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Beef Stew with Dumplings

Hearty Beef Stew with Fluffy Dumplings Recipe

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Prep Time 25 minutes
Cook Time 2 hours
Total Time 2 hours 25 minutes
Servings: 6 servings
Calories: 485
Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients
  

  • 2 lbs beef chuck, cut into 1-inch cubes
  • 2 tbsp vegetable oil, divided
  • 1 large onion, chopped
  • 3 medium carrots, sliced into ½-inch rounds
  • 2 celery stalks, sliced
  • 3 garlic cloves, minced
  • 2 tbsp tomato paste
  • ¼ cup all-purpose flour
  • 4 cups beef broth
  • 1 cup red wine (optional, or more broth)
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 1 tsp dried thyme
  • Salt and black pepper
  • 1 cup all-purpose flour (for dumplings)
  • 1½ tsp baking powder
  • ½ tsp salt (for dumplings)
  • 2 tbsp cold butter, cut into small pieces
  • ½ cup whole milk

Method
 

  1. Pat beef dry, season with salt and pepper, and brown in batches in 1 tbsp oil per batch over medium-high heat, about 3-4 minutes per side.
  2. Lower heat to medium, cook onion, carrots, and celery 5 minutes, then add garlic and tomato paste and cook 1 minute.
  3. Stir in flour, cook 1 minute, then add wine (if using) and scrape pan. Add broth, bay leaves, thyme, and browned beef; bring to a boil.
  4. Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer 1½ to 2 hours until beef is fork-tender.
  5. Whisk flour, baking powder, and salt for dumplings. Cut in cold butter, stir in milk just until combined.
  6. Remove bay leaves, return stew to a simmer. Drop spoonfuls of dough onto stew, cover, and cook 15 minutes without lifting the lid. Serve hot.

Notes

Let the stew cool a bit before storing so the dumplings don't turn mushy. If the stew ended up thicker than you like, stir in a little warm broth when reheating. The dumplings are best eaten the same day, but leftover ones soften nicely in the broth overnight.