This quick and easy family-friendly Hamburger Stew is made in about forty minutes right on the stovetop. It is full of nature’s wholesome flavor and goodness. It is a hearty, satisfying meal that the whole family can enjoy.
Warm and hearty, this hamburger stew is a perfect one-pot meal for a cozy night in. With simple ingredients and easy directions, this recipe is a must-try for any home cook. This stew is delicious year-round, but I love to serve it during those chilly winter months. It is a hearty meal, but serve it with cheddar biscuits, sweet potato cornbread, or sweet maple dinner rolls for a company-worthy meal.
Why You’ll Love It
- This fun and easy recipe comes together quickly, making it doable for a weeknight meal.
- Hamburger Stew is made with wholesome ingredients, making it a hearty meal you can feel good about feeding your family.
- The ingredients for this recipe are easily found at any grocery store, and you may already have many of them on hand.
- Ground beef is still one of the most economically friendly meats you can cook.
Ingredients Notes and Substitutions
See the complete list of ingredients in the recipe card below.
- Ground beef – with a bit of fat in it, like 85/15
- Onion – preferably a sweet yellow onion
- Garlic – fresh, of course
- Seasonings – dried oregano, dried parsley, crushed rosemary, and dried thyme leaves
- Carrots – or parsnips
- Potatoes – preferably Yukon Gold, Russet Potatoes break down too much
- Canned tomatoes – fire-roasted or diced
- Beef broth – low sodium
- Peas – frozen sweet peas
How to make Hamburger Stew
This is the summary version; see the recipe card below for the complete list of ingredients and the instructions.
First, brown the ground beef over medium heat in a Dutch Oven or heavy soup pot. When it is about halfway done, add the onion and cook until it is soft and the ground beef is fully browned. Then, reduce the heat to low and add the garlic, oregano, crushed rosemary, thyme leaves, and parsley. Cook for 1 minute, stirring constantly.
Now, add the potatoes, carrots, and fire-roasted tomatoes. Whisk the beef broth and tomato paste and pour it into the pot. Bring the mixture to a boil. Then simmer covered with a lid for 15 minutes. Finally, add the peas and simmer covered until the potatoes and carrots are tender. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Preparation Tips and Storage
- Use ground beef or chili grind beef with a little bit of fat in it, draining any excess grease after cooking the onions. Honestly, it is the fat that gives it flavor.
- For aesthetic purposes, peel your carrots. The small amount of effort is well worth the bright, beautiful orange color.
- If desired, substitute diced tomatoes for the fire-roasted tomatoes.
- I prefer Yukon gold potatoes for this recipe. But red potatoes or Russet potatoes work well, too.
- Store cooled leftovers in the fridge in an airtight container for 3-4 days.
Frequently Asked Questions
Swap ground beef for other ground meat like ground chicken, ground turkey, or ground pork.
First, cool the dish to room temperature. Freeze in a Ziploc freezer bag for up to 2 months. Thaw in the refrigerator overnight and reheat on the stovetop on low or microwave at reduced power.
Complete everything on the stovetop through step 2. Transfer the contents to a crock pot. Whisk together the beef broth and tomato paste in a bowl or large measuring cup. Stir it into the pot. Cook on low for 4-5 hours. Add the peas and cook on low for 1-2 hours or until the potatoes and carrots are tender.
Easy Hamburger Stew Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 pounds ground beef
- 1 medium onion chopped
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon dried parsley
- 1/2 teaspoon crushed rosemary
- 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme leaves
- 4 carrots peeled and chopped
- 2 Yukon Gold potatoes cut into small cubes
- 1 14.5 ounce can fire-roasted tomatoes
- 1 1/4 cup low-sodium beef broth
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 2/3 cup frozen peas
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- In a Dutch oven or heavy stockpot over medium heat, brown the ground beef. When it is about halfway through the browning process, add the onion and cook until the onion is soft and the ground beef is browned, approximately 5-6 minutes. Drain any excess grease.
- Reduce heat to low. Add garlic, oregano, parsley, rosemary, and thyme; cook for 1 minute, stirring constantly. Add the potatoes, carrots, and fire-roasted tomatoes.
- In a bowl or large measuring cup, whisk together the beef broth and tomato paste. Stir it into the pot. Simmer covered for 15 minutes.
- Add the peas and simmer covered until the potatoes and carrots are tender. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Notes
- Use ground beef or chili grind beef with a little bit of fat in it, draining any excess grease after cooking the onions. Honestly, it is the fat that gives it flavor.
- For aesthetic purposes, peel your carrots. The small amount of effort is well worth the bright, beautiful orange color.
- If desired, substitute diced tomatoes for the fire-roasted tomatoes.
- I prefer Yukon gold potatoes for this recipe. But red potatoes or Russet potatoes work well, too.
- Store cooled leftovers in the fridge in an airtight container for 3-4 days.
Nutrition
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Paul Grotrian
Very good recipe i had the same problem as other with the potatoes taking a long time to get tender my potatoes look to be the same size as in the pictures, i upped the heat a bit on the simmer i did add a bit more broth and a dash of hot sauce
Jim
Very good base recipe and thank you for sharing! I tweaked it a bit by adding about a tablespoon of herbs de Provence in addition to everything you listed, as well as a tablespoon each of A-1 and worcestershire sauce. and came out great!
Beth Pierce
Thanks for the tips, Jim. I am glad that you liked the recipe!
Gary Elliot
I just made this recently and it was great. I made it on a stove as I don’t have a crockpot. I added more beef stock to make it more souplike. The only drawback was that the carrots never got tender even after simmering for a long time. I’m not much of a cook so maybe I didn’t do something quite right.
Beth Pierce
Glad that you liked it. Maybe the pieces of carrots were too large. Try chopping them a little smaller next time. If the carrot is too thick cut it in half lengthwise and then chop it.
Susan
We recently had a steer butchered and I have been on the hunt for ground beef recipes. My husband doesn’t care for the usual Mac, tomato and ground beef type dishes so I tried this one. Pretty darn good so now I have one more thing to add to the ground beef file.👍🏽
Beth Pierce
Thanks, Susan! So glad that you and your husband like the hamburger stew recipe!
Marsha
This recipe is excellent! I made it exactly as written except I pureed the fire roasted tomatoes because my husband does not like chunks of tomato in anything. I served it over freshly made biscuits.
Beth Pierce
Thanks, Marsha! So glad that you liked it!
Al
This was super easy and used ingredients I already had – except for the fire roasted tomatoes. Instead I used a can of diced tomatoes then ended up tossing a beef bouillon cube in because it was lacking flavour. I bet the fire roasted tomatoes make it that much better. The family enjoyed this.
Beth Pierce
Thanks Al! Glad that you enjoyed it.
Elle
My family loves this recipe! My toddler had three bowls and he can be a pretty picky eater. Thank you!
Beth Pierce
Thanks Elle! So glad that your family liked it!
William L. Fox
It wouldn’t be stew with out chopped celery.
Susie
1st time I made this my husband said I should make this more often. There were no leftovers, the whole family enjoyed this stew. I do modify recipe some; 4 gold Yukon potatoes, 1 small bag of baby carrots (carrots chopped in 1/2). 1 can veg-all, 1 can corn, 1 can green beans, and no frozen peas, and I also use extra beef broth. I serve with jiffy cornbread, crackers, or homemade cornbread, and it is a new family favorite. Thank you for sharing this recipe.
Beth Pierce
My pleasure Susie! So glad that you and your family like it!
Theresa
This is very good. I took advice of a previous post and added one tablespoon. of flour to the ground beef. Now to wait for my husband to get home to have a bowl.
Dan
What did adding flour to the ground beef do, did it make the broth thicker?
Beth Pierce
Yes
Debbie
Very simple and easy to make..the only I did was add more beef broth we liked it more soupy…but this is a keeper for sure.
Beth Pierce
Awesome! So glad that you liked it!
Rita
I made this today and it’s simmering almost done. Cannot wait perfect meal for weather like today. I used ground turkey instead of hamburger. I will fix almond flour cornbread to go with. Thank you for sharing.
Beth Pierce
My pleasure Rita! I sure hope you enjoyed it! So darn cold here too!
Tammy
I would love your recipe for almond flour cornbread.
Michele Rush
This hearty stew is simple tastes delicious and easy to put together . Also, I like the fact that all the dishes are done ahead and the kitchen is tidy. Another option to this stew would be to thicken it with a tablespoon of flour in the meat browning process, then add more beef broth. ( 1/2 cup or so ) This would give you a bit more gravy! Enjoy with
cheddar buiscuit and a green salad and youve got yoursef a great meal! I would serve this as a casual dinner to friends anytime! Yummy!
Beth Pierce
Thanks for the tips Michele!
Gary Elliot
I also added more low sodium beef broth and more when I reheated it. Even better the next few times. For added flavor try some garlic salt. I used both cut green beans and peas along with pearl onions and diced tomatoes.
Unfortunately my taters and carrots remained a bit too firm even on the second day after simmering for 1.5 hours.
Is there some way to soften these before adding to the stew? My microwave has a stem option. Maybe that might help?
😊
Beth Pierce
Hey Gary! Yes, you could steam the vegetables a little before adding them to the stew. You could also cut your veggies into smaller pieces.
Susan Bogdanoff
I love to saute all my potatoes and veggies a bit before throwing them into stews and soups. I bring everything to boil for maybe 10-15 min then turn off and let it naturally finish cooking.
Beth Pierce
Thanks for the tips, Susan!
kushigalu
Love the flavors in this stew recipe. Thanks for sharing. SO delicious.
Thena Franssen
I can’t wait to make this stew! The ingredients sound amazing and I love the heartiness of it!
Ntensibe Edgar
Nnnniiiiicccceeeeeee….I am so saving this recipe! Hamburger Stew has never been this simplified and broken down, like you have done here. Thanks for sharing.