Slow Cooker Beef Stew

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This stew is so good with it's rich, herby wine broth and hearty veggies. Goes perfectly with a mixed greens salad and cashew bread. Now, heads-up: I break my slow cooker rule with this recipe, but it's worth it. In my opinion, slow cookers should normally be used for three-step-cooking: chop, dump and cook. Right? We use them for ease. But this time I went ahead and added a few more steps. Nothing complicated, and definitely worth the extra time and effort. Enjoy!

YIELD 6-8 servings

INGREDIENTS

1 1/2 pounds chuck or stew meat, cut into 1 inch-ish pieces

2 medium potatoes, chopped

2 carrots, chopped

2 medium tomatoes, chopped

1 medium onion, chopped

2 cups low-sodium chicken stock

1 cup red wine

1 1/2 tablespoons minced garlic

2 teaspoons salt + little extra for seasoning meat

1 teaspoon black pepper + little extra for seasoning meat

1 teaspoon dried thyme

1/2 to 1 teaspoon dried basil

3 tablespoons coconut aminos

1 1/2 tablespoons tapioca starch

1 tablespoons coconut oil or butter (for searing)

INSTRUCTIONS

  1. Heat a skillet on med/high with some coconut oil or butter and add chopped beef, onions and garlic (you should hear a sizzle, or the skillet isn't hot enough yet), sprinkle with a little salt and pepper and sear (for meat, about 3 to 5 minutes on both sides)
  2. Be careful not to crowd the meat (sear in batches if necessary) and cook until everything is browned and caramelly
  3. Take a minute to stir tapioca flour into 1/2 cup of room temp/cold chicken stock (hot liquid causes it to clump) and set aside while meat is searing
  4. When meat/garlic/onions are ready, pour a cup of chicken stock into pan to deglaze, getting all that yummy browned goodness off the bottom of the pan, then combine beef/garlic/onions with rest of ingredients in slow cooker
  5. Stir tapioca/chicken stock mixture into slow cooker as well
  6. Cook on low for 8 hours, or high for 4-6 hours
  7. During last 30 minutes of cooking, carefully transfer slow cooker contents to a large pot and simmer uncovered until thickened (should take no longer than 30 minutes)