to combine. Pour this mixture over top.

Secure lid. Set pressure valve to SEALING. Select MANUAL. Cook on high pressure for 45 minutes. Select CANCEL.

Set pressure valve to VENTING to quick-release pressure.

Add the potato gnocchi, cover and keep warm on the warm setting until the gnocchi have cooked through. (Should only take a few minutes.)

Whisk together the flour and water until smooth. Whisk this into the pot. Select SAUTE, adjust to normal. Brint to a simmer and then cook, stirring frequently, until the mixture has thickened, and any flour taste has been cooked out. Select CANCEL.

Serve hot spooned into bowls along with crusty bread to sop up all that lush gravy.

 

I was really pleased with how delicious this stew turned out and how very quickly it was ready in comparison to the traditional method.

My friend Glenna stopped by right after it was done.  She has just bought herself an Instant Pot, so she was quite interested in how it went together. I gave her a bowl of it to take home with her. (She just lives across the road from me.)

I think I have found a new way to make a tasty stew!  Many thanks to my sister for inspiring me! 

If you would rather make stew in the traditional way you might enjoy the following recipes:

BEEF STEW FOR TWO WITH BISQUICK DUMPLINGS - A down-sized version of my favorite beef stew, perfectly sized for two. It may be smaller in size but is every bit as delicious as the full-sized version!  

IRISH LAMB STEW - There is nothing fabulously outrageous ingredient-wise about this stew. Simple ingredients put together in a very simple way. Stewing Lamb, potatoes, carrots, onions, celery. Thyme, stock and seasoning. A bit of oil for browning the meat.

EASY OVEN STEW - This has to be the easiest and tastiest stew around.  I clipped the recipe from a newspaper many moons again and I have been using it ever since. It pretty much cooks itself.  With just a bit of peeling and chopping, your work is pretty much done, and if you use frozen chopped onions and buy your meat already cubed, then it doesn't take long to throw together at all.

Yield: 4

Author: Marie Rayner

Instant Pot Beef Stew (with Potato Gnocchi)

Prep time: 15 MinCook time: 50 MinTotal time: 1 H & 5 M

You won't believe how quickly you can make a delicious stew in an Instant Pot! This is quick easy and incredibly tasty!

Ingredients

• 1 pounds boneless stewing beef, cut into 1 inch cubes
• 1 TBS oil
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp black pepper
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder (not salt)
• 1/2 tsp onion powder (not salt)
• 1/2 tsp dried summer savory
• 1/4 tsp dried thyme
• 1 bay leaf, broken
• 1/4 cup tomato ketchup (61g)
• 1 TBS Worcestershire sauce
• 1 TBS Balsamic vinegar
• 1 1/2 cup beef stock (360ml)
• 4 1/2 cups peeled and prepped vegetables (see note)
• 1 package refrigerated fresh potato gnocchi (4 serving size)
• 2 TBS flour
• 2 TBS cold water

Instructions

1. Add the cooking oil to the Instant Pot insert. Select sauté, adjust to normal. Add the beef cubes, cooking in two batches. Cook 2 to 4 minutes on one side until browned. Repeat on the second side.
2. Once all of the meat has browned return it to the pan along with all of the herbs and seasonings, along with the broken bay leaf. Give it all a good stir and cook for a few minutes. Select CANCEL.
3. Place all of your prepped vegetables on top of the beef in the pan.
4. Whisk together the ketchup, Worcestershire sauce, Balsamic vinegar and stock to combine. Pour this mixture over top.
5. Secure lid. Set pressure valve to SEALING. Select MANUAL. Cook on high pressure for 45 minutes. Select CANCEL.
6. Set pressure valve to VENTING to quick-release pressure.
7. Add the potato gnocchi, cover and keep warm on the warm setting until the gnocchi have cooked through. (Should only take a few minutes.)
8. Whisk together the flour and water until smooth. Whisk this into the pot. Select SAUTE, adjust to normal. Brint to a simmer and then cook, stirring frequently, until the mixture has thickened, and any flour taste has been cooked out. Select CANCEL.
9. Serve hot spooned into bowls along with crusty bread to sop up all that lush gravy.

Notes

I used carrots (3 large), parsnips (3 small), 1/2 a small rutababa/swede, 1 medium onion, 2 stalks celery. Peel all of your vegetables. Cut the carrots and parsnips into thick coins. Cut the swede into 1/2 inch cubes, chop the onion. Slice the celery into 1/2 inch pieces.

Did you make this recipe?

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If you don't have an instant pot, you can cook this as per a normal stew in a regular pot. Brown the meat in the oil. Add seasonings and cook for a few minutes. Add the ketchup, Worcestershire sauce, Balsamic vinegar, etc. You may need more liquid as you will want everything to be almost covered. Bring to simmer, then cover and reduce to low. Cook on low for two hours. 

Add the vegetables and add water as needed. Cover and cook on low for a further hour or so, or until the meat and all of the vegetables are tender. Add the potato gnocchi. Cook for several minutes until the gnocchi are tender. 

 Whisk together the flour and water until smooth. Whisk this into the stew, whisking constantly, until the mixture has bubbled and thickened. Cook for a few minutes to cook out any flour taste. Serve as above.

Leftovers taste even better the day after, and this freezes beautifully.

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