Beef Stew with Red Wine is a slow simmered stew that has tender chunks of beef and vegetables in a savory red wine and beef sauce. This recipe calls for an entire 750 ml bottle of red wine that cooks down and concentrates into the most delicious flavor!
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This beef stew recipe is written for 2 hours on your stove top, however I have also included instructions for making it a little quicker in your Instant Pot!
I know not everyone loves wine in their food, so if that is you check out my Dutch Oven Beef Stew and Instant Pot Beef & Barley, both recipes do not include wine.
BUT, if you do love cooking with wine, check out my recipes for Goat Cheese Chicken or Instant Pot Risotto!
Red Wine
Now is not the time to grab a bottle of 2 buck chuck, but you also don’t need a $50 bottle of wine for this beef stew recipe. The flavor of the red wine will be concentrated so you want something that you would enjoy drinking.
I like to choose something in the $8-10 range.
You also don’t want a delicate wine like Pinot Noir for this stew. Grab a bottle of hearty red wine; cabernet, merlot, zinfandel, shiraz, or malbec work great!
Stew Meat
This recipe calls for stew meat, which is a cheap cut of beef, generally chuck or round, that is cut into 1 or 2 inch cubes. Stew meat is super tough meat that requires low and slow cooking to become it’s best.
After the 2 hour cook time of this recipe the beef stew meat becomes fall apart tender and super flavorful!
How to Make Beef Stew with Red Wine
For this Red Wine Beef Stew recipe you will want to use a dutch oven or similar heavy duty pot that has a tight fitting lid. If you are planning on making it in your Instant Pot, refer to the recipe card below for instructions.
Start by making sure your beef stew meat is cut into 1 inch chunks.
Mix together the ¾ cup all purpose flour, 1 teaspoon salt, and ½ teaspoon black pepper. Toss the beef chunks in the flour so they are coated on all sides. Set aside.
Heat the 2 tablespoon olive oil in the dutch oven or large pot, over medium heat. Brown the floured beef, in batches to not overcrowd the pot. Remove each batch to a plate.
In the now empty pot add 1 tablespoon of olive oil and 1 chopped onion and 4 chopped garlic cloves. Stir them constantly so they do not burn for 1-2 minutes.
Deglaze the pot with 3 cups of red wine, scraping up all the browned bits from the bottom. Stir in 2 tablespoon worcestershire sauce, 1 tablespoon beef base, 1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon sugar, 1 teaspoon salt, ½ teaspoon pepper, 1 bay leaf, and the browned beef. Let that simmer together for 5 minutes.
Stir in 2 cups beef broth, 2 ½ cups carrots, 1 ½ cups celery, 3 cups peeled and cubed russet potatoes.
Bring the pot to a boil. Then lower the heat to low and cover. Cook the stew, occasionally stirring, for 2 hours.
Thicken the Broth
Once the stew is cooked the broth will still be pretty thin. You want to make it a silky thick gravy for your stew.
You are going to make a cornstarch slurry which is a mixture of cornstarch and cold liquid used as a thickening agent.
Mix together the remaining wine, about ¼ cup, with 3 tablespoon of cornstarch. Stir it until the cornstarch is completely incorporated into the wine. Stir it into the stew and bring the pot back up to a simmer over medium heat.
Finish & Serve
Once the Red Wine Beef Stew is thickened how you like it, turn the pot off and remove the bay leaf.
Let the stew cool for 5-10 minutes and then serve! It goes great with warm crusty bread and a glass of red wine.
Make Ahead
You can absolutely make this Beef Stew with Red Wine ahead and reheat when you are ready to eat.
Make the recipe completely and let it cool before storing it in the fridge. Refrigerate for up to 4 days.
To reheat simply place on the stovetop over medium low heat and let it warm through for about 20 minutes, stirring it occasionally.
More Recipes Using Stew Meat
Because it is so economical I love using stew meat. When cooked correctly is is fall apart tender! Here are some more recipes to check out when purchasing stew meat:
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Beef Stew with Red Wine
Equipment
- OR
Ingredients
- 2 lbs beef stew meat - cut into 1 inch cubes
- ¾ cup all purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 3 tablespoon olive oil – divided
- 1 yellow or white onion - chopped
- 4 garlic cloves - chopped
- 750 ml bottle red wine – divided - Use a bold red wine that you also like to drink: cabernet, merlot, malbec, or zinfandel.
- 2 tablespoon worcestershire sauce
- 1 tablespoon beef base - I like Better Than Bouillon brand
- 1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon sugar
- 1 salt
- ½ pepper
- 1 bay leaf
- 2 cups beef broth
- 2 ½ cups carrots - cut into 1 inch chunks
- 1 ½ cups celery - cut into 1 inch chunks
- 3 cups russet potatoes, peeled - cut into 1 inch chunks
Thickening slurry
- 3 tablespoon cornstarch - can also use arrowroot
Instructions
- Mix together ¾ cup flour with 1 teaspoon salt and ½ teaspoon pepper. Toss the 2 # beef chunks in the flour until it is completely coated. Set aside.
- In a dutch oven, cast iron pot, or sturdy pot with a tight fitting lid, warm 2 tablespoon olive oil over medium heat. Brown all the beef, working in batches to not over crowd the pot. Set the browned pieces on a plate to the side.
- In the now empty pot, saute the 1 chopped yellow onion and 4 chopped garlic cloves for 1-2 minutes, stirring constantly so they don't burn.
- Deglaze the pot with 3 cups of red wine (don't use the whole bottle yet, you will need the remaining red wine to thicken the stew at the end), scraping up all the browned bits at the bottom of the pot. Stir in the 2 tablespoon worcestershire sauce, 1 tablespoon beef base, 1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon sugar, 1 teaspoon salt, ½ teaspoon black pepper, 1 bay leaf, and the browned beef with juices. Let that simmer together for 5 minutes.
- Add the 2 cups beef broth, 2 ½ cups carrots, 1 ½ cups celery, 3 cups potatoes.
- Bring the pot to a boil, then lower the heat to low and pop the lid on. Cook for 2 hours, stirring occasionally.
Thicken the Stew
- At the end of 2 hours the broth will still be pretty thin. Mix together a cornstarch slurry by stirring the remaining red wine and 3 tablespoon of cornstarch together. (note if you didn't save the wine, just use ¼ cup water)Stir it into the stew and bring it to a simmer over medium heat until it is thickened, about 4-5 minutes.
Serve!
- Let the stew cool and then serve! It goes great with warm crusty bread.
INSTANT POT INSTRUCTIONS
- Start with your pot on normal saute mode, add 2 tablespoon of olive oil. Brown the floured beef in batches, setting the browned pieces on a plate. Set aside.
- Add 1 tablespoon olive oil and stir in the chopped onion and 4 chopped garlic cloves. Saute for 1-2 minutes, stirring so they don't burn.
- DEGLAZE THE POT COMPLETELY!!! Pour 3 cups of red wine into the pot and scrape up ALL the browned bits from the bottom.Do not skip this step. It will prevent you from getting a burn warning when you cook the stew.
- Stir in the 2 tablespoon worcestershire sauce, 1 tablespoon beef base, 1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon sugar, 1 teaspoon salt, ½ teaspoon black pepper, 1 bay leaf, and the browned beef with juices. Let that simmer together for 5 minutes.
- Turn the saute mode off. Add the 2 cups beef broth, 2 ½ cups carrots, 1 ½ cups celery, and 3 cups potatoes.
- Pop the lid on the pot and lock the pressure valve to seal. Set to cook for 25 minutes on meat/stew mode (high pressure).
- Do a 5 minute natural release, then quick release the remaining pressure.
- Turn the pot on to normal saute mode.Mix a slurry with the remaining wine (about ¼ cup) and 3 tablespoon cornstarch. Pour into the stew and allow it to simmer and thicken for about 4-5 minutes.
- Turn off saute mode, cool the stew for about 10 minutes, and serve!
Pascaline
How about letting it cook in the oven? Would it be 350° for the same amount of time?
Susie Weinrich
I might even recommend doing it like this recipe for Dutch Oven Beef Stew, and do 5 hours at 250°F. And instead of doing the thickening slurry at the end I would add 2 Tbsp of tapioca pearls at the beginning, they will thicken the broth while baking.
Let me know if you have any more questions on this.
(you could probably get away with 350°F for 2-2.5 hours as well)
Ken T.
If I could give this recipe 10 stars, I would! This is my go-to recipe for cold weather comfort food! I customize and substitute a lot due to family food allergies, and have found this stew to be very forgiving and adaptable. Don’t get me wrong, it’s perfect as is.
Susie Weinrich
Amazing, Ken! Thank you for your wonderful review.
Edwin
After making this twice by browning the meat first, I have to say, it’s a good recipe but unless you’re using the wine as mentioned, don’t pre-brown the beef. Especially if it’s a tougher cut like stew meat or london broil or the other kinds that are popular for this cut. Maybe a fresh roast is different and if you cut it the day of maybe it will break down easier but both times I had no luck or plain bad luck and over-cooked meat.
Susie Weinrich
I’m wondering what kind of meat you are using? You should “over-cook” the meat if you are using stew meat. It will cook until it is completely tender. If your meat is still tough you need to keep cooking a little longer.
Debbie Dennis
Dear Susie,
Thank you so much for publishing this recipe. I made this today and enjoyed your step-by-step instructions and tips. Everyone absolutely loved it! I look forward to making more of your recipes in the future.
Sincerely,
Debbie
judy
Could I drop dumpling on top of the stew at the end of the baking time?
Susie Weinrich
Yes, you could do that! Sounds delicious. I have a great dumpling recipe included in this recipe for Chicken Stew with Dumplings After dropping the dumplings in simmer with the lid on for about 15 minutes.
Vicky Swain
This stew is amazing! It ‘s flavor is delicious! I will be making it again for sure!
Tony
Has anyone add fresh thyme? I so want to make this and I love thyme. I feel it’s such a comfort flavor to me. The recipe sounds great the way it is and I’ll make it either way, but I would like to add the thyme, unless someone has and didn’t think it went.
Susie Weinrich
I have not added thyme but I think it would be wonderful!!! Go for it!!
Pow
This was phenomenal. Incredible richness with a full bottle of wine. A couple variations I might try next time. I loved the flavor more after about 1 1/2 hrs simmering. I might even consider leaving out the cornstarch all together or reduce the amount. I added thyme. It seemed to round it out very well. What do you think of adding a dollop of crème fraiche?
Susie Weinrich
I think a dollop of crème fraiche or even mascarpone would be AMAZING!!!! I’m trying that next time I make this.
Elle W.
A very rich beef stew!
Be sure to include a loaf of Artisan bread with dinner for your family and guests to soak up and enjoy the delicious gravy!
Gail
Just made this for the first time and it was amazing! I made a few adjustments: for starters I used my crockpot. All the ingredients were the same and the amounts were the same. I seared the meat before adding to the crockpot. I did not sauté the onions and garlic, just put them straight in the pot with the meat and also added in the carrots, celery, bay leaf and i additionally added mushrooms. I used a Merlot and combined the merlot, sugar, s&p, Worcestershire, and beef broth before pouring on top of meat and veggies. At 7 hours on low I added the slurry and cooked the remainder hour. The thickness was absolutely perfect and the decadence of this stew is mouth watering. This will be my new go-to!
Linda
Ive made this recipe twice now and it’s absolutely delicious! I add mushrooms and tomato paste to thicken and cook a little longer to reduce. I also add cut green beans instead of celery for some green. Gets even better the second day so this is great for a make-ahead!