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
We just love this recipe, sadly never many leftovers! IMHO, the fresh Rosemary is essential, avoid canned peas, they are not pretty enuf! I dehydrate cremini mushrooms, grind them up and use it to thicken the stew. Next time I will add cannellini beans to the 2 cups I put in the blender and see how that works. Thank you for a delicious dish sheer all the veggies shine!
I haven't made this yes but am doing so today but if it needs thickening just take out some of the mixture and mash, then return to pot. I do with this with a certain soup I make.
Yes, it works well. Thanks! 😉
So dang good is what hit my mouth! Just delicious! -and you can fool your friends that it's beef stew. So delicious. Will make again and again!!
I love this stew! We have an old family favorite called "cider stew" that is made with lots of beef. I adapted this recipe to more closely fit our old favorite without the beef. I used 2 cups apple cider and 3 cups veggie broth in place of the 5 cups of water. I added lots more carrots and an extra potato or two. I like my stew thicker. I pureed about 3 cups of the stew instead of the 2. I also added 1/2 pound of white mushrooms with the portabella, and 1-2 T. apple cider vinegar. To make it a little darker, I added a couple teaspoons browning sauce (probably not good for you). Yum!
A true artist! 😉 Thanks for the comment Sherri!
Hi Sherri, I know your comment about your cider stew was a year ago, but wondering if you've ever used sparkling cider with it? I've made it with regular cider and the veggie broth as you suggested and loved it! However I wanted an organic apple cider if possible and the sparkling was all I found.
Cathy I more than welcome any input you might have about the sparkling cider as well. You are such a gift to provide all these delicious recipes, comments and information. Thank you so much for all you do and share!
Hi Sherri, thank you. 🙂 I have never tried this but it sounds interesting!
Sharon, I've never tried it with sparkling cider. I buy my cider from Whole Foods or Trader Joe's. It's unfiltered.
Oh my! Hands down, the best stew I've ever made! Thank you for sharing!
Looks really yummy. I would definitely try this. Thanks for the recipe.
I followed Sherri's suggestions. This is absolutely fabulous. Do you think this would freeze well?
Not sure; sometimes potatoes are iffy. Try freezing a little and see how it comes out. 🙂
I have found that carrots that were frozen and thawed, become rubbery. Potatoes only get a bit mushier, which isn't so bad.
I have stopped freezing anything that contains carrots.
This sounds and looks delicious! Do you think I could add lentils to this stew? My husband hates mushrooms (annoying,I know) and I was thinking lentils could be a good sub. Thoughts?
Sure! 🙂
My family and I hate mushrooms too, but I find if I dice them up super small( throw them in your food processor and pulse several times or a real quick whirl in your blender) you don't taste or feel them yet they add that extra nutrition and that bit of meaty flavor without screaming, "I'm a mushroom!". Especially since you sautee them in the recipe with the other ingredients you don't detect them like you would if they were sliced or roughly chopped.
I just made this and OMG... it's delicious! I substituted a cup of water for red wine though and left out the paprika – my boyfriend loved it. Thank you so much!
What type of Red Wine did you use?? I've never tried cooking with Red wine but I admit it sounds DELICIOUS!
I would absolutely love to make this tomorrow; I'm newly vegan and one of my favourite foods that I'm needing to let go of is beef stew! One question though...
I don't have a blender, so I was wondering if you have any alternative ideas to thickening the stew? I was thinking maybe cornstarch?
You can use a potato masher to thicken it instead of the blender. I've not tried cornstarch, but it would likely do OK. 🙂
I use potato flakes,and no one can tell the difference! Works good.
I added chopped bell peppers. My wife said, "This tastes just like beef stew." My co-workers said, I thought you didn't eat meat."Outstanding!!!
Thanks John! 🙂 Glad you enjoyed it!
Holy cow, this is the best stew EVER!! My husband would not stop raving about it's delishisness! I did make one addition, though. I added about 1/3 cup red wine to the cooked veggies and let it cook nearly off before adding the water. This recipe will be in our regular rotation! Thank you, Cathy for your awesome creations!
I decided to give up meat for a couple of months and found this recipe on Pinterest! I have made it twice in 3 weeks. It makes a hefty batch, so plenty of leftovers and I didn't miss beef at all. I love a little heat, so added a chipotle pepper and it was perfect. This will definitely be a staple for me -- the perfect comfort food on a cold day.
I have made this several times now, and I change one or 2 things each time depending upon what I have in the house, but no matter what my family LOVES it. Thank you for the base for a great and adaptable meal.
It is amazing with crusty bread, or dumplings!
Mmm, thanks Tomi! 😉
This was so delicious even my two year old wanted seconds! This will definitely be part of our rotation of family dinners!
Has anyone made this without mushrooms?? How would you alter this??
I haven't but I imagine zucchini might be a nice substitution or addition. Or just add more of the other veggies. The mushrooms add a lot to the texture, flavor and color of the stew, so what you'll end up with is more of a tomato-based chunky vegetable stew, which also sounds wonderful! 🙂
Eggplant roasted or dry sauteed could also substitute for some of the mushrooms and would add a bit of "chewiness" or texture to the dish.
I'll have to try that. I figured I might just throw in a bunch more potatoes. Allergic to mushrooms. Makes a lot of vegan options more difficult. 🙁
I'm allergic to mushrooms too. Thanks for asking because was wondering the same.
This looks fabulous. I am going to try this tonight. I have a head of organic cauliflower and will add that as well.....
I just made this camping!!! It was fabulous and filling and a huge hit with my husband and our friends (I believe one comment was "I could eat this every night!"). For a bit more savoriness, I added some red miso paste (yes, I know, some salt), then a squeeze of fresh lemon juice for a tiny kick at the end. Can't wait to try more of your recipes. Thank you!
Thanks Brenda! 🙂 Wish I was camping. That would make a good outdoorsy dish!
Love this recipe!! 🙂
I used 2 cups Trader's low sodium Organic vege broth and 2 cups water and instead of using red wine, I used 1/2cup water and two tbsp balsamic as a substitute! I like this recipe because it is filling!
Next time I might leave the parsley behind and just use onion springs/ scallions for an asian flavor.
Thanks so much for sharing this kind of recipes!!! 🙂
Excellent recipe. I've made it twice now and have tweaked it to suit our personal preferences both times. You could do anything with this beautiful recipe but mostly I like it exactly the way it is EXCEPT for - I sauteed in olive oil, and I added salt and tamari. Leftovers are delicious on Cauliflower Rice (grated cauliflower browned with garlic).
I love this idea! Thanks
I'm printing this recipe right now and cannot wait to try it -- thank you! If I may ask a question, can you think of a good substitute for the peas? I just do not enjoy them and see that there are quite a bit in this recipe. Can you please tell me what might work instead? Thank you so much!
Hi Deb, you can just leave them out if you like. They are pretty traditional in beef stew recipes, but they are not really necessary and the dish won't suffer without them. 😉 You could add something else you like in there, like corn, or cooked green beans cut small.
I made this stew tonight. HAD ALL THE ITEMS AND SPENT TIME CLEANING AND CUTTING AND COOKING FOUND IT VERY GOOD. ENJOYED THE SAUCE I ENDED UP WITH. WILL PREPARE IT AGAIN
When Do i include the peas? You have them listed but not in the recipe
They are there, at the end of step 3. 🙂
Just made this as one of my batch cooking recipes today. Thank you for another great recipe. My only tweak was I had some spicy smoked paprika. It is delicious 🙂
I made this this evening. Oh, it is fantastic. I will be making this a lot
this fall and winter. Thank you. I can't wait to try out more.
Made this for the first time and it was wonderful!! Even my non-vegan husband loved it!!! Thank you Cathy for all your great SOS-free Vegan recipes! BTW - it was great meeting you at TrueNorth last month when I attended your class during my water fast. Can't wait to get your new cookbook.
Yay! 🙂 Thanks Sherri!
Any luck at making this in the Instapot Pressure Cooker? I might give it a try ... adding the peas last after it is done and let sit until cooked. I am thinking 8-10 mins on high with NPR? Any thoughts or additional suggestions? Thanks!
Hi Trailmomma! 🙂 I have not tried it; let me know how it goes and then I'll add it to the recipe.
Thanks! I tried it this weekend. My hubby LOVED the soup too. I did the onions, carrots and celery as you listed - sauteing in the IP. Added garlic and mushrooms. Then I added the ingredients in Step 4. I wasn't quite sure how to handle the rosemary. At first I had it in my bowl with the frozen peas and then thought it may need more time? So I tossed half in with the soup - set the IP for 10 minutes. When done I let sit 10 mins then released the rest of the pressure and then added the peas and a few rosemary pieces that didn't make it in the first toss - and let sit for 5 mins with the lid on. Then I used an immersion blender (just a few zaps) because I am lazy and didn't want to do the blender transfer. 🙂 The rosemary flavor really made it so next time I don't know when to add the rosemary! 🙂 But I also feel I need to try this on the stove to compare but I do love my set and go instant pot just so I can get laundry done! ha 🙂
Thanks so much! 😉 I will give this method a try as well and get back to you. Thanks!
I'm a long time fan of straightupfood.com and I must say that this recipe is absolutely amazing. My whole family loved it! I'll definitely be having this stew again and will be trying the other stews listed in the new Straight Up Food cookbook!
I used red potatoes, red onions, and a full can of tomato paste. It was very pretty in the end.
Thank you Miles! 😉
No stock? No salt?
No, all of my recipes are SOS-free (salt, oil, sugar). 🙂
Bazza, I wondered also how it would be with no stock but trust me you don't need it. The herbs do it all. I did use a little oil instead of water to saute the veg in the beginning because I can't see anything wrong with olive oil, but each to their own. Also I added salt. But stock you really don't need as so flavoursome anyway and the rosemary shines through.
I'm going to give this recipe a go today. I'm going to put the finished stew in a hollowed out pumpkin and bake it all for a couple of hours, until the pumpkin is tender, to make pumpkin beefless stew.
I am looking forward to trying this recipe however, I am not a fan of mushrooms. If I leave the mushrooms out will it change the quality significantly? What if I leave the mushrooms in but blend them all?
The chunky pieces of portabella mushrooms are stand-ins for the beef chunks; so if you leave them out, you'll still have a good vegetable stew. I've never left them out, so am not sure. The mushrooms add a lot to the flavor and appearance of the stew, making it look just like "beef stew."
Hi, I just came across this recipe and plan on making it tonight. I have quite a bit of vegetable broth I need to get rid of, would that be okay to substitute for the water?
Sure. 🙂
This stew is delicious! It was an absolute hit with my family--even my meat loving husband!
Dang! I think I botched this somehow. Mine has a nice taste, but is quite bland. The only thing I did not have was the italian seasoning, so I left that out, but added a cup of red wine and an extra portabella for more richness. I'm sure the flavor will increase overnight, but will try again with the italian seasoning next time!
Great recipe. Just can't beat this type of hearty food. Thanks for sharing.
Simon
Can this be made in a crockpot?
I've not done it, but I think it would work great; just don't overcook it, maybe 10 minutes or so, just enough so the potatoes and carrots are very tender. 🙂
Did you try it in the crockpot?
I made this yesterday and it was absolutely delicious. Will be enough for a couple more days thank goodness! Had no peas on hand so used a tin of aduki beans instead. The rosemary flavour throughout was heavenly. To come home at the end of a cold but lovely day walking through awesome woodland, this was just what we needed. Will make this again for sure! Thanks!
I found your blog thru chef AJ. We are not SOS only oil free plant based. I made this for Sunday lunch and reduced the salt. It was a success and super easy to make. I added cumin, bay leaves and radishes. The blending of some stew to use as thickening was a great tip. My next recipe try will be the pumpkin squares. Tku. ♡♡♡
Great! thanks Tereza! 😉
My husband does not like mushrooms can I substitute fresh green beans?
Sure! It will be more of a chunky vegetable stew, which will still be great! 🙂
Making this for a second time. Absolutely delicious!! The only thing I do different is to fry in oil instead of water, but hey, what a great recipe, thanks!!
This is my all time favorite vegan stew. I even get meat eaters to love it! The only problem I have is when I freeze it the mushrooms get a weird texture. Do you have any suggestions? Thank you!
I sure don't, other than adding them separately after thawing.
Hi,
This is delicious, a family favorite! I want to make it in my Instant Pot pressure cooker, any ideas on how that would effect the instructions?
Thank you!
Made this for my Vegan daughter and grand kids. They loved it ! I read some of the comments and changed it up .
Added extra myshrooms and some button mushrooms . Used part water and part veggie broth. Also when it was time to add the mushrooms to the pot , I added about a 1/3 cup of red wine .
My husband who is not vegan really enjoyed it. So it will be on our meal rotation and I'm so Happy to found this wonderful recipe. Thank you
Alright, I did it.. and it tastes like nothing. This isn't the first time. Plant based recepies just don't taste like anything, I've been trying to go vegan, but this is just discouraging.
This is probably due to the fact that you usually eat foods that are salted and contain oil/fat. It usually takes about a month or so of *consistently* eating SOS-free (salt, oil, sugar) food for your taste buds to change and adapt to this way of eating. Then you will start to love the taste; but just eating a plant-based, SOS-free meal once in a while is going to taste bland, for sure. If you're interested in learning more about this, check out the book The Pleasure Trap.
Thank you for the reply. But I absolutely hate how people always keep saying how these food are delicious and how even meat eaters enjoy them. It sets expectations to many new vegans too high. It has already disappointed me multiple times.
There's people all over the internet saying how vegan food is usually even better than non-vegan food. But the point is to be healthy, and those better tasting foods aren't even nearly as healthy as vegans are supposed to be, so I don't see the point.
Sorry for my negativity. I'm tired and depressed. I've sought help.
Everyone's different. After teaching for 7 years now, I know lots of SAD (standard Amercian diet) eaters who do like this food right out of the gate. It depends on what it is, as well. If it's the carrot cake, everyone loves that. If it's the potato salad, many people do say "it's good but needs salt," since potato salad is usually so salty. So it depends on the person, what they are eating, and I guess what their expectations are to start with. Most people think "healthy" food is not going to taste good, so maybe they are pleasantly surprised.
In my cookbook, I make the point throughout that it takes time for tastes to adjust. Toward your other points, some people prioritize being "vegan" and others being "healthy." There are many people who get into this for extreme health (like their doctor says change your diet or go into surgery), and I'm sure many of these folks weren't thrilled with changing their diet to this one, taste wise, but their health was more important. So they endured and got used to it and learned how to make their food taste the way they liked it (within guidelines).
And now they are happy with their new diet and their improved health. So it really depends. If adding a little salt or sugar to your food is the price of admission for you to eat a plant-based diet, then maybe it's worth it, or at least for now. I started eating plant-based 18 years ago and my diet now is nothing like it was then. Decide what's most important to you, and start there. You'll refine and figure the rest out as you go. You sound passionate, however, so I hope you can find a balance that works for you at this point. If you have any other questions, feel free to let me know. All the best to you! 🙂
I don't know what happened, it didn't taste bad anymore, I ate it all, and even though I despise cooking, here I am again, making more... And sorry for my negativity again.... but the description is misleading, because people who have eaten beefstew their whole lives won't think this has everything they loved about it.. far from it..
But I guess that with the picture are what motivated me to do this, and if I keep this up, it might even help my depression.. and thanks for the responses..
Made this yesterday totally awesome it has so many possibilities love it the way it is,would never use oil your arteries will love it to. Been plant based since April 2016 never going back.Got your recipe book coming Cathy, also use Forks Over Knives which got us on this jorny.
Thanks David! 😉
I could have sworn I left a comment on here. Oh well. I made this before Christmas in my slow cooker. It looked and smelled absolutely gorgeous. I made it with the intention of freezing for other days. To my horror I defrosted a tub of this and it had turned into some sort of beefless jelly glob. The whole lot was ruined. I followed the recipe to the letter and have no idea what went wrong! My guess now is that it is because of the corn starch or one of the veg. I've had no issues freezing anything else I've made though, and some things I use cornstarch in. Maybe it was the mushrooms??? Anyone have an clues??
Hi Jules, the recipe (as written) does not call for any cornstarch. It might work well before freezing (I've never tried it), but looking into it now, it appears that cornstarch does not hold a good consistency after thawing. You can read more about what does not freeze well here. Blending a portion of the finished stew toward the end (per the instructions) is how I always thicken it, and this has always worked great for me.
I discovered this recipe last fall.. Have made it least monthly since! Even my meat eating hubby asks for " that stew you make". I have a pot of it simmering right now.... One trick that I learned from America's test kitchen is to brown the tomato paste. I add it with the mushrooms and let it go. It does stick to the bottom of the pot and you think it's burning but let it go... The fond on the bottom of the pan adds a depth of flavor that is delicious and it comes up easily when you add the liquid. Also thank you to the person that suggested using apple cider.... incredible!
Thanks John! 😉
This the best veggie stew I have made so far. All the ingredients compliment each other and the flavors come out in the best way. The mushrooms are great for the meat substitute. Had not tried this before. Thank you so much for this stew. This is definitely a keeper.
Made this stew tonight. Wonderful. I chopped my vegetables into smaller pieces so it didn't look as good as your photo. Next time I'll not be so crazy with my dicing and leave larger pieces. Rather than taking out a couple cups and whirl it in the blender, I just used my immersion blender right in the kettle.
Absolutely hands-down the easiest, (and tastiest) vegan stew recipe I've tried! Can't wait for tonight..."no tuna casserole." Yum! Thank-you so much for the recipes! I'm so happy I found your site! Thank-you again!
Really hoped to love this recipe as I love the vegetables in it. Unfortunately we found that it was too bland,fam and I thought it needed more flavor and tone down on the herbs.
The recipes doesn't add any salt since this is an SOS-free blog, but feel free to add it if its something you are not trying to avoid.
This is a fabulous recipe and my family loved it! I added some liquid smoke and mesquite seasoning and no one missed the meat! Thank you so much Cathy😊