Slow Cooker Beef Stew and Dumplings

Ingredients (~8 servings)

Stew

• 3 lbs beef stew meat, cut into cubes
• 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 3 medium carrots, sliced
• 3 stalks celery, sliced
• 6 cups beef broth
• 1/4 cup tomato paste
• 1 1/2 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 1/2 tsp dried thyme
• 3/4 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp black pepper

Dumplings

• 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 Tbsp baking powder
• 1 1/2 tsp Italian seasoning
• 3/4 tsp salt
• 4 Tbsp unsalted butter, melted
• 1 cup milk
• Fresh parsley for garnish (optional)

Coat the Beef and Load the Slow Cooker

In a large bowl, toss the beef cubes with the 1/3 cup flour until evenly coated.

Dump the floured beef, onion, carrots, and celery into your slow cooker.

In a separate bowl, whisk together the beef broth, tomato paste, Worcestershire sauce, garlic, thyme, salt, and pepper. Pour this mixture over everything in the slow cooker.

Cook the Stew on Low for 8 Hours

Cover and cook on low for 8 hours. The beef should be fork-tender and the vegetables soft.

If you want a thicker stew, mix 2 Tbsp cornstarch with 3 Tbsp cold water and stir it in about 30 minutes before you add the dumplings.

Make the Dumpling Dough

Around the 7-hour mark, start the dumplings. In a medium bowl, mix the flour, baking powder, Italian seasoning, and salt.

Stir in the melted butter and milk until a soft, sticky dough forms. Don’t overmix – a few lumps are fine.

Add Dumplings and Finish Cooking

Drop large spoonfuls of dumpling dough right on top of the stew. You should get about 8-10 dumplings.

Cover and switch to high heat. Cook for ~50 minutes to 1 hour until the dumplings are puffed up and cooked through.

The dumplings are done when a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Ladle into bowls and garnish with fresh parsley if you want. The dumplings will soak up the broth, so serve right away.

Slow Cooker Beef Stew and Dumplings

This is one of those set-it-and-forget-it meals that fills the house with amazing smells all day. The dumplings cook right on top of the stew in the last hour, so you get tender beef and fluffy dumplings all in one pot.

Print Pin Rate

Prep Time: 20 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 9 hours hours

Total Time: 9 hours hours 20 minutes minutes

Ingredients

Stew

• 3 lbs beef stew meat cut into cubes
• 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 large onion chopped
• 3 medium carrots sliced
• 3 stalks celery sliced
• 6 cups beef broth
• 1/4 cup tomato paste
• 1 1/2 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
• 4 cloves garlic minced
• 1 1/2 tsp dried thyme
• 3/4 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp black pepper

Dumplings

• 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 Tbsp baking powder
• 1 1/2 tsp Italian seasoning
• 3/4 tsp salt
• 4 Tbsp unsalted butter melted
• 1 cup milk
• Fresh parsley for garnish optional

Instructions

• Toss beef cubes with flour until coated.
• Add beef, onion, carrots, and celery to slow cooker.
• Whisk together beef broth, tomato paste, Worcestershire sauce, garlic, thyme, salt, and pepper, then pour over beef and vegetables.
• Cover and cook on low for 8 hours until beef is fork-tender.
• At the 7-hour mark, mix flour, baking powder, Italian seasoning, and salt in a bowl.
• Stir in melted butter and milk until a soft, sticky dough forms.
• Drop large spoonfuls of dough on top of stew to make 8-10 dumplings.
• Cover, switch to high heat, and cook 50 minutes to 1 hour until dumplings are puffed and cooked through.
• Test dumplings with a toothpick for doneness.
• Serve immediately garnished with parsley if desired.