Slow Cooker Beef Stew and Dumplings

This is a rich and luxurious slow cooker beef stew and dumplings recipe and the herb dumplings really do add a wonderful texture and flavor to the overall dish. The red wine adds richness and the onions make this one of the most healthy crockpot recipes, which adults and kids alike will adore.

It doesn’t make much different to the end results whether you cook this on a low heat or a high heat, as long as you get the timing right. Some people say that using a low heat for a longer time does make the beef a little more tender but crockpot cooking tends to make meat tender whether you use the low or high setting. Mine took about 10 hours on low but I have made it in 8 hours before (probably down to the meat).

There are various recipes for crockpot beef stew, ranging from very simple ones with beef, vegetables and not much else to more elaborate, gourmet-style beef stew recipes with mustard, wine, and homemade dumplings. This crockpot beef stew obviously falls into the latter category and the flavor of this dish is amazing. It’s well worth making if you enjoy beef stew recipes or if you are looking for something easy but full-flavored.

You might expect such a sophisticated crockpot beef stew recipe to be more complicated to make than a very simple one but it’s actually the same. You just add everything to the slow cooker and leave it to work its magic. As for the dumplings, you just combine the Bisquick with the milk herbs half an hour before end of the beef stew cooking time and drop them into the mixture. That is how simple it is to make a stunning stew for dinner one night this week.

What to Serve with Slow Cooker Beef Stew with Dumplings

Since there’s meat, veggies and dumplings in here, you could serve it as it is without sides. However, I love pairing thick slices of buttered bread with mine, just to make sure I can soak up every last drop of the sauce!

If you want something that contrasts, consider one of these bean salad recipes.

Crockpot Beef Stew and Dumplings FAQS

How long does beef stew take to slow cook on low, and how long on high?

It depends on the meat, how large you’ve cut the veggies and your Crockpot. I’d estimate about 5 hours on high or 8 to 10 hours on low, for the richest, most tender results.

What is Bisquick?

Bisquick is a boxed baking mix made mainly from flour, leavening and fat, and it’s designed to make baking quicker and more convenient. It’s commonly used for pancakes, biscuits (scones in UK), waffles and other baked goods by just adding a few wet ingredients like milk or eggs. You can also get Bisquick in the UK if that’s where you are making slow cooker beef stew and dumplings.

Can I make gluten-free Crockpot beef stew or dairy-free Crockpot beef stew?

For a gluten-free slow cooker stew, use gluten-free flour instead of all purpose (known as plain flour in the UK) and a gluten-free baking mix for the Bisquick, also check your beef broth ingredients. As for the dairy-free slow cooker beef stew and dumplings, you can use dairy-free milk and a baking mix without any dairy.

Slow Cooker Beef Stew and Dumplings

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This rich-flavored beef stew is complemented with homemade fluffy herb dumplings. The stew slow cooks until everything’s tender, then the dumplings go in later. Enjoy it with crusty bread on the side to mop up all the wonderful juices.

• Author: Victoria Haneveer
• Prep Time: 15 minutes
• Cook Time: 8 - 10 hours
• Total Time: 10 hours
• Yield: 8 1x
• Category: stew, main course
• Method: slow cooker

Ingredients

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• 2 pounds (900g) top round steak or lean stew beef, in 1-inch (2 ½ cm) pieces
• 2 celery ribs, sliced
• 4 carrots in ½-inch (1 ¼ cm) slices
• 2 onions, sliced
• ¼ cup (60ml) water
• ¼ cup (30g) all purpose flour
• ¼ teaspoon black pepper
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1 teaspoon dry mustard
• 1 ½ teaspoons salt
• ¾ cup (185ml) beef broth (beef stock) or dry red wine, or some of each
• 8 sliced button mushrooms
• 14 ½ oz (400g) can diced tomatoes with juice

For the Herb Dumplings

• ½ cup (125ml) milk
• 1 ½ cups (180g) Bisquick
• ¼ teaspoon dried sage, crumbled
• ¼ teaspoon dried rosemary, crumbled
• ½ teaspoon dried thyme

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Instructions

1. Combine the beef, celery, carrots, onions, tomatoes, thyme, pepper, mustard, mushrooms, and wine or beef broth.
2. If you are using wine, use all the salt.
3. If you are using beef broth you might not need it depending on the saltiness of the broth so taste it to see.
4. Cover and cook on a low heat for 8 to 10 hours or a high heat for 4 or 5 hours.
5. The vegetables and beef will become tender.
6. Combine the flour and water and stir this slowly into the beef stew.
7. Combine the Bisquick, thyme, sage and rosemary and stir in the milk until the mixture is just moistened.
8. Drop spoonfuls of the dough on to the hot beef stew, then cover and cook on high for 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the herb dumplings comes out clean.

Notes

This is quite an aromatic Crockpot beef stew, thanks to the thyme, mustard, wine and of course the herbs in the dumplings. It’s also fortified with mushrooms for an earthy flavor and the beef broth and/or red wine gives it a wonderful richness, bringing out the flavor of the meat. You’ll find it a very simple recipe, considering how great it tastes. Mine took about 10 hours to cook on a low heat, so start it early to ensure it’s ready by dinnertime.

Keywords: stew, beef, slow cooker

More Beef Recipes to Try

Also try my gnocchi beef stew, classic beef stew with dumplings, slow cooker gluten-free beef stew and this microwave Belgian beef stew. This British beef and ale pie is also worth a try if you want stodgy, hearty British comfort food!