Vegetable Beef Soup

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This hearty, flavor-packed Vegetable Beef Soup is made with pieces of lean beef, slowly cooked to fall-apart perfection. Chunks of vegetables and potatoes make this healthy soup a wonderfully comforting dinner on a cold day.

Prep Time20

Cook Time2

Total Time2 20

Course: Soup

Cuisine: American

Keyword: easy soup recipes, easy vegetable beef soup, homemade vegetable beef soup

Servings: servings

Ingredients

1 & 1/2 pounds pre-cut lean beef stew meat
salt and pepper
Canola oil
2 tablespoon salted butter
1/2 medium yellow onion , diced
2 ribs celery , chopped
1 cup baby carrots , roughly chopped
3 cloves garlic , minced
2 tablespoon tomato paste
1/2 cup dry red wine
1 teaspoon Kitchen Bouquet or Gravy Master (optional, but recommended)
32 ounces low sodium beef broth
1 bay leaf
1/2 teaspoon dry thyme , or 1 fresh sprig
4 medium red potatoes , cut into 1-inch cubes
1 cup frozen corn
1 cup fresh green beans , 1-inch chopped pieces
salt and pepper to taste
3 tablespoons dry brown gravy mix (optional for a thicker soup)

Instructions

Heat a large Dutch oven or heavy soup pot over medium high heat. Pat meat very dry with a paper towel and season with salt and pepper. Drizzle the pot with canola oil. Place about a third of the beef in the pot, leaving at least 1-inch space between each piece (if you crowd the pan, the pieces will not brown.) Leave the beef undisturbed for 1 to 2 minutes on the first side, flip and brown the other sides briefly. Repeat with remaining beef, in batches, adding more oil if needed. Transfer to a plate.
Blot any excess oil out of pot with paper towels. Reduce heat to medium, add the butter, onion, celery and carrots, sauté until onions are translucent, about 3-5 minutes. Add in garlic and tomato paste, cook 20 seconds until fragrant.
Deglaze pan with the red wine, scraping up any brown bits with a wooden spoon. Add the seared beef back to the pot along with the Kitchen Bouquet, beef broth, bay leaf, and thyme. Bring to a very gentle bubble, place lid on pot, reduce heat to low and cook until beef is tender, about 1 & 1/2 hours. (Alternately, cover Dutch oven with tight fitting lid and place in a 350F oven for 1.5-2 hours.)
Once beef is fall-apart tender, add potatoes and cook for an additional 12-15 minutes, or until potatoes are fork tender.
Add in corn and green beans, cook an additional 3-5 minutes until green beans are tender. Remove bay leaf and thyme sprigs if you used fresh thyme. Taste and adjust seasoning. Serve with crusty bread, if desired.
To make a thicker soup: Dissolve the gravy mix with a few tablespoons of cold water, stir into the soup while boiling, it will thicken very quickly.

Notes

Crockpot option. Brown the beef in a large pan or dutch oven as directed and deglaze with the wine. Add all of the ingredients, except for the butter, corn, and beans, to the slow cooker. Cook on low for 6-8 hours, or on high for about 4 hours. Add corn and beans, and then cook for an additional 30 minutes.

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