Crock Pot Vegetable Beef Stew Recipe

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When it comes to comfort food this Crock Pot Vegetable Beef Soup recipe is one of my all time favorites.

Chunks of beef slowly cooked in a tomato based sauce and simmered for hours with both fresh and frozen vegetables. The result, a tasty and hearty meal that the entire family will enjoy.

Even better, this recipe will make enough for a bowl or two the next day. And we all know that there are some recipes that just get better with time. And this is certainly one of them!

However, even though there are several ways to make this heart warming soup, there are some tips and tricks that I have learned over the years on how to make it turn out perfect every time!

And it all starts with choosing the right ingredients. Some of which may surprise you! But trust me, follow this recipe and your family will beg you to make it over and over again!

Crock Pot Vegetable Beef Soup

INGREDIENTS

Chuck roast, cut into 1-inch cubes
Bag frozen mixed vegetables
Small onion, finely diced
Diced celery
Potato, peeled and diced in 1/2 inch cubes
Beef broth
Diced tomatoes
Dried Italian seasoning
Bay leaf
Fresh thyme
Salt and pepper

Optional Ingredient

Garlic

More About Some Of The Ingredients

1. Chuck Roast

I often get asked the question about what is the best cut of beef to make soup. And the answer is pretty simple when you are making crock pot vegetable beef soup.

Chuck roast is by far one of the best cuts of beef to use when you are cooking a soup or stew using a low and slow cooking method. This would include making soup in a slow cooker.

Chuck roast is a leaner and tougher cut of meat and needs both liquid and a long cooking time to break down and become tender. However, you could also use beef stew which contains mostly lean cuts of meat which benefit from a long cooking process.

Although, if you are making the soup on the stove top, you want to use a cut of meat that contains a little more fat. In this case a Sirloin roast would be the best choice.

2. Frozen Mixed Vegetables

The most common type of mixed vegetables used in making vegetable soup is a mixture of frozen green beans, corn, carrots and peas.

However, there are other types of frozen vegetable combinations that you could also use instead. For instance, I have found a bag labeled as frozen vegetables for soup. This bag contains not only the above listed vegetables, but also celery, potatoes and tomatoes.

And if you are a lover of lima beans, you can even find a bag of frozen veggies that contain those as well! The choice is really up to you, as it won't effect the actual cooking time.

3. Potato

If you are wanting to keep this recipe as low-carb as possible, omit the potato all together. However, one large diced potato adds a lot of heartiness to this recipe.

Although, you could add a peeled and diced turnip in place of the potato. It will take on the flavor of the soup and you will never know that it isn't a diced potato. In addition, turnips have several health benefits, including being low in carbohydrates!

4. Diced Tomatoes

Standard petite diced tomatoes are great to use in this recipe. However, whenever I get the chance, I use fire-roasted diced tomatoes.

I prefer to use a can of homemade Fire Roasted Diced Tomatoes that I made from the summer's garden. However, if I am all at of stock, it is easy to find the cans at the grocery store.

It really adds extra flavor to the crock pot vegetable beef soup. In fact, it tastes like it has been cooked in a kettle over a campfire.

5. Fresh Thyme

Although the dried Italian seasoning contains dried thyme as well as oregano and basil, I like to add a few sprigs of fresh thyme in the pot as well.

Although, if you don't have any on hand, and the outside herbs have gone dormant for the winter, simply skip this step.

However if you do use it, don't forget to remove the stems from the pot before serving.

6. Garlic (optional)

Although garlic is not listed as a main ingredient, I like to add a clove or two to the soup. We always have fresh garlic on hand and we love the taste of garlic in just about any recipe.

However, there are many people who do not like the taste of garlic and prefer to make this soup without it. And that is okay!

COOKING INSTRUCTIONS

The first step in making this crock pot vegetable beef soup is to cut the chuck roast into 1 inch cubes. Although you could brown the beef in a skillet before adding it to the crock pot, I find it as an unnecessary step.

I have tried it both by browning, and putting the beef cubes in raw and I honestly couldn't tell a difference in the taste or texture. In addition, it is one less dish that I have to clean up at the end of the day!

After the roast has been cubed into 1 inch sections, add the meat to the slow cooker. Then add the bag of frozen vegetables, diced onion, celery and potatoes in the pot as well.

Then pour in the beef broth and stir, breaking up the lumps of frozen vegetables as much as you can. Next, stir in the can of diced tomatoes (liquid included) and sprinkle in the Italian seasoning, and stir.

Next, determine if you want to add any extra liquid here. Some people like soup with a lot of broth, and others like it more thick. If you want additional liquid use either water or more beef broth.

When you are satisfied with the amount of liquid in the slow cooker, add a bay leaf and sprigs of thyme in the vegetable beef soup liquid. Do not stir.

Place the lid on the slow cooker. Cook on LOW for 7-8 hours or HIGH for about 3-4 hours. If you have a Programmable 6 quart Crock Pot the pot will switch to the Keep Warm setting until you are ready to eat.

Once the beef is cooked through and tender, taste the broth and add salt and pepper to taste before serving.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. Can I use a rump roast instead of a chuck roast?

Before I answer this question, I must explain what the difference is between a chuck roast and a rump roast. Besides the fact that they are both beef roasts, the similarity stops there.

Chuck roast is cut from the shoulder area of the cow and the rump roast is cut from the hindquarters. As mentioned above, chuck roast is a lean cut of meat that is often tough unless slow cooked.

However, the rump roast contains little to not fat and is considered extra lean. Therefore, if you want to use a rump roast for this Crock Pot Vegetable Beef Soup recipe, you will need to cook the soup on low and increase the cook time by 2 hours. This will allow adequate time for the beef to break down and become tender.

2. Can I make this recipe on the stove?

If you don't want to make this recipe in a slow cooker, you can make it on the stove. However, you will definitely want to substitute a sirloin roast for the chuck roast.

A vegetable soup made with cubed sirloin roast would need to simmer on the stove for 60-90 minutes. Otherwise, the soup with chuck roast would require for 3-4 hours on the stove to break down and become tender.

3. Can I use fresh vegetables instead of frozen?

If you have a lot of extra fresh vegetables on hand that you want to use instead of frozen vegetables you can definitely do so.

However, if you are wanting to use canned vegetables, make sure that you wait until the last hour of cooking before adding them to the crock pot vegetable beef soup.

Because they are are already partially cooked, they would turn out mushy if placed in the slow cooker from the beginning.

There you have it, the secrets to delicious crock pot vegetable beef soup!

Enjoy!

Mary and Jim

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Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 4 hours

Total Time 4 hours 10 minutes

Ingredients

1 pound chuck roast, cut into 1-inch cubes
1 16 oz. bag frozen mixed vegetables
1 small onion, finely diced
1 cup diced celery
1 large potato, peeled and diced in 1/2 inch cubes
3-4 cups beef broth
1 15 oz. can fire roasted diced tomatoes
1 1/2 tsp. dried Italian seasoning
1 bay leaf
2 sprigs of thyme
Salt and pepper (to taste)

Instructions

Add all the cubed beef, bag of frozen vegetables, diced onion, celery and potatoes to the slow cooker. Pour in the beef broth and stir. Add more liquid if you prefer.
Add the can of diced tomatoes and Italian seasoning, and stir. Place the bay leaf and sprigs of thyme in the liquid.
Put the lid on your slow cooker. Cook on LOW for 7-8 hours or HIGH for about 3-4 hours.
Taste and add salt and pepper to taste before serving.

Notes

Recipe provided by Make Your Meals

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

Serving Size:

1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 327 Total Fat: 13g Saturated Fat: 5g Trans Fat: 1g Unsaturated Fat: 7g Cholesterol: 63mg Sodium: 2019mg Carbohydrates: 25g Fiber: 6g Sugar: 5g Protein: 28g

Nutritional Information is to be used as a general guideline only . Nutritional calculations will vary from the types and brands of the products used.

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Source: https://oldworldgardenfarms.com/2022/01/11/crock-pot-vegetable-beef-soup/