Slow Cooker Beef Stew & Herb Dumplings

Slow Cooker Beef Stew & Dumplings – the perfect comfort food! A delicious beef stew loaded with vegetables cooked in your Crock Pot & topped with herb dumplings for a hearty one pot meal. A timeless classic you’ll never tire of.
Recipe type: Main
Cuisine: Slow Cooker
Serves: 4 to 6

Ingredients

Stew
  • 400g stewing steak cut into cubes (I used chuck steak)
  • 6 tablespoons plain flour
  • A pinch of salt and plenty of pepper
  • 4 tablespoons rapeseed oil
  • 2 large onions – sliced
  • 4 carrots sliced into chunks
  • 4 medium potatoes cut into chunks
  • 1 bayleaf
  • 1 teaspoon dried thyme
  • 1 tablespoon tomato puree
  • 1 tablespoon Worcester sauce
  • 750 ml (3 cups) beef stock
Dumplings
  • 110 g (3/4 cup) plain flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 50 g (2 oz) shredded suet or grated hard white vegetable fat coated with a tablespoon of rice flour
  • 1 tablespoon freshly chopped parsley
  • 4 to 6 tablespoons of water

Instructions

Make your stew:
  1. Lightly grease the inside of your slow cooker with oil or cooking spray and turn your slow cooker on high.
  2. Add salt and pepper to your flour and coat the beef chunks before setting to one side.
  3. Heat the oil in a large frying pan on a medium heat.
  4. Brown the onions and carrots before transferring them to your slow cooker.
  5. Add the floured beef chunks to your frying pan and brown well before adding to the slow cooker.
  6. Add any remaining flour to your pan and cook out in the oil before deglazing the pan with the beef stock, stir well to avoid any lumps.
  7. Pour into your slow cooker and add the potatoes, herbs, tomato puree and Worcester sauce, stir well and place on the slow cooker lid.
  8. Cook on low for 10 hours or on high for 6 hours.
Make your dumplings:
  1. Sieve the flour and baking powder into a bowl and stir in the suet or vegetable fat.
  2. Add 4 tablespoons of water and stir again to form a dough, adding extra water if necessary.
  3. Divide the dough into 8 pieces and turn out onto a floured work surface.
  4. Shape into small balls and add to your slow cooker and cook on high for 45 minutes with the lid on