Comfort food doesn’t get any better than Honey Balsamic Slow Cooker Beef Stew! This stick to your ribs beef stew is hearty, flavorful as can be and loaded with beef and veggies. You’re gonna love this set it and forget it crockpot recipe!
Stay warm this winter with more stew recipes like Classic Beef Stew, One Pot Chicken Stew and Slow Cooker Garlic Parmesan Chicken Stew.
Table of Contents
- What people are saying
- Why we love this Honey Balsamic Slow Cooker Beef Stew Recipe:
- Honey Balsamic Beef Stew Ingredients:
- How to make Slow Cooker Beef Stew
- Recipe Tip
- Variations and Substitutions
- How to store leftover Beef Stew
- Can I freeze Honey Balsamic Slow Cooker Beef Stew?
- Can I brown the beef first?
- Serving suggestions:
- More Crockpot recipes you’ll love!
- Honey Balsamic Slow Cooker Beef Stew Recipe Recipe
My Crockpot stays pretty active year round, but especially during the chillier fall and winter months. I love staying warm with cozy crockpot recipes like this Honey Balsamic Slow Cooker Beef Stew!
The flavor in this stew is downright mouthwatering. Tangy flavor from the balsamic vinegar and natural sweetness from the honey come together perfectly with other flavorful additions like Worcestershire sauce, garlic and more.
Oh, and have I mentioned just how easy this Crockpot beef stew recipe is?! You basically just have to toss everything into the slow cooker and let it work its magic for you.
What people are saying
“This was absolutely delicious just as it’s written. Made this with no modifications and came out perfectly. Everyone went back for seconds. A sweeter take on beef stew that I will definitely be making again! Thanks!” Michele
Why we love this Honey Balsamic Slow Cooker Beef Stew Recipe:
- Flavorful: The sweet and tangy sauce is pretty addictive. It’s so good that I often find myself thinking about it long after the last dish gets washed!
- Easy: This is the definition of a set it and forget it recipe. After 10 minutes of prep time, the Crockpot slowly cooks the beef and veggies to tender perfection.
- Filling: You won’t be left hungry after a hearty serving of this beef stew! It’s packed with the perfect amount of beef and veggies to satisfy even the hungriest bellies at the dinner table.
Honey Balsamic Beef Stew Ingredients:
- Beef: You can buy beef stew meat, but I find it more economical to buy an inexpensive round steak and cut it myself. The steaks are often fresher as well! Since we are cooking it low and slow, we do not need a tender cut of beef.
- Veggies: I use a medley of classic stew veggies – celery, carrots and onions.
- Cornstarch: This is what thickens the sauce.
- Beef Broth: I like to use unsalted or low sodium broth when I cook. That way, I can sprinkle in salt as needed and better control the amount of sodium in the dish.
- Honey: You can add more or less to adjust the amount of sweetness in the sauce.
- Potatoes: You can half or quarter the potatoes. They’ll cook all the way through either way.
- Balsamic Vinegar: I don’t recommend swapping this key ingredient with anything else! You need both the tangy and sweet flavors of it to compliment everything else.
- Tomato Paste: A little goes a long way with this.
- Seasonings: Seasoning salt and pepper are all I use, but you can feel free to sprinkle in whatever others spices sound good to you. Herbs like thyme or bay leaves would also be nice.
- Garlic: You can measure this one with your heart!
How to make Slow Cooker Beef Stew
Here’s a quick sneak peak of how to make the BEST slow cooker beef stew recipe! For more detailed info, scroll down to the recipe card at the bottom of the page.
- Add the beef and veggies to your slow cooker.
- Whisk together all of the ingredients for the sauce. Pour the sauce over the meat and veggies, cover, and cook on low for 6-8 hours.
Recipe Tip
With most slow cooker recipes, I find that the flavors become muted after cooking for such a long time. With this stew though, I didn’t find that at all! It was still so good and didn’t need any adjustments after cooking, other than a bit of extra corn starch if you want a thicker sauce.
Variations and Substitutions
- Add more veggies: Feel free to improvise and use what you have on hand. Some frozen peas added at the end of the cook time add a great pop of color!
- Make it vegetarian: If you wanted to make this a vegetarian meal, you could simply swap the beef for mushrooms and add in extra veggies.
How to store leftover Beef Stew
Store your leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3-4 days. Reheat individual portions in the microwave for 30 seconds at a time, stirring each time it stops, until warmed all the way through.
If a lot of the liquid has been absorbed, add a splash of water or broth before reheating.
Can I freeze Honey Balsamic Slow Cooker Beef Stew?
Sure thing! Let everything fully cool to room temperature before freezing in an airtight container for up to 3 months. Take the stew out of the freezer and let it thaw in the fridge prior to reheating.
Keep in mind that the texture of the potatoes can change after being frozen. If this is something you don’t enjoy, I recommend storing it in the fridge.
Can I brown the beef first?
You can absolutely brown the beef in a skillet before adding to the slow cooker. This will build flavor and prevent some of the liquids of the beef from escaping into the gravy. For my purposes, I wanted to keep this recipe super simple so we skipped it!
Serving suggestions:
You can always serve this stew with some Homemade Dinner Rolls or a loaf of crusty Artisan bread if you feel like showing off! I’m also pretty fond of Homemade Garlic Herb Dinner Rolls too. Rolls are always great with stew because they help soak up all of that delicious sauce!
More Crockpot recipes you’ll love!
- Slow Cooker Pot Roast with Gravy — the perfect Sunday dinner!
- Crockpot Creamy Garlic Chicken — just be sure to grab a straw to slurp up that sauce 😉
- Crockpot Zuppa Toscana — full of flavor!
- Slow Cooker Mongolian Beef — skip the takeout next weekend!
Honey Balsamic Slow Cooker Beef Stew Recipe
written by Ashley Fehr
Ingredients
- 1 lb baby potatoes (halved or quartered)
- 1 lb round steak (cut into 1" pieces)
- 3 large carrots (cut into ¾-1" pieces)
- 1 rib celery (chopped)
- ½ medium onion (cut into ½" pieces)
- 1 cup low sodium beef broth*
- ⅓ cup balsamic vinegar
- ⅓ cup honey
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 2 teaspoons minced garlic
- 1 teaspoon seasoning salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- 2 tablespoons corn starch
Instructions
- Add potatoes, beef, carrots, celery, and onion to a 3-4 quart slow cooker.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together broth, vinegar, honey, tomato paste, Worcestershire sauce, garlic, seasoning salt, pepper and corn starch with a whisk until combined. Add to slow cooker.
- Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours until potatoes and carrots are tender. If desired, strain out sauce and thicken further on the stove top with a corn starch/water slurry.
- Taste and adjust seasonings as desired before serving.
Notes
Ingredients and Substitutions:
Beef broth: I have increased the beef broth in this recipe from ¼ cup to 1 cup for a saucier stew. If you prefer, you can reduce the broth or increase the vinegar and honey as you prefer. Potatoes: any variety of potatoes cut into 1/2-1″ cubes will work just fine! Beef: you can buy stewing beef, but I find it more economical to buy an inexpensive round steak and cut it myself. The steaks are often fresher as well! Since we are cooking it low and slow, we do not need a tender cut of beef. Vegetables: feel free to improvise and use what you have on hand. Some frozen peas added at the end of the cook time add a great pop of color! Honey and balsamic vinegar: I know these seem like strange additions, but trust me on this one! If you love a slightly sweet and tangy sauce, you’ll love this version. It’s a little unexpected but packed with flavor!Browning beef before adding:
You can absolutely brown the beef in a skillet before adding to the slow cooker. This will build flavor and prevent some of the juices of the beef from escaping into the gravy. For my purposes, I wanted to keep this recipe super simple so we skipped it!Nutrition Information
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Leah says
Can I cook this in a covered roasting pan in a low oven instead? Making for a crowd and my crockpot isn’t big enough if a triple the recipe.
The Recipe Rebel says
Hi Leah, I’m sure it could. The method would likely be close to my beef stew recipe: https://www.thereciperebel.com/beef-stew-recipe/ Enjoy!
Tarah says
Would it be ok to leave out the honey or only use half what the recipe calls for?
Courtney Simms says
I was hesitant because I don’t particularly like balsamic vinegar and I couldn’t imagine how it wouldn’t taste sour but as it cooks magic happens I guess 😆 For some reason it took a little longer for my potatoes to fully cook but I believe that extra cooktime added more depth of flavour. This was very delicious, trust the process!
The Recipe Rebel says
Hi Courtney! So glad you enjoyed the recipe! Thank you for this kind review!
Alyssa says
Just tried this recipe today and it was so good! I did use russet potatoes (cut up) and baby carrots instead just to use up some things I had and it turned out great. Love slow cooker recipes like this that I can just toss together before work.
The Recipe Rebel says
Hi Alyssa! So glad you enjoyed the recipe! Thank you for this kind review!
Donna says
This was excellent. My family loved it. So much flavor.
The Recipe Rebel says
Hi Donna! So glad you enjoyed the recipe! Thank you for this kind review!
Gina says
Do you have recommendations for pre-freezing the ingredients?
The Recipe Rebel says
Hi Gina! I think it should freeze well with everything cooked! I haven’t tried it but I’d love to hear if you do!
Alisha says
I was worried at first but this turned out great thank you!
The Recipe Rebel says
Hi Alisha! So glad you enjoyed the recipe! Thank you for this kind review!
Michele says
I have a 6qt Crockpot instead of 2.5qt. If I double the ingredients, should I keep the same cook time as your recipe? If I keep the same amount of ingredients, should I cut the cook time in half? What would you do?
Thank you!
The Recipe Rebel says
Hi Michele, if you are doubling it, I would keep the same time.
Bia says
I made this recipe for my boyfriend and he loved it! Like many who left a comment before me, I was initially worried that there wasn’t enough sauce in this recipe. Good thing I followed it as it was written. By hour 4, it looked like the sauce/broth had doubled and by the end of the 8 hours everything was fully cooked and delicious. In the beginning, I did place my potatoes at the bottom, followed by the veggies and then the meat on top and everything cooked perfectly. Mine was actually done in 7 instead of 8 hours.
The Recipe Rebel says
Love that! Thank you Bia! So glad you enjoyed the recipe! Thank you for this kind review!
Linda says
If I can’t get the liquid honey, can I substitute regular honey?
The Recipe Rebel says
Hi Linda, it should be okay but depending on which one you use, it may result in a different flavor. Enjoy!
Caitlin says
Do you cook the beef first at all? Or just put everything in together raw?
Very keen to try this 😊
The Recipe Rebel says
Hi Caitlin, no cooking the beef prior is required. Enjoy!
Nicole Daniel says
This is our absolute favourite slow cooker recipe. I do cut the potatoes a bit smaller so they cook.
The Recipe Rebel says
Hi Nicole! So glad you enjoyed the recipe! Thank you for the kind review!
Megan says
I’m so confused.. I followed recipe exactly and there is no way those things are going to cook in that little amount of fluids. I also have a small crockpot. There is no “submerging” to anything. I am making it right now and added almost a half a box of beef broth just to cover things half way. We’ll see how it turns out.
The Recipe Rebel says
Hi Megan! You actually don’t need to submerge anything. I have a smaller crockpot as well and my cooks perfectly every time we make it. Hope you enjoyed it!
SR says
I’m making this right now and I already have backup plans for dinner. The recipe calls for a whole pound of potatoes and a pound of beef but there’s barely a cup of sauce, how does that make sense for a stew? I ended up adding a ton more beef broth so the potatoes at least have something to cook in. We’ll see how it turns out.
The Recipe Rebel says
Hi SR! The amounts are correct. Hope you enjoyed it!
Allison says
Hello! Easy to make recipe and nice flavors. My only question is was I supposed to do something to the potatoes to help them cook better? I cut into halves or some even into quarters, but even after 8 hours they were not tender. Any suggestions on getting them to cook better?
The Recipe Rebel says
Hi Allison, I’m not sure why they wouldn’t be done at that point. Maybe make sure they are submerged in the liquid?
Michele says
Did you use the smaller potatoes like in Ashley’s picture? Also, make sure you put the vegetables on the bottom and meat on top of them. Maybe that will help.
Ashley says
My family and I LOVE this recipe!! It is so dang good!! I’m making it again today, and for the future I was wondering if I could use baby carrots? Thank you!!
The Recipe Rebel says
Hi Ashley! So glad you enjoyed the recipe! Thank you for this kind review!
Elizabeth says
Can I cook this on high for 4 hours if I am short on time?
The Recipe Rebel says
Hi Elizabeth! You should be able to do it this way, I just haven’t tried it myself. If you decide to experiment, let me know how it goes!
Jason S says
Really good favor and easy!
The Recipe Rebel says
Hi Jason! So glad you enjoyed the recipe! Thank you for this kind review!
Ryan says
Trying it the first time today but I did not have as much sauce as the video did was the video a double batch?
Ashley Fehr says
Hi Ryan! The video is not a double batch. I do have a pretty small slow cooker which may be why it looks like there is a lot of sauce.
Michael Gard says
If I double the steak (2lbs) then should I double the marinade? I’m not sure if there will be enough liquid but my family loves steak and didn’t want to double the entire recipe.
kathleen timmins says
Sorry but this was awful. I followed the recipe exactly and the basalmic overpowered. All the fixes I looked for to salvage recommended adding more vinegar and or sugar. That was the problem sweet vinegar. Maybe it was the basalmic I used, but I can’t afford to try again.
The Recipe Rebel says
I’m sorry to hear you had problems with this recipe Kathleen! It’s hard to know what went wrong without being in the kitchen with you. It definitely has a balsamic flavor to the stew.