10 Best Stew Recipes for Proper Cosy Dinners

Listen, it’s September and we all know what comes next.

The die-hard pumpkin puritans are already saving up their Starbucks points for that first PSL, the slow cookers are possibly already out of the cupboard, and somewhere, someone is definitely lighting an autumn-scented candle despite it still being perfectly pleasant outside.

I’ve had a really great summer and I’ve enjoyed the sunshine enormously, so I’m not personally desperate to start wishing the season away. But I’ll concede that the country appears to be embracing autumn with gusto and, really, who am I to argue?

So, let’s get this autumn party started with one of the season’s greatest assets: the stew.

And for this first collection, I’m keeping things traditional.

I’m talking proper stews. Big pans of beef and gravy, fluffy dumplings, chicken and vegetables, lamb cooked slowly in red wine, steak and ale and the sort of dinner that makes a dark Tuesday evening considerably more appealing.

They’re also incredibly practical. Stews are generally difficult to mess up, cheaper cuts of meat often work brilliantly because long, slow cooking gives them time to become beautifully tender, and most taste even better the following day. Make a big enough batch and tomorrow’s dinner is already sorted.

I’ve also tried to give you a decent mix. There are a couple of budget-friendly options, including a ham hock stew and a lentil and root vegetable version, alongside the classics you probably immediately think of when somebody mentions stew.

These are 10 of my favourite traditional stew recipes for autumn and winter, complete with proper quantities and methods so you can actually make them rather than simply look at ten lovely pictures of gravy.

And once we’ve dealt with the British classics, I’m going further afield. I’ll be back with a collection of comfort-food dishes from around the world that offer the same warm, slow-cooked satisfaction, but bring completely different spices, ingredients and flavours to the table.

For now, though, get the big casserole dish out.

Stew season has officially started.

1. Classic Beef Stew with Dumplings

The one that immediately springs to mind when I think of proper stew: tender beef, carrots and onions in a rich gravy with fluffy dumplings sitting on top.

Serves 4 | Prep 20 mins | Cook 2½ hours

Ingredients

750g stewing beef, cut into chunks
2 tbsp plain flour
2 tbsp vegetable oil
2 onions, roughly chopped
3 carrots, cut into chunks
2 celery sticks, sliced
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1 tbsp tomato purée
750ml beef stock
1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp dried thyme
2 bay leaves
Salt and black pepper

For the dumplings: 150g self-raising flour, 75g shredded suet, pinch of salt and around 90ml cold water.

Method

Heat the oven to 180°C/160°C fan. Toss the beef in seasoned flour and brown it in batches in the oil. Remove, then soften the onion, carrots and celery for 8 minutes. Add the garlic and tomato purée, return the beef and pour in the stock and Worcestershire sauce. Add the herbs, cover and cook for 2 hours.

Mix the dumpling ingredients into a soft dough, shape into eight balls and sit them on the stew. Cover and cook for 20 minutes, then uncover for another 10 minutes until golden.

2. Traditional Chicken & Vegetable Stew

A lighter version of the classic, but still very much proper comfort food. Chicken thighs are ideal here because they stay juicy while everything cooks together.

Serves 4 | Prep 15 mins | Cook 1 hour

Ingredients

8 boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut into chunks
1 tbsp vegetable oil
1 onion, chopped
2 leeks, sliced
3 carrots, chopped
500g potatoes, cubed
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1 tbsp plain flour
750ml chicken stock
1 tsp dried thyme
1 bay leaf
150g frozen peas
Handful of parsley
Salt and black pepper

Method

Brown the chicken in the oil and set aside. Soften the onion, leeks and carrots for around 8 minutes, then add the garlic and flour.

Gradually stir in the stock before adding the chicken, potatoes, thyme and bay leaf. Cover and simmer gently for 40–45 minutes until the potatoes are tender. Stir in the peas for the final five minutes and finish with parsley.

3. Slow-Cooked Lamb & Red Wine Stew

This is the richer lamb option: plenty of rosemary, root vegetables and red wine creating a dark gravy that’s absolutely made for mashed potatoes.

Serves 4–6 | Prep 20 mins | Cook 2½ hours

Ingredients

800g diced lamb shoulder
2 tbsp plain flour
2 tbsp vegetable oil
2 onions, chopped
3 carrots, cut into chunks
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1 tbsp tomato purée
300ml red wine
500ml lamb or beef stock
2 sprigs rosemary
2 bay leaves
Salt and black pepper

Method

Heat the oven to 180°C/160°C fan. Coat the lamb lightly in seasoned flour and brown in batches.

Soften the onions and carrots, add the garlic and tomato purée, then pour in the wine. Let it bubble for a few minutes while scraping the bottom of the pan.

Add the stock, lamb and herbs. Cover and cook for 2 hours, then uncover for another 20–30 minutes until the lamb is tender and the gravy has reduced.

4. Steak & Ale Stew

There’s a reason steak and ale appears on practically every decent pub menu. Dark ale gives the gravy loads of flavour, while mushrooms soak up all the good stuff.

Serves 4 | Prep 20 mins | Cook 2½ hours

Ingredients

750g braising steak, cubed
2 tbsp plain flour
2 tbsp vegetable oil
2 onions, sliced
250g chestnut mushrooms, halved
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1 tbsp tomato purée
500ml dark ale
300ml beef stock
1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp dried thyme
2 bay leaves
Salt and black pepper

Method

Heat the oven to 180°C/160°C fan. Coat the beef in seasoned flour and brown in batches.

Cook the onions for around 8 minutes, add the mushrooms and allow them to colour, then stir in the garlic and tomato purée.

Pour in the ale and bubble for 2 minutes. Add the stock, Worcestershire sauce and herbs, return the beef and cover. Cook for 2 hours, then remove the lid for the final 30 minutes to thicken the gravy.

5. Lentil & Root Vegetable Stew

The vegetarian option isn’t here simply because I thought I ought to include one. This is genuinely good: cheap, filling and packed with the sort of root vegetables that come into their own during autumn.

Serves 4 | Prep 15 mins | Cook 50 mins

Ingredients

1 tbsp olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
2 carrots, chopped
2 parsnips, chopped
300g swede, cubed
350g potatoes, cubed
2 garlic cloves, crushed
200g dried green or brown lentils, rinsed
1 tbsp tomato purée
1 litre vegetable stock
1 tsp dried thyme
2 bay leaves
Salt and black pepper

Method

Soften the onion, carrots, parsnips and swede in the oil for around 10 minutes. Add the garlic and tomato purée.

Add the potatoes, lentils, stock and herbs. Bring to the boil, reduce the heat and simmer gently for 35–45 minutes until everything is tender.

For a thicker consistency, mash a few potato pieces against the side of the pan and stir them back through.

6. Sausage, Bacon & Bean Stew

This is our easy midweek stew. It’s relatively inexpensive, doesn’t need hours in the oven and is brilliant served with nothing more complicated than thickly sliced bread.

Serves 4 | Prep 10 mins | Cook 45 mins

Ingredients

8 pork sausages
150g smoked bacon lardons
1 onion, chopped
2 carrots, chopped
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1 tbsp tomato purée
1 x 400g tin chopped tomatoes
400ml chicken stock
1 x 400g tin cannellini beans, drained
1 tsp dried thyme
1 tsp smoked paprika
Black pepper

Method

Brown the sausages in a large casserole and remove. Add the bacon and cook until beginning to crisp, then add the onion and carrots and soften for around 8 minutes.

Stir in the garlic, tomato purée and paprika. Add the tomatoes and stock, return the sausages and simmer for 25 minutes.

Add the beans and cook for another 10 minutes until the sauce has thickened.

7. Pork, Apple & Cider Stew

Pork, cider, apples and sage. You could probably serve autumn in a bowl and it wouldn’t be much more seasonal than this.

Serves 4 | Prep 20 mins | Cook 2 hours

Ingredients

750g pork shoulder, cubed
2 tbsp plain flour
1 tbsp vegetable oil
2 onions, sliced
2 carrots, chopped
2 eating apples, peeled and cut into wedges
2 garlic cloves, crushed
500ml dry cider
300ml chicken stock
1 tsp dried sage
1 bay leaf
Salt and black pepper

Method

Heat the oven to 180°C/160°C fan. Coat the pork in seasoned flour and brown it in the oil.

Remove the meat, soften the onions and carrots and add the garlic. Return the pork and pour over the cider and stock. Add the sage and bay leaf.

Cover and cook for 90 minutes. Add the apple wedges, uncover and cook for another 20–30 minutes until the pork is tender and the sauce has reduced.

Adding the apples towards the end stops them disappearing completely into the gravy.

8. Traditional Irish Lamb Stew

Unlike our red wine version, this one is deliberately simple. Lamb, potatoes, onions, carrots and stock do pretty much all the work.

Serves 4–6 | Prep 20 mins | Cook 2 hours

Ingredients

800g lamb shoulder, cut into chunks
2 onions, sliced
4 carrots, cut into chunks
750g potatoes, peeled and thickly sliced
750ml lamb or chicken stock
2 bay leaves
2 sprigs thyme
Handful of parsley
Salt and black pepper

Method

Heat the oven to 180°C/160°C fan. Brown the lamb in batches in a large casserole.

Add the onions, carrots and potatoes and pour over enough stock to almost cover everything. Add the herbs and season.

Cover and cook for 1½ hours, then remove the lid and cook for another 20–30 minutes. Some of the potato will begin to break down and naturally thicken the broth.

Scatter with parsley before serving.

9. Ham Hock, Pea & Potato Stew

One of the cheapest recipes in the collection could also be one of the best. Ham hock provides an enormous amount of flavour for relatively little money and is perfect for slow cooking.

Serves 4–6 | Prep 15 mins | Cook 2½–3 hours

Ingredients

1 ham hock, around 1kg
1 onion, halved
3 carrots, chopped
2 leeks, sliced
600g potatoes, cubed
2 bay leaves
1 tsp dried thyme
200g frozen peas
Handful of parsley
Black pepper

Method

Put the ham hock into a large pan, cover with cold water and add the onion, one carrot and bay leaves. Bring to the boil, then simmer gently for around 2 hours until tender.

Remove the hock and strain the cooking liquid, reserving around 1 litre. Taste it before seasoning anything — ham hock can provide plenty of salt by itself.

Return the liquid to the pan with the remaining carrots, leeks, potatoes and thyme. Simmer for 20 minutes.

Remove the skin and excess fat from the hock and shred the meat. Return it to the pan with the peas and cook for another five minutes. Finish with parsley and black pepper.

10. Chicken & Leek Stew with Herby Dumplings

And we’re ending where we began: dumplings. This chicken and leek version is lighter than the beef stew but still gives us a big bowl of proper cold-weather comfort food.

Serves 4 | Prep 20 mins | Cook 1 hour

Ingredients

8 boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut into chunks
1 tbsp vegetable oil
3 leeks, sliced
2 carrots, chopped
2 garlic cloves, crushed
2 tbsp plain flour
750ml chicken stock
1 tsp dried thyme
1 tsp Dijon mustard
Salt and black pepper

For the herby dumplings: 150g self-raising flour, 75g shredded suet, 1 tbsp chopped parsley, 1 tsp dried thyme and around 90ml cold water.

Method

Heat the oven to 200°C/180°C fan.

Brown the chicken in the oil and remove. Soften the leeks and carrots for around 8 minutes before adding the garlic.

Stir through the flour, then gradually add the stock. Add the mustard and thyme, return the chicken and simmer for 15 minutes.

Mix the dumpling ingredients with enough water to make a soft dough and shape into eight balls. Sit them on top and transfer the casserole to the oven, uncovered, for around 25 minutes, until the dumplings are risen and golden and the chicken is cooked through.

Joanne Brook-Smith is a writer and editor with two decades of publishing experience. She launched Crave Magazine during the Covid period to create a fresh, inspiring space for food, travel and lifestyle content.