Instant Pot Beef Stew

4.95 from 18 votes

This Instant Pot beef stew recipe is rich and flavorful with tender beef, carrots, and potatoes. It’s the perfect hearty family meal that’s easy yet tastes like it’s been simmering for ages!

Prep Time15

Cook Time50

Inactive time35

Total Time1 40

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: American

Keyword: electric pressure cooker beef stew, Instant Pot beef stew recipe

Servings:

Author: Natasha Bull

Ingredients

2 pounds beef stewing cubes or chuck
2 tablespoons olive oil divided
1 medium onion chopped
6 cloves garlic minced
3 cups beef broth
1 (6 ounce) can tomato paste
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon salt
Pepper to taste
3 large carrots peeled & cut into fairly large bite-size pieces
3 sticks celery chopped
1 pound Yukon Gold potatoes peeled & diced (fairly large bite-size pieces)
2 tablespoons cornstarch

Instructions

Add 1 tablespoon of the oil to your Instant Pot. Press the "sauté" button and once the oil is hot, add half the beef. Brown the beef on all sides (I find this easiest to do with tongs). I like to do two batches so the meat isn't crowded and browns nicely.
Once the beef is seared, transfer it to a plate and set aside. Repeat for the second batch (use the second tablespoon of olive oil).
Add the onion to the IP and sauté for 3-4 minutes (add a splash more oil if needed).
Stir in the garlic and cook for about 30 seconds.
Add about a cup of the beef broth to the IP and scrape any brown bits from the bottom thoroughly (a wooden spoon works well). This is important as it'll help prevent getting an IP burn warning.
Stir in the rest of the broth, tomato paste, Worcestershire sauce, salt, and pepper until smooth.
Add the remaining ingredients except for the cornstarch (including returning the beef to the pot).
Close the lid and set the valve on "sealing", and cook on high pressure for 35 minutes. It will take 10-15 minutes for the Instant Pot to get up to pressure.
Once the countdown is done, let the pressure release naturally for 10-15 minutes, and then do a quick release for the rest of the pressure. Mix the cornstarch with 2 tablespoons of cold water and add the slurry to the IP. Give it a good stir and let it thicken up for a few minutes (you can put the "sauté" button back on if needed to activate the cornstarch). Season with salt & pepper to taste and enjoy!

Notes

This recipe has been tweaked since it was first published. This was a difficult decision since the original received many positive reviews, but some readers’ newer Instant Pots gave burn warnings, and honestly the negative comments were disheartening. I haven’t encountered the problem with my 2018 model, but I
want this recipe to work for all readers, so I reformulated it. You can print the old recipe if it worked for you.
Inactive time represents the time it will take to get your Instant Pot up to pressure.
I use this 6-quart Instant Pot.
Stove-top: Try my Beef Stew.
Crockpot: Try my slow cooker beef stew recipe.
Nutritional information is provided as a courtesy only and should be construed as an estimate rather than a guarantee. Ingredients can vary and Salt & Lavender makes no guarantees to the accuracy of this information.

Nutrition