I am dedicating some serious space the first part of this year for Instant Pot/Pressure Cooker friendly recipes. My feed is filled with people who got them as a gift for the holidays, so I am happy to throw some tried and true recipes out to get you started. Italian Style Beef Stew is made for the pressure cooker. Perfectly tender chunks of beef in a flavorful fired roasted tomato gravy. Ready in under one hour in the Instant Pot (or pressure cooker of your choice). This Instant Pot beef stew recipe is sure to hit your weekly rotation.
I love to serve this along with cauliflower mash, mashed potatoes, grits or polenta.
Now, if you haven’t joined the electric pressure cooker bandwagon, I don’t want to leave you out. So, you have instructions for the oven and for the slow cooker down below. I won’t leave you hanging. The truth is you can make anything on the stove or slow cooker that you can in the pressure cooker. Now, some of you may ask, well then why have one?
Instant Pot Beef Stew and why I love the Instant Pot
I resisted the urge to purchase my Instant Pot for about a year. Then, my slow cooker died and opportunity knocked. I could replace my slow cooker and rice cooker and gain a pressure cooker all with one appliance. As a self-proclaimed neat freak, the lack of clutter left me giddy. It wasn’t until I began cooking with the Instant Pot that I appreciated the craze.
Although many recipes will advertise that something takes less than 10 minutes which usually takes 30 minutes, it’s important to factor in the time you need to come up to pressure. The clock doesn’t start counting until the pressure is built and this can take anywhere from 5-15 minutes depending on the amount of liquid. The beauty of this time is that you’re not fussing around with a bunch of pots and pans. If a child distracts you from dinner, you can have confidence that it will cook and then promptly shut off to the warm setting until you’re ready to eat.
You can also use this time to tidy up. I love to clean as I go, but if a recipe requires tending to, I am unable to do that. With my Instant Pot, I set it and forget it and can hop to cleaning. When dinner is over, we shove the dishes in the dishwasher and wash the pot out. Easy peasy. I went from using the Instant pot just a wee bit, to basically every day.
It takes some getting used to, but once you make some solid recipes, you’ll have the confidence to try some things on your own. You really can’t mess it up. Promise.
I hope you’ll start with this Italian Style Beef Stew. It really is so delicious and hearty. The perfect meal for chilly winter evenings.
If you don’t have an Instant Pot, here’s a link to their new 8 quart Ultra Model! I may be due for an upgrade and I highly recommend going with a larger size because these are great for meal prep or cooking for a crowd! Click the link below to order*.
Instant Pot Ultra 8 Qt 10-in-1 Multi- Use Programmable Pressure Cooker, Slow Cooker, Rice Cooker, Yogurt Maker, Cake Maker, Egg Cooker, Sauté, Steamer, Warmer, and Sterilizer
*This post contains affiliate links. I make a commission from items purchased through the links on my website. At no cost to you, it proves a way for me to continue to pay the costs associated with running this website and providing you easy yummy recipes!
Italian Style Beef Stew {Instant Pot}
Ingredients
- 1.5 lbs. Stew Meat cut into cubes; chuck roast or sirloin work best
- 2 tbsp. Flour
- 4 large Carrots chopped into 2 inch pieces
- 1 cup onion chopped into 1 inch pieces
- 3 Stalks Celery chopped into 1 inch pieces
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 1 tsp. Dried Oregano
- 1 tsp. Dried Basil
- 2 cups Beef Broth low sodium
- 15 ounces Canned Fire Roasted Tomatoes
- 2 tbsp. corn starch mixed with 1/4 cup water
- salt
- pepper
Instructions
- INSTANT POT/Pressure Cooker INSTRUCTIONS: Turn the Instant Pot to the saute function. Drizzle in some avocado or canola oil. Toss the beef with 2 tbsp. of flour just to lightly coat it. Be sure to add a nice coating of salt and pepper as well. The pot must be hot before adding the beef. You will do this in batches so don't crowd things.
- When the beef is just browned, not cooked through, put it aside on a plate. Toss in the carrots, onions, celery, and garlic. Saute them for about 2 minutes. Add a light coating of salt and pepper.
- Now you can add the oregano, basil, fire roasted tomatoes and beef broth. Add the meat back to the pot and put the lid on in the sealing position. Press the Meat/Stew button (if using the Instant Pot) as the stew will cook on high pressure (or MANUAL depending on your model) for 35 minutes. The Meat/Stew button on the Instant Pot is pre-programmed for this type of meal.
- When the stew is finished cooking, quick release the pressure. Stir it all up and add the corn starch / water mixture. Turn the Instant Pot back to saute and allow the gravy to thicken.
- NO INSTANT POT/PRESSURE COOKER- Follow all of the same instructions up to the point of pressure cooking. Instead of pressure cooking, you have 2 choices. Either put this in an oven safe dutch oven and cook at 325 for 2 hours OR you can cook it for 7-8 hours in your slow cooker.
- When it's time to thicken the sauce, put the stew on the stove and bring to a slow boil. You can then add the corn starch mix. If you cook in the slow cooker, you can turn it to high and add the corn starch mix in the last 20 minutes of cooking.