Instant Pot Beef Stew

This Instant Pot beef stew is a cozy, one-pot dinner made with tender chuck roast, carrots, potatoes, celery, and a rich tomato-thyme broth. Ready in under an hour, it’s the perfect easy comfort food for busy nights – hearty, flavorful, and family-approved.

As the weather starts to get a bit cooler, I turn to lots of hearty and comforting stews for our family meals. I don’t always have the time to spend hours watching pots though!

This delicious rich pressure cooker beef stew recipe is ready to serve in a fraction of the time and it’s perfect for meal prep and freezer meals.

For more Instant Pot recipes, be sure to check out my Instant Pot Honey Sesame Chicken, Instant Pot Zuppa Toscana, Instant Pot Ribs, and Instant Pot Chicken Cacciatore recipes!

Why You will Love This Beef Stew Recipe

• A delicious comfort food – cooking the beef stew in the pressure cooker brings out all the flavors of the ingredients in a fraction of the time. Super delicious Fall meal that everyone will love (just like this comfort food classic – Beef Stroganoff.)
• Hands-off cooking – By cooking the stew in the instant pot, you don’t have to watch it while it cooks. It saves you time and frees you to do something else.
• An easy beef stew recipe – This Instant Pot beef stew is not only quick and hands-off but also very easy. Just chop and prep the ingredients, add them to the pot, and let it cook. Easy!
• Perfect texture – the beef is melt in your mouth tender, the vegetables hold their shape and the sauce is thick and flavorful.

Instant Pot Beef Stew Ingredients

• Olive oil: For cooking.
• Beef: Use stew meat or boneless chuck roast for this recipe.
• Seasonings: Salt, pepper, thyme, Worcestershire sauce.
• Vegetables: Onion, garlic, carrots, potatoes, celery, peas.
• Tomato paste: For a rich tasting gravy.
• Beef broth: You can use a low or no-sodium broth if you prefer.
• Cornstarch: To thicken the sauce.

How To Make Instant Pot Beef Stew

• Heat 1 Tbsp olive oil in the Instant Pot on the Saute setting. Season beef with salt and pepper. When the oil is hot, add half the beef and sear it undisturbed until browned on the bottom, about 3 – 4 minutes per side. Transfer with tongs to a large plate. Repeat with the remaining 1 tablespoon oil and beef.
• Add the onion and garlic to the Instant Pot and season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, 2 – 3 minutes.
• Add the tomato paste and dried thyme to the onions and cook until the tomato paste is darkened in color, about 1 minute. Add 1 cup beef broth and Worcestershire sauce and stir to combine to deglaze the pot, scraping up any browned bits.
• Add the carrots, potatoes, celery, seared beef, and any accumulated juices from the beef, and stir to combine.

• Lock the lid on and check that the valve is set to seal. Set to cook for 25 minutes on HIGH pressure. It will take 7 to 10 minutes to come up to pressure.
• When the cook time is up, let the pressure naturally release for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, whisk 1 tablespoon cornstarch and 1 tablespoon water together. Coarsely chop some fresh parsley leaves for garnish if desired.
• Quick release any remaining pressure. Carefully open the pressure cooker and turn on the Sauté function. Stir in 3/4 cup frozen peas and the cornstarch mixture and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the sauce is thickened, 1 to 2 minutes.
• Taste and season with salt and pepper as needed. Serve garnished with the parsley if desired.

Stovetop Version

For the stovetop version, heat the oil in a large pot over medium-high heat and brown the beef in batches. Remove the beef, then sauté the onion and garlic. Stir in the tomato paste and thyme, then add the broth and Worcestershire to deglaze. Add the carrots, potatoes, celery, and the browned beef (with juices). Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer, cover, and cook for about 1½–2 hours, or until the beef is tender. Stir in the peas and a cornstarch slurry, simmer a few minutes to thicken, adjust seasoning, and serve.

TIPS FROM NELI’S KITCHEN

Tips for Beef Stew in the Instant Pot

• Use a tough beef cut like stew meat or boneless chuck roast. Tender cuts like sirloin will become tough in this recipe.
• Sear the beef so that it is well browned. Brown it in batches without moving it for about 3 minutes per side. This helps to create more flavor and helps to keep the meat juicy and tender.
• Deglaze the pot using a spatula and a little bit of broth to scrape up the bits that get stuck to the pot after you brown the beef.
• Make sure you cut your potatoes and carrots into big chunks, approximately in 1 1/2-inch chunks. Otherwise, they may overcook and turn into a mush.
• Use Yukon Gold potatoes because they hold their shape better when cooking for longer periods of time. I don’t recommend Russet potatoes because they can fall apart or turn to mush.
• For the most creamy and thick stew sauce, make sure that you thicken the sauce and don’t skip that simple step. You can use water or liquid from the stew.
• Taste the stew before serving and adjust the seasoning if needed.

How To Serve

This Instant Pot beef stew is great served alongside some Creamy Mashed Potatoes, rice, or boiled potatoes. There are quite a few veggies in this stew, but you can serve it with a veggie side too if you like.

Make Ahead and Storage

This stew is perfect for make-ahead meals. Once you’ve made it, let it cool before storing in an airtight container in the fridge. It will keep for 3 to 4 days in the refrigerator and can be Just let the cooked stew cool before freezing it. It will freeze well for about 4 to 6 months. Defrost it in the fridge overnight before reheating.

More Instant Pot Beef Recipes

If you love this Instant Pot Stew, I am sure you will love these pressure cooker beef recipes as well.

• Instant Pot Goulash
• Beef and Butternut Squash Stew (Instant Pot)

If you enjoyed this recipe or any other recipe on my blog, please leave a ⭐ star rating and let me know how it went in the 📝 comments below.

Instant Pot Beef Stew

Easy Instant Pot beef stew made with tender chuck roast, carrots, potatoes, and a rich tomato-thyme broth. A hearty, one-pot dinner ready in under an hour—perfect for busy weeknights. Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 45 minutesPressure release: 10 minutes

Total Time: 1 hour 5 minutes

Servings: 6

Ingredients  

• 2 Tablespoon olive oil
• 2 ½ lbs stew meat or boneless chuck roast
• 1 ½ teaspoons salt, plus more as needed
• ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus more as needed
• 1 medium yellow onion, chopped
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 3 medium carrots, about 12 oz, cut on a slight diagonal into 1 1/2-inch piece
• 3 medium Yukon Gold potatoes, about 12 ounces total, cut in about 1 1/2-inch chunks
• 2 celery ribs, coarsely chopped
• 2 Tablespoon tomato paste
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1 cup beef broth
• 2 Tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
• 1 Tablespoon cornstarch, or arrowroot starch
• ¾ cup thawed green peas
• Fresh parsley leaves, for garnish (optional)

Instructions 

• Heat 1 Tbsp olive oil in the Instant Pot on the Saute setting. Season beef with salt and pepper. When the oil is hot, add half the beef and sear it undisturbed until browned on the bottom, about 3 – 4 minutes per side. Transfer with tongs to a large plate. Repeat with the remaining 1 tablespoon oil and beef.
• Add the onion and garlic to the Instant Pot and season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, 2 – 3 minutes.
• Add the tomato paste and dried thyme to the onions and cook until the tomato paste is darkened in color, about 1 minute. Add 1 cup beef broth and Worcestershire sauce and stir to combine to deglaze the pot, scraping up any browned bits.
• Add the carrots, potatoes, celery, seared beef, and any accumulated juices from the beef, and stir to combine.
• Lock the lid on and check that the valve is set to seal. Set to cook for 25 minutes on HIGH pressure. It will take 7 to 10 minutes to come up to pressure.
• When the cook time is up, let the pressure naturally release for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, whisk 1 tablespoon cornstarch and 1 tablespoon water together. Coarsely chop some fresh parsley leaves for garnish if desired.
• Quick release any remaining pressure. Carefully open the pressure cooker and turn on the Sauté function. Stir in 3/4 cup frozen peas and the cornstarch mixture and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the sauce is thickened, 1 to 2 minutes.
• Taste and season with salt and pepper as needed. Serve garnished with the parsley if desired.

Video

Notes

• Making this on the stovetop? You’ll find the stovetop instructions in the post above, right below the step-by-step photos.
• Use a tough beef cut like stew meat or boneless chuck roast. Tender cuts like sirloin will become tough in this recipe.
• Sear the beef so that it is well browned. Brown it in batches without moving it for about 3 minutes per side. This helps to create more flavor and helps to keep the meat juicy and tender.
• Deglaze the pot using a spatula and a little bit of broth to scrape up the bits that get stuck to the pot after you brown the beef.
• Make sure you cut your potatoes and carrots into big chunks, approximately in 1 1/2-inch chunks. Otherwise, they may overcook and turn into a mush.
• Use Yukon Gold potatoes because they hold their shape better when cooking for longer periods of time. I don’t recommend Russet potatoes because they can fall apart or turn to mush.
• For the most creamy and thick stew sauce, make sure that you thicken the sauce and don’t skip that simple step. You can use water or liquid from the stew.
• Taste the stew before serving and adjust the seasoning if needed.

Nutrition

• Calories: 443 kcal
• Carbohydrates: 30 g
• Protein: 46 g
• Fat: 14 g
• Saturated Fat: 4 g
• Cholesterol: 117 mg
• Sodium: 964 mg
• Potassium: 1390 mg
• Fiber: 5 g
• Sugar: 5 g
• Vitamin A: 5315 IU
• Vitamin C: 34 mg
• Calcium: 85 mg
• Iron: 6 mg

Nutrition Disclaimer: Nutritional values are estimates and may vary with ingredients, brands, and portion sizes. For accuracy, use your preferred nutrition calculator.