This hearty stew includes large chunks of potato, carrot, celery, and onion, and portabella mushrooms stand in for the beef. Garlic, paprika, and fresh rosemary provide excellent flavor. This is one of my most popular recipes--especially with husbands!
Beefless Stew
- Total Time: 1 hour 15 mins
- Yield: 6 to 8 (makes about 10 cups) 1x
Ingredients
- 1½ large yellow or white onions, chopped into ¾-inch pieces (about 3 cups)
- 3 medium carrots, sliced lengthwise and cut into ¾-inch pieces (about 2¼ cups)
- 3 ribs celery, cut into ¾-inch pieces (about 1 cup)
- 2 medium portabella mushrooms, cut into ¾-inch pieces (about 4 cups)
- 1½ tablespoon finely chopped garlic (about 6 medium cloves)
- 5 cups water
- 2 pounds white potatoes, peeled and cut into ¾-inch chunks (about 6 cups)
- ⅓ cup tomato paste (half of a 6-ounce can)
- 1 tablespoon dried Italian herb seasoning
- 1 tablespoon paprika
- 2 teaspoons finely chopped fresh rosemary
- 1½ cups cooked peas (if frozen, rinse under warm water)
- ½ cup fresh parsley, chopped
Instructions
- Heat 1 tablespoon of water in a soup pot over medium-high heat. When the water starts to sputter, add the onions, carrots, and celery, and and cook, stirring frequently, for about 8 minutes, adding water as needed.
- Stir in the mushrooms and garlic, and continue to cook while stirring for 5 minutes more, adding water as needed.
- Add the 5 cups of water, potatoes, tomato paste, Italian seasoning, and paprika, and bring to a boil, uncovered. Reduce the heat to medium-low and stir in the rosemary. Cover and cook for 25 to 30 minutes, stirring occasionally, or until the carrots and potatoes are very tender.
- Add the peas and cook for 5 minutes more.
- Place 2 cups of the stew (broth and vegetables) into a blender, and blend just briefly. Stir the mixture back into the pot to thicken the stew. Stir in the parsley.
Notes
Peeling the potatoes: I like to peel my potatoes before cooking them, but you can also leave the skins on.
Fresh rosemary: Fresh rosemary is wonderful in this stew, but if you only have dried, use ½ teaspoon.
In the Instant Pot: I put everything in on manual, high pressure for 9 mins (then let naturally pressure release; takes about 10-15 mins), except the parsley and peas (add those when done; they don’t need to cook, just warm). I also cut the slower cooking, denser veggies (potato, carrots) a little smaller than the faster cooking veggies (onions, celery, mushrooms), which can be bigger. Then proceed with step 5 if desired.
- Prep Time: 30 mins
- Cook Time: 45 mins
Nutrition
- Serving Size: ⅛ recipe (1.25 cups)
- Calories: 168
- Sugar: 9.8g
- Sodium: 93mg
- Fat: 0.7g
- Saturated Fat: 0.2g
- Carbohydrates: 36.9g
- Fiber: 7.5g
- Protein: 6.2g
- Cholesterol: 0g
Would add a big chunk of diced sweet potaoe when 15' before done. Or do in micro.@add to Stew
Really good! Both kids and hubby loved it! Added about 1/2tsp salt and pepper.
Thank you for posting this wonderful recipe on Facebook, so many of my friends could enjoy it. Please give us more meatless recipes. Added a little flavorful hot sauce to the recipe, since my family likes a little bite to their sauce.
I made this a few days ago and it was delicious and so easy to make!
This is a really great, hearty recipe. Thanks so much for sharing it. I really enjoy it with yukon gold potatoes and lots of chunky vegetables! 🙂
Yuuuum!! This was delicious 🙂 I didn't have mushrooms so I used TVP/soy protein chunks and it was perfect!
How did you use the soy chunks here did you have to pre cook them?
Delicious. Just made this for dinner tonight. I added 1/4 cup of lentils.
Subbed some frozen fire roasted button mushrooms for the portobellos. It was great. Really tasty
I made this yesterday and it was delicious. All the kids and my husband loved it.
I made this stew for supper and it was delicious, thanks for the recipe.
Yum! Had this for dinner tonight and it turned out really well. I've been looking for a thick, hearty vegan stew and this is it!! 🙂
I couldn't even wait for the winter to try this because it looked so good! We loved it. Thank you for sharing the recipe. 🙂
This looks savory and delicious. I'm always looking for "meaty" dishes to make for my husband. I'm printing out the recipe so I can make it tomorrow for dinner! 🙂
Can someone provide Crock Pot directions? Would really love to make this in my slow cooker.
Hi Al, I've never used a crock pot, but search "vegan, beefless stew, crock pot" and you can see how others have cooked a similar dish in their crock pot. 🙂
I used the crockpot. I just gave it a light spray with coconut oil. Placed it on high while adding the ingredients, onions & garlic first. Once, everything was in, I placed it on low for 7 hours. Then, you could blend the two cups and add back as stated. I added a tbsp of tahini to this mixture. It came out great!
Or, instead of using the coconut (or any other) oil, use a crockpot liner. Much better, in my opinion!
I made this yesterday for our dinner. I use homemade veggie stock instead of plain water and added 1/4 cup of red wine for a flavor boost.. It was DELICIOUS! My husband went back for seconds - now that's something! Didn't add any salt while cooking but did sprinkle (kosher) a pinch on each bowl before serving. That made a huge difference, I was really surprised. My husband suggested a variety of mushrooms (say 2 others in addition to the portabello's). I can hardly wait to have another bowl! That will give me an excuse to make it again! What a wonderful dish to take to a potluck or serve omnivores for dinner! Shhhh, I won't tell them it's meatless if you don't! Thanks so much for a fantastic recipe!!!
I love it when the husbands have seconds! 😉 Thanks for the comment Marcia!
Cathy you continue to make life easy and interesting. Great stew! I used to add bacon to make things interesting -- now potatoes do it.
Thanks Bob! 😉
That was delicious! Loads of flavor, much better than any beef stew I've ever had - plus it's low fat - fabulous!!
Thanks Carol-Ann! 😉
Do you have instructions for the pressure cooker?
Hi Caroline, I don't, but maybe others here do. I will have to try that. 🙂
I'm trying it in my pressure cooker tomorrow. Will let you know how it goes! http://www.mrsplantintexas.com
Made this for dinner tonight and have to say it was fantastic! Really yum.. I can't do onions and garlic so was a bit worried that it might be a bit tasteless, but added a little garlic infused oil and some salt and pepper and tiny bit more of the dried herbs and it was great... A great winter dinner, thank you Cathy
I made this recently and can't wait to try it again. Thank you so much for coming up with this healthy, innovative, satisfying, tasty recipe. I'm excited to explore the rest of your recipes.
OK...So I made this tonight and IT WAS AWESOME! I decided to make it in my pressure cooker. I used chopped, fresh green beans from my garden instead of peas (family preference), and used dried herbs instead of fresh because I didn't have them. SO delish! You can check out the pressure cooker instructions on my food blog at http://www.mrsplantintexas.com
THANK YOU, CATHY! This was an outstanding recipe that will be a staple in our home for years to come!
Thanks Amy! Any guidelines on pressure cooking times would be welcome. 🙂
this recipe is good but misleading its flavor because of the tomato is more like minestone soup not like a traditional beef stew that the title implies . it was good but not what i was looking for so i added vegetarian ( beef ) stock to try and get it to be more like stew but next time i will not add tomato . i also thickened with some arrowroot flour and served with vegan yorkshire .
Hi Tina, I am wondering if you didn't blend 2 cups at the end; this thickens the dish into a more stew-like consistency, and also mellows the tomato flavor since it's blended with all the cooked vegetables and broth. 🙂
Made this last night. It was really good! Didn't add Rosemary because I don't have any. Put in a cube of vegan bouillon and used immersion blender to blend half of it. My husband had 3 helpings which is a huge compliment to your recipe!!! Will definitely make again!!!
Can vinegar be replaced with lemon juice in your salad dressings?
Sure. 🙂
Made this with mushroom broth. Great color and flavor but a little too soupy. Will try just 4cups broth next time. My omni husband ate it and he refuses to eat just veg dishes! Didn't even mention or notice the lack of meat and of course I didn't tell him.
Ha! Great! 😉
Hi Cathy,
Love your recipes. The "Beef" stew was delish! I'll make it again soon. There are many of your recipes that I want to try. Just can't decide which ones first. I think the muffins with quinoa will be today. Thanks for all the fabulous ideas.
Susie
Delicious..can't wait to make another.at last I've found good wholesome recipes,without a shipping list of ingredients .some of which I couldn't pronounce.
😉
Delicious recipe Cathy! I made this in my pressure cooker on Manual/High Pressure - 8 minutes/Natural Release. I also added some frozen corn after cooking as well as a can of rinsed and drained unsalted black beans. To save my eyes I threw in a bag of frozen diced onion from frozen and used the peas from frozen since both cooked in the pressure cooker during the 8 minutes.
Thank you Bonnie!
Thanks for this, Kathy. I really like the fact that it doesn't include meat-replacement products. And thanks to Bonnie and Mrs. Plant for the pressure cooker/Instant Pot directions -- I'm always looking for ways to use my IP!
I have made this stew twice now. When I made it the first time there was only smoked Paprika in the pantry, so used this. We liked the taste with smoked Paprika and I used it again. Also, I used Swiss Brown mushrooms that were in the crisper and quartered them. Except for the smoked Paprika and the mushrooms, I followed the recipe. All worked really well and it looked, smelled, and tasted, great too. Onions get a lovely flavour when browned with water only. It is cold where we live and this stew is just perfect with a piece of home-made bread.
What I like about oil-free cooking is that washing up is so much easier. I seldom use detergent and after cleaning pots and dishes I just rinse the lot in very hot water.
Thanks Celia! 😉
This was a great recipe, but as with most vegan recipes, still not hearty enough for me--I'm usually hungry again a couple hours later. So I added some barley (cooked separately) and added it to the stew, plus a little salt and pepper.
Good idea Sally. I also like to add grains to my soups/stews. I made this dish last night for my (vegetarian) family and spooned it out over brown rice. They really liked it but I liked it more as it reminded me of the beef stews I had growing up (something I haven't had in 25 years as a vegetarian).
What really put it over the top for us was adding some "slow roasted chik'n" from Tofurky. We used the BBQ style and I will tell you that this addition made it even heartier and so good that I think my meat-eating extended family might even consider eating a bowl.
I chopped a couple of dried cayenne peppers from the garden and added them to this, and it was even better. Just enough heat.
Thanks Kathy, I enjoyed this. I did add more fresh rosemary at the end and I believe it improved the flavor.
Your recipe will be good for vegetarian. The word beefless is quite impressive making me excited on reading your post to the end. Great flavor of the stew will make people forget about the absence of beef in the stew even though they love meat.
Here's what I do to stop the need for the oil. Since the mushrooms will create their own juices, I keep some button mushrooms on hand and put about 3 of them, chopped up finely in the pot and stir it until they start juicing then I add in my onion, garlic, etc. so I'm putting in less water and still using whole ingredients. LOVE your site, will check back frequently. I typically make mods to recipes (I think we all do) and then I post the mods on my little site that's very under construction. 🙂
I am anxious to make this stew but was not sure what Italian herbs were. I appreciate your help.
It's a common blend found in the grocery stores; usually a mix of oregano, basil, marjoram, thyme and rosemary. 🙂
Cathy, is the Italian blend all found in one bottle of seasoning? If not and it all needs to be fresh, how much of each do you put in the stew? Thanks ?
It's all in one bottle. 🙂
Thank you Cathy ?
This stew was amazing! I used baby Bella mushrooms to it and it worked well. My husband also loved it. Will be making this dish more often. Thank you Cathy!
We love this!! I have shared it with several people. I have made this multiple times, and I fix it just a little differently each time to change the flavor. Going to top with vegan dumplings next time at the end.
Yum! Thanks! 😉
Just got around to making this yesterday... It's a delicious stew -- yet another "new favorite" of my husband's. I upped the garlic a bit, and had to use dried rosemary. We are so grateful for this site and your generosity with your outstanding recipes. Thank you so much, Cathy!
Thank you Kris! 😉
Can't have mushrooms, what could I use instead?
The mushrooms are the beef replacement and give it the brown color, so without them it will look and taste different but still good I imagine. You could try eggplant, zucchini, sweet potato, or cauliflower to get the bulk that the mushrooms provide (although not the same flavor). Or just add more of the other veggies in the recipe.
very good! no one even asked where the meat was! haha
Made this tonight and it came out very good. It has great flavor and is filling. Thanks for another great recipe!
Made it to freeze and take on a hiking trip to the mountains.....the are no words for how yummy it is!!!!! Thank you!
Yay! 🙂 Thanks Amy!
What size of pot did you use for this (more specific than large)?
I used a 5.5 quart, but any soup pot will do that is around this size. 🙂
I made this for the first time yesterday for dinner. Hubby and I both enjoyed it so much. We were amazed at how rich the broth was! I skipped the blending step as we prefer our stew more 'loose'. Today I'll be making your curried French lentils. I just love love love your recipes. Thank you Cathy!
Great! Thank you. 🙂
Made this delicious and great to look at stew last night and substituted about 1/2 teaspoonful of smoked paprika for same amount of regular. (I just shook regular into a tablespoon, partly filling it, and then filled up the spoon with smoked.) Thanks, Cathy for your great recipes.
is there something i can substitute the mushrooms? i am very allergic! thanks 🙂
Possibly eggplant, for a similar consistency. Otherwise, just add in more veggies that you like. Sometimes I add zucchini.
thanks! 🙂
Thank you very much for the recipe. It was wonderful. The only things I added were about a Tb of soy sauce, and 1/4 c of red wine. Thank you!
We enjoyed your stew last night. I did half white/half sweet potatoes. Should I clean out the black underside of the mushrooms or not? Thanks!
I don't; it adds to the color and flavor. 🙂
Some curry powder would be nice in here too. I made this last night in my pressure cooker. It's amazing. Thanks for the recipe!