Slow-Cooker Beef Stew

I came to conquer the blah-blah-blues of January. Those chill-you-to-the bone winds along with the sad realization that the holidays are over and not to return for an entire year are a definite call for comfort food. 

This, my friends, is the ultimate comfort food. It is in the same class as fluffy buttermilk biscuits, hashbrown casserole, and chicken-noodle soup. But, unlike it's classmates, this Slow-Cooker Beef Stew will fill up your husband as a stand-alone meal. And when the man is full, the mom is happy. And when the mom is happy, everybody's happy. Am I right?

Here's the winning line-up: Stew beef, red potatoes, celery, carrots, beef broth, tomato soup, olive oil, tomato soup, Italian seasoning, and garlic powder.

Brown stew meat in a heavy skillet coated with olive oil. Sprinkle generously with seasoning salt while it's browning. Don't cook through--just brown.

Add the meat to your slow-cooker. Reserve the juices in the pan.

Add the chopped potatoes and carrots to the slow cooker.

Sauté the chopped onions and celery in the reserved juices until onions begin to look clear. 

Add this (including juices) to the slow cooker. Stir in beef broth, tomato soup, Italian seasoning, and garlic powder.

Cook on high 4-6 hours. Serve warm. 

This is some of the yummiest broth you'll ever have in a soup, and the meat is perfectly tender. This is one of those staple recipes you'll come back to again and again! 

(Full recipe below)

Slow Cooker Beef Stew

Serves 8

Ingredients

1-1.5 lbs beef stew meat

1 tablespoon Olive oil

2 teaspoons seasoning salt

3 medium red potatoes, chopped to 1 inch pieces

25 baby carrots , chopped

2 stalks celery, chopped

1 medium sweet yellow onion, chopped

3 cups beef broth

1 large (26 ounce) can tomato soup

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

2 teaspoons salt-free Italian seasoning

Directions

1. Coat a heavy skillet with olive oil. Add stew meat and sprinkle all over with seasoning salt. Sear the meat by frying on high, turning meat over until outsides of are just browned.  Use a slotted spoon to add the seared meat to a slow cooker. Keep the juices in the skillet.

2. Add the potatoes and carrots to the slow cooker.

3. Sauté the celery and onion in the leftover meat juices until onion starts to look clear. Add this to the slow cooker.

4. Stir in broth, soup, garlic powder, and Italian seasoning. Cook on high 4-6 hours. Serve warm.

Participating in these link-ups. 

Slow Cooker Chicken Curry Dijon

I LOVE this meal. So does my family. So did the guests we shared it with last night.  I originally made this recipe up as a casserole several years ago when I was part of a moms group that met monthly to make a meal together.

  

However, as my family has grown and become busier, I make fewer casseroles and more slow-cooker meals. They are just so much more practical.

This recipe makes a DELICIOUS, saucy chicken curry with a fun kick from the spicy dijon mustard (NOT hot--my hubby is a total wimp about heat).  

I like to serve it over rice and have a couple of veggies or a salad on the side.  A good naan bread--which I noticed for sale at Costco recently--would be a yummy addition as well.

1. Gather your ingredients.

  The chicken doesn't have to be tenderloins. Any boneless, skinless cut will work. I actually did a mixture of the breast tenderloins and thighs this time. I've done just breasts in the past, and it works great.

2. Put the chicken in the slow cooker. It can be frozen or fresh. 

3. Mix together the rest of the ingredients, except the sour cream.

4. Pour the mixture over the chicken and stir it up a bit.  

5. Close the the slow cooker and cook on low 6-8 hours.

After 6-8 hours, it will look something like this.

6. Use a couple of forks to shred up the chicken in the slow-cooker. 

7. Add the sour cream and stir it well.  Turn off your cooker, but re-cover it until you are ready to serve it up.

So yummy!  

People who don't love curry, love this. 

People who do love curry, love it too!

Slow Cooker Chicken Curry Dijon 

2-3 lbs boneless, skinless chicken (frozen or fresh)

1 can cream of mushroom soup

2/3 cup mayonnaise

1/4 cup Beer & Brat Horseradish Mustard (or other Dijon mustard)

1/4 cup real bacon bits

1-2 tsp curry powder (I like about 1.5, but if I'm serving pickier guests, I stick with 1)

2/3 cup sour cream

1. Place chicken in slow-cooker. 

2. Mix rest of ingredients except sour cream. Pour this mixture over the chicken, and stir it around a bit.  

3. Cover slow-cooker, and cook on low 6-8 hours.

4. After time is up, shred the chicken while still in the slow-cooker.

5. Stir in the sour cream. Re-cover the cooker, and turn it off.

6. Serve over rice.

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Pesto Chicken Dinner

Warmer weather means two things in my kitchen: Popsicles in the freezer and a slow cooker on the counter.  Summer days are hot enough without adding the heat of a baking oven, am I right?  

And if you are like me, Summer days are busy. I like a dinner that is ready when we are worn out from a day of play in the sunny weather.  

This meal will become a go-to solution in your house. I have served it SO many times--to my family and to guests--and it is ALWAYS a hit.  

This is quite possibly the easiest slow-cooker meal EVER! 

*TWO* Ingredients for the chicken: Frozen boneless skinless chicken thighs (strips or whole thighs) and pesto! I love the Classico Traditional Basil Pesto. I've used other pestos, and they work well, too. 

 

I don't do any actual measuring for this meal. I put a layer of frozen chicken on the bottom of the slow-cooker and spread some pesto on top. For a family of 6, I use about 1/3 of a jar on this first layer...

...And add another layer of chicken with about 1/3 more of the jar on top of that. If you are feeding a crowd, use the entire jar and really pack the chicken into the pot. It cooks down quite a bit.

Now to multi-task. Put a layer of aluminum foil on top of the chicken. I use the heavy stuff--you may want two sheets if yours is regular foil. Wash some potatoes and set them right on top of the foil. Give them a good sprinkling with sea salt. Cover your cooker and leave it on low for 6-8 hours.

Six hours later... I have some cooked 'taters and chicken. See how much it cooks down?

Remove potatoes (we're going to have fun with them in a sec) and the foil.  This is what your chicken will look like pre-shredding.

Use two forks to shred the chicken. It will fall apart with beautiful ease. You will be using a straining spoon to serve it up on to plates. All that leftover broth can be saved to make a mean chicken noodle soup or Italian wedding soup. It is a delicious base.

Now, on to the potatoes. This is your seasoning line-up. I really like this McCormick Italian seasoning. I also  really like Tone's Rosemary Garlic seasoning (which has the salt in it).  I have made these potatoes with both of these seasonings to much applause. 

 

Coat a large frying pan with olive oil (canola or avocado oil work, too).  Chop your potatoes into bite-size chunks and throw them in on top of the oil. Sprinkle a generous amount of salt, Italian seasoning, and ground black pepper over the potatoes and toss to coat.  Turn your burner on high and fry those babies up! I usually do a few more sprinkles of salt and seasoning along the way.

Mmm, mmm. This is the #1 way my family likes potatoes. Even beats french fries.

Toss together a green salad and plate it all up. 

PRESTO!  You've made a delicious Pesto Chicken meal!!

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