Instant Pot Beef Stew - A Healthy and Hearty Slow Cooker Stew Recipe (2024)

FAQs

Is beef stew better in Instant Pot or crockpot? ›

The Instant Pot is a fantastic tool because it cooks even frozen meats to tender perfection. Pressure cooking beef stew is much faster than cooking beef stew in the slow cooker. Also, to get the beef, potatoes and carrots really tender, you have to cook it longer in the slow cooker.

If you are interested primarily in slow cooking, you should buy a dedicated slow cooker. They're more reliable with a range of slow-cooker recipes than an Instant Pot. We found Instant Pot multicookers specifically could not successfully slow-cook dense, high-volume recipes such as beef stew or pot roast.

The best way to ensure your beef is tender in your Instant Pot stew is to braise it (aka pan sear it first, then let it stew).

Press the "Slow Cook" button to select the slow cooking function. Set the cooking time and temperature. The Instant Pot has three temperature settings for slow cooking: low, medium, and high. Use the "Adjust" button to choose the temperature and then use the "+" and "-" buttons to adjust the cooking time.

Slow cookers are much better for cooking root vegetables and tough cuts of meat because the long, low-temperature cooking process is great for adding moisture and breaking down fat. Pressure cookers can get hot enough for meats and vegetables to brown in them when cooking, but slow cookers can't.

Cook it on low.

While many slow cooker recipes can be made on high for 3-4 hours, I highly recommend cooking this beef stew on low for the full 7-8 hours. This will ensure that the beef gets nice and tender.

Is cooking in a pressure cooker healthy? Yes, cooking in a pressure cooker is healthy. Unlike a slow cooker, which cooks foods for a long time at a lower temperature, pressure cookers do use high heat when cooking - but not for a long time. This means that most of the nutrients won't be lost.

Yes, an Instant Pot can replace a slow cooker, but the results may be a little different. "The difference primarily lies in the shape of the cooking bowl. Slow cookers are often longer and wider and offer more surface area for larger roasts.

“Instant pot recipes are absolutely healthy as long as what you put in the recipe is healthy,” she says. The shorter cooking time may also result in the greater preservation of vitamins and minerals when compared to other longer types of cooking.

Why is My Stew Meat Tough In Instant Pot? The cut of meat you select for stew plays a big role in its tenderness once cooked. Beef chuck roast, I find, is the best cut of meat for beef stew recipes. Be sure to also let your pressure release naturally.

How long can you leave stew in an Instant Pot? ›

Keep in mind that after pressure cooking the meat, you can leave the Instant Pot on the "Keep Warm" setting for up to 10 hours and continue with the recipe when you're ready. The beef will become more tender the longer it sits.

There is no real wrong answer for your beef stew potatoes — russets or red potatoes will work fine — but Yukon Gold potatoes have the best balance of texture and flavor to complement a meaty stew.

An Instant Pot does have more functionality (like sautéing, pressure cooking, slow cooking, and acts as a rice cooker, steamer, and warmer!) than a slow cooker, but if you don't plan to use all of its extra functions and just prefer the simplicity of a slow-cooker, then you might prefer a Crock-Pot.

Another tip, taken from an Instant Pot Facebook group, is to open the valve all the way on your Instant Pot lid when slow cooking. This allows some moisture and steam to release and keeps the Instant Pot from overcooking your slow cooker recipes.

The pork shoulder recipe calls for eight hours of cooking, which would cost you a total of about 40 cents using a slow cooker. Due to a shorter overall cooking time, the Instant Pot (pressure cooker) turns out to be the most energy-efficient way to achieve that tender, slow-cooked result.

Dutch ovens, on the other hand, are often smaller and take longer to heat up (their cast iron core isn't super conductive). But, like stock pots, you can use a Dutch oven to make soups and stews; they particularly excel at long-cooked items like Sunday gravy or chili.

Traditionally cheaper cuts of meat always slow cook better. Slow cooking breaks down the connective collagen in meat, which turns into unctuous gelatine. This creates that soft and tender mouth feel we all crave.

Benefits of a pressure cooker. Pressure cooking reduces the cooking time for most foods. This shorter cooking time can result in fewer nutrients being leeched out of food during the cooking process. Put another way, your food keeps more of the nutrients inside.