Slow Cooker Poor Man’s Stew is made from scratch with ground beef to save money. A very hearty meal with very little effort or money.
We love easy stew recipes like this one, Shipwreck Stew or A-1 Beef Stew for an easy hearty dinner.
Looking for a budget meal this week? I made this Poor Man’s Stew for $6.24 and it feeds 5 people! I put ground beef, russet potatoes, carrots, onions, a garlic clove (not pictured, I had this on hand), tomato paste, water and seasoning in my slow cooker simmered it all day to make this Hearty Poor Man’s Stew.
The inspiration for this meal came from my favorite old movie The Princess Bride. I made a stew similar to the one seen in the movie where Fezzic (Andre the Giant)
What makes this meal budget friendly ?
- Fresh vegetables – I bought just what I needed for this recipe though you can buy large bags of potatoes and carrots and your price will go down.
- Look for ground beef a roll, it’s almost always cheaper than beef in trays.
- Dried spices are alway cheaper than fresh and last for years for other recipes as well.
- I use water instead of broth in this recipe to cut down on the cost, though broth can be used if desired.
How to make Poor Man’s Stew:
You will need these ingredients:
- 1 lb. ground beef browned and drained
- 1.5 lbs potatoes, diced large
- 3 carrots, sliced
- 1 onion, diced
- 1 garlic clove minced (I had this on hand already)
- 6 oz. can tomato paste
- 2 cups water
- 1 tsp. salt
- ¼ tsp. pepper
- 1 tsp. onion powder
- 1 tsp. dried oregano
Directions:
- Brown the beef in a skillet on the stove-top, drain fat.
- Add the beef to the slow cooker along with the potatoes, onions, carrots, and garlic.
- In a small bowl whisk together the tomato paste, water, salt, pepper, onion powder, and oregano. Pour this mixture over everything in the slow cooker. Stir.
How long do I cook poor man’s stew?
- Place the lid on the slow cooker and cook on low for 7-8 hours or until the potatoes are tender.
- Serve in bowls and enjoy!
More stew recipes you’ll want to try!
Slow Cooker Classical Beef Stew - Slow Cooker A.1. Beef Stew
- Witches Brew Stew
- Slow Cooker Beefy Bacon Man Stew
- Slow Cooker Guinness Beef Stew
- Slow Cooker Shipwreck Stew
- Slow Cooker Split Pea Stew
- Slow Cooker Farmers Market Beef Stew
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Slow Cooker Poor Man’s Stew
Equipment Needed:
Ingredients:
- 1 lb. ground beef browned and drained
- 1 1/2 lbs potatoes diced large
- 3 carrots sliced
- 1 onion diced
- 1 garlic clove minced (I had this on hand already)
- 6 oz. can tomato paste
- 2 cups water
- 1 tsp. salt
- 1/4 tsp. pepper
- 1 tsp. onion powder
- 1 tsp. dried oregano
Instructions:
- Add the cooked ground beef, potatoes, carrots, onions, and garlic to a 5-quart or larger slow cooker.
- In a small bowl whisk together the tomato paste, water, salt, pepper, onion powder and oregano. Pour this mixture over everything in the slow cooker. Stir.
- Cover and cook on LOW for 7 hours, without opening the lid during the cooking time.
- Serve with buttered sandwich bread or rolls and Enjoy!
How to Video:
Recipe Notes:
Nutrition Information:
Nutrition info is auto-generated. This information is an estimate; if you are on a special diet, please use your own calculations.
I’m not sure why there were negative Nancies, this is a great stew! It cooked perfectly on lpw for about five hours. Ialways make things my own, so I added a few handfuls of cherry tomatoes, a liberal dash of Worstershire, green beans, and corn. I also subbed celery salt for the plain, and added an extra garlic clove. My five year old asked for seconds saying how good it was! Great recipe to build from! Thanks!
If I triple this recipe (lots of mouths to feed!) do I need to add to the cook time?
Yes, you’ll need to add more time. Unsure how much without testing it.
Potatoes didn’t cook, even cut into smaller pieces and cooked past the recommended time. We ended up just having to eat around the potatoes since after 11 hours they were still rock hard… overall though it still tasted really good, I just might have to soften the potatoes prior though
If that happens often, your slow cooker cooks too low. Try the high setting next time.
Followed the recipe and it just came out so tasteless. Such a shame, I so wanted to enjoy this.
This sounds delish! Could l use beef broth instead of water? Thanks!
Yes, beef broth works well!
My mom would add 1/2 head of cabbage ! And put on stove top, add you burger to it and cook all day!! Yummo
When my son was in third grade, his class did a similar version of this, that they called stone soup. All the kids brought in one form of a veg., A potato, carrot, onion, celery, can of tomato sauce, beef broth, hamburger, and so on. It starts out a small villager was very poor. Each home only had a form of ingredient. This boy decided he would make a pot of stone soup. So he starts a fire in the middle of town and puts a stone in a very large pot with some water. As he’s stirring his stone, he’s telling the villagers how nice it would be if only he had some meat, so he could share his soup with the person that brought the meat. This went on until everyone contributed to the pot. There was enough soup for everyone in the village. They all got to share in the feast, and had fun.
That’s what I do
In my home town we eat a similair dish every 3th of October because of a huge city feast. We dont do the tomatoes ( which I think its nice to add) and we use thymian and/or a blend of curry. The whole city smells of what we called Hutspot.
I’m making this Sunday can I serve it over macaroni?
I don’t see why not!
I make this often, I cook on stove top. I use beef broth/ stock which ever I grab (in place of water). I make more of a soup consistency, occasionally I add other vegetables. It’s really versatile ❤️
Can you cook cooked? on high for 4 hours in a slow cooket?
I was wondering the same. Has anyone tried this?
I do not have a slow cooker. Can I use the oven or cook on stove.
I’m sure you could. I have not tested either way though, I apologize.
It looks wonderful and I will be trying it. However, your cost is very deceiving when you say you can purchase hamburger for $.59 / lb. I though in what universe are you finding a Fred Meyer offering that price? I would travel there and buy out the store! Then I noticed the date on the receipt, 2/01/15. That makes more sense. In today’s market, the Poor Man’s Stew will make us A LOT poorer than $6.34. But, still looks fantastic and delicious,
can I use a rice cooker for this receipe?
I’m unsure, I haven’t tested it with one. I apologize.
Can I add beef broth instead of water
I was thinking the same thing
Can you add more liquid?
Yes, you can add as much liquid as you want. This is on the thicker side, so some do add more liquid.