Easiest-Ever Beef and Potato Stew

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Serves 6 to 8

Cooking Time 9 to 10 hours on Low or 6 to 7 hours on High  

Slow Cooker Size 5½ to 7 Quarts

WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS: By the time you’ve trimmed, cubed, and browned the meat and chopped all the vegetables, beef stew can feel like more of a hassle than it’s worth. We wanted a stew with maximum flavor without all the labor. To start, we skipped the traditional chuck roast in favor of convenient steak tips, which were far easier to trim and cut into pieces. For the vegetables, we stuck to the classics: potatoes and peas. We chose small Yukon Gold potatoes so that we could dump them right into the slow cooker without any peeling or chopping. Frozen peas could be stirred in before serving until just warmed through. In lieu of building a flavorful broth from scratch with chopped onion, garlic, and herbs and spices, we turned to condensed French onion soup. This prep-free convenience product boasted thick, beefy broth with lots of aromatic flavor; bolstered with tomato paste and a little thyme, it gave us a flavorful, umami-rich base for our stew without the need for browning the meat. Look for small Yukon Gold potatoes measuring 1 to 2 inches in diameter; if your potatoes are larger, cut them into 1-inch pieces to ensure they cook through. See the sidebar that follows the recipe.

2	(10.5-ounce) cans condensed French onion soup
1	cup water
¼	cup tomato paste
2½	tablespoons instant tapioca
1	teaspoon dried thyme
2	pounds small Yukon Gold potatoes
4	pounds sirloin steak tips, trimmed and cut into 1½-inch pieces
	Salt and pepper
2	cups frozen peas

1. Whisk soup, water, tomato paste, tapioca, and thyme together in slow cooker; stir in potatoes. Season beef with salt and pepper and stir into slow cooker. Cover and cook until beef is tender, 9 to 10 hours on low or 6 to 7 hours on high.

2. Using large spoon, skim excess fat from surface of stew. Stir in peas and let sit until heated through, about 5 minutes. (Adjust stew consistency with extra hot broth as needed.) Season with salt and pepper to taste and serve.