Featured Comment
From Beth: “Omgosh! I just made the stew yesterday and already can’t wait for left overs today. I didn’t use the wine just the beef broth and this recipe is amazing. My husband also loved it. ★★★★★“
From Randy: “Wonderful stew, just wonderful ★★★★★“
From Amanda: “My family loves this recipe!!! We gobble it up. Thank you!! ★★★★★“
Why Try This Gluten-Free Beef Stew
It’s one of my family’s go-to cozy meals for chilly days! I love serving it with gluten-free dinner rolls or gluten-free corn muffins for a warm comfort meal when the weather turns chilly.
- Deep, developed flavor. I always take the extra time to brown the beef. I know it’s an extra step, but it helps build a flavorful base for the stew. Plus this recipe uses REAL ingredients (no canned soup or seasoning packets) for maximum flavor!
- Tender beef and perfectly cooked vegetables. The beef cooks low and slow until tender, while the potatoes and peas are added later so they hold their shape instead of turning mushy.
- Slow cooker or stovetop. I love making this stew in the slow cooker because I can get it started earlier in the day and have dinner ready to go! But when I’m short on time, the stovetop works great too.
What You Need
Here are a few notes on some of the key ingredients to make this gluten-free beef stew. Jump to the recipe card below for the exact measurements.
- Stew meat. I like to buy beef stew meat from Costco to save myself a step, but you can also cut up chuck roast yourself!
- Salt pork. This might seem like an usual ingredient for beef stew, but it adds an extra depth to the broth that I just love. You can usually find it near the bacon and ham in the grocery store.
- Red wine. I like to use small picnic-size bottles of wine in recipes. They contain just the right amount! If you want to skip the wine, you can substitute more beef stock.
- Tomato paste + garlic. These add savory, concentrated flavors to the stew. I like to use a frozen garlic clove as a shortcut!
- Beef stock. Be sure to pick a brand that is gluten-free. Beef broth will also work!
- Gluten-free flour. Any kind of gluten-free all-purpose flour will work here. It’s simply used to thicken the broth, so there’s no need for a specific flour blend.
How to Make Gluten-Free Beef Stew
Here’s an overview of how to make this recipe. You can jump to the recipe for the full instructions!
Brown the beef. Pat the meat dry, then cook half of it in a tablespoon of olive oil until browned on all sides. Throw the browned beef in the slower cooker, then brown the second half of the meat and add it to the slow cooker.
Cook the vegetables. Now that the Dutch oven is empty, drizzle 2 teaspoons of olive oil in, if needed, then add the onion and carrots. Cook until the onions are softened. You may need to scrape the bottom to loosen browned pieces.
Stir in the flour. Add the gluten-free flour, stirring constantly, until no dry flour remains visible. Throw in the garlic and tomato paste, stirring constantly, until it becomes fragrant.
Add the liquids. Slowly pour in the wine. I usually scrape the bottom again at this point to loosen browned bits. Simmer the wine until it thickens and is slightly reduced, then whisk in the beef stock. It’s ready to add to the slow cooker!
Erin’s Tip
This recipe is versatile! I usually use Yukon gold potatoes, but red potatoes or even sweet potatoes will work.
You can also add green beans or whatever fresh vegetables you have on hand!
Add flavor. After you pour the stew base into the slow cooker, add in the bay leaves, thyme, and salt pork. Cook on low for 4-6 hours or high 3-4 hours.
2 hours before serving. Remove the salt pork and add in the potatoes.
30 minutes before serving. Add in the peas, then season with salt and pepper to taste.
Erin’s Tip
Hold off on seasoning the stew until the just before serving. The stock, wine and salt pork all have a good amount of salt so you don’t want to add too much before those ingredients have a chance to cook and flavor the stew.
I usually always add a few cracks of fresh pepper!
More Gluten-Free Comfort Meals
BEST Gluten-Free Beef Stew (Slow-Cooker)
Ingredients
- 4 lbs beef stew meat, 1-2 inch cubes
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 large onion, halved and cut from pole to pole into 1/8-inch-thick slices (about 2 cups)
- 4 medium carrots, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces (about 2 cups)
- 2 cloves of garlic minced
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- 2-3 tablespoons gluten-free flour
- 1 cup red wine or 1 additional cup of beef broth
- 3 cups gluten-free low-sodium beef broth or stock
- 2 bay leaves
- 4 springs thyme or 1 1/2 teaspoons dry thyme
- 4 ounces salt pork, trimmed of excess fat
- 1 pound yukon gold potatoes, cut into 1 inch chunks (I like to peel mine)
- 1 cup frozen peas
Instructions
- Pat meat dry with paper towels. Do not season. Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a Dutch oven over high heat until shimmering. Add half of beef and cook until well browned on all sides, about 8 minutes. Reduce the heat if oil begins to smoke or fond begins to burn. Transfer beef to the slow-cooker.
- Repeat with remaining beef and 1 tablespoon olive oil, then add to the slow-cooker.
- Add 2 teaspoons olive oil to the now-empty dutch oven if needed, add the onion and carrots. Cook, scraping bottom of pan to loosen any browned bits, until onion is softened, 3-4 minutes.
- Add the flour and cook, stirring constantly, until no dry flour remains, about 30 seconds. Add garlic, tomato paste and cook, stirring constantly, until fragrant, about 30 seconds.
- Slowly add the wine, scraping bottom of pan to loosen any browned bits. Increase heat to high and allow wine to simmer until thickened and slightly reduced, about 2 minutes. Whisk in the beef stock/broth.
- Pour the stock/broth mixture into the slow-cooker. Stir in the bay leaves, thyme, and salt pork.
- Cook on low for 4-6 hours (or high for 3-4 hours). 2 hours before eating remove the salt pork and add the potatoes.
- 30 minutes before eating stir in the peas. IMPORTANT: Season with salt and pepper – I usually add 1/2 teaspoon each. Enjoy!
Loved this it was very good.
Beef Stew is a favorite of mine
It was easy and SOOOO GOOD.
Thank you.
We love a good beef stew too, Wanda! Thank you for coming back to share your thoughts about the recipe. We’re thrilled to hear you found the recipe easy and delicious!
Hi, I don’t eat pork, but I eat chicken and beef. Is there a pork substitute I can use like turkey bacon? Turkey ham?
Hi there, you could probably just add more butter or beef tallow! It’s really about the fat, not the meat. Turkey bacon would be too lean. Hope that helps!
This is so yummy! Amazing taste and so easy but my broth did not thicken. It was thick when I added the wine to the GF flour but in the crock pot it did not thicken up and was more like a broth soup than a hearty stew.
Hi Laurel, thanks for the review! It sounds like the Crock Pot didn’t get quite hot enough to thicken the broth. Next time you could try thickening some of the broth in a pot on the stove, then pouring it into the Crock Pot.
Beef broth- do I buy this prepared ie in a can or do I prepare it?
Hi Zenon, you can prepare it if you like, but we typically by the boxed beef broth/stock. We hope you enjoy the stew!
Could you give directions on how to substitute cornstarch for the gluten-free flour?
Hi Sue, we haven’t tried cornstarch in place of the gf flour in this stew. It doesn’t act the same way as the gf flour so it’s not a 1:1 swap. It may work if you make a slurry with 2 tbsp cornstarch/2 tbsp water and wait to add it until near the end. Cornstarch doesn’t do well when cooked for long periods of time. We hope you enjoy the recipe!
Do you have instructions for making in insta pot?
Hi Angele, we haven’t tried this one out in the instant pot, but we’ll keep that in mind for future updates! If you decide to give it a try, we’d love to hear how it goes!
4 pounds of beef? Is that correct?
Hi Samantha, yes that measurement is accurate! We hope you enjoy the recipe!
How would this work in a traditional Le Creuset and not a slow cooker?
Hi Barbara, for the Le Creuset, you’ll either cook it on low on the stove or in the oven at 300°F for 2.5-3 hours. You’ll want to add the potatoes when the stew has about 1-1.5 hours left to cook and wait to add the peas until the last 15 minutes. We hope you enjoy the stew!
I don’t see any instructions for making this stove top?
Hi Nicole, good question! Rather than pouring ingredients into the slow cooker, you can keep them in a pot on the stove. For steps 7-8, reduce the heat to low, cover the pot, and simmer gently for 2-3 hours. 1 hour before serving, add the potatoes and then 30 minutes before serving add the peas and remove the salt pork. We hope you enjoy the recipe!
What size crock pot needed for this recipe
Hi Samantha, a 7 or 8 quart crockpot should work well. We hope you enjoy the stew!
That looks delicious
Thanks! I hope you like it if you try it 🙂