Slow Cooker Poor Man’s Stew
434 Comments Nov 14, 2022
Updated May 30, 2025
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Slow Cooker Poor Man’s Stew is made from scratch with ground beef to save money. A very hearty meal with minimal effort or money. This budget friendly ground beef stew can’t be beaten.
We love easy stew recipes like this one, Shipwreck Stew or A-1 Beef Stew, for an easy, hearty dinner.
When I first published this recipe in 2015, I made this entire Poor Man’s Stew for $6.24. Nowadays, the price of groceries is much higher than that. But you can still make an economical meal using fresh vegetables and ground beef.
I put ground beef, russet potatoes, carrots, onions, a garlic clove, tomato paste, water, and seasonings in my slow cooker and simmered it all day to make this Hearty Poor Man’s Stew. A great Sunday dinner recipe or for when you are even camping!
The inspiration for this hamburger stew 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) hand-fed Inigo Montoya (Mandy Patinkin) a hearty stew trying to get him sober, so they could find and save Westley (Carey Elwes). You may also like my Camp Stew Recipe!
What makes this meal budget friendly ?
- Fresh vegetables – I bought just what I needed for this recipe though you can buy bulk bags of gold potatoes (or russet potatoes), carrots, onion, and garlic, and your price will go down per serving.
- Look for ground beef in a roll (called a chub); it’s almost always cheaper than beef in trays. If you have leftover slow cooker ground beef, be sure to use that!
- Dried spices are always cheaper than fresh and last for years; for other recipes, I use onion powder, Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper.
- I use water instead of beef broth in this recipe to cut the cost, though beef broth can be used if desired.
- For the tomato flavor, a cheap can of tomato paste is used.
- {The full Recipe is in the recipe card below the photos}
Step-by-Step Directions
Step One – Brown ground beef in a skillet on the stove-top; drain fat. Add the meat to the crock pot and the potatoes, onions, carrots, and garlic.
Step Two -Whisk together the tomato paste, water, salt, pepper, onion powder, and Italian seasoning in a small bowl.
Step Three – Pour this mixture over everything in the slow cooker. Stir.
Step Four – 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!
Variations
- More Vegetables – Add sweet potatoes, frozen peas, and canned green beans.
- Tomato Soup – Instead of adding tomato paste, use a condensed tomato soup for more flavor.
- Flavor enhancers – Add Worcestershire sauce or hot sauce for a kick of flavor. You can also add a pack of taco seasoning instead of the recipe seasonings.
- Toppings – To serve this crockpot poor mans stew, you may want to add some toppings such as shredded cheddar cheese, diced onion, or crushed saltine crackers.
- Bread – Don’t go out and buy special bread for this meal. It’s terrific with buttered sandwich bread as a side.
Recipe FAQs
You can use ground turkey, ground chicken, or ground sausage (basically any ground meat). Or you can use what traditional beef stew call for, which is beef stew meat.
If you have leftovers, store them in an airtight container for up to three days in the fridge, which will last a few months in the freezer.
Featured Comment
“Thank you so much for the recipe, really enjoyed it! We are on a budget and it’s so nice finding a tasty recipe thats something different to my usual.”
– EM
Slow Cooker Poor Man’s Stew Recipe
How to Video
Ingredients
- 1 lb. ground beef, browned and drained
- 1 ½ lbs russet or gold potatoes, peeled and diced large
- 3 carrots, sliced thick
- 1 yellow onion, diced
- 1 garlic clove, minced (or 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder)
- 6 oz. can tomato paste
- 2 cups water
- 1 tsp. salt
- ¼ tsp. pepper
- 1 tsp. onion powder
- 2 tsp. Italian seasoning, (or 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 Italian seasoning. Pour this mixture over everything in the slow cooker. Stir.
- Cover and cook on LOW for 7-8 hours, without opening the lid during the cooking time.
- Serve with buttered sandwich bread or rolls and Enjoy!
Sarah’s Notes
- You can use ground turkey, ground chicken, or ground sausage (basically any ground meat). Or you can use what traditional beef stew call for, which is beef stew meat.
- If you have leftovers, store them in an airtight container for up to three days in the fridge, which will last a few months in the freezer.
- More Vegetables – Add sweet potatoes, frozen peas, and canned green beans.
- Tomato Soup – Instead of adding tomato paste, use a condensed tomato soup for more flavor.
- Flavor enhancers – Add Worcestershire sauce or hot sauce for a kick of flavor. You can also add a pack of taco seasoning instead of the recipe seasonings.
- Toppings – To serve this crockpot poor mans stew, you may want to add some toppings such as shredded cheddar cheese, diced onion, or crushed saltine crackers.
Nutrition
Nutrition info is auto-generated. This information is an estimate; if you are on a special diet, please use your own calculations.
More Crockpot Stew Recipes
Slow Cooker Beef Stew and Slow Cooker Beef Bourguignon are classic, slow-simmered dishes perfect for a cozy, filling dinner.
Witches Brew Stew and Slow Cooker Chicken Stew are fun, family-friendly options that come together easily in the crockpot.
Beefy Bacon Man Stew and Guinness Beef Stew both bring bold, savory flavors with their own unique twists.
Split Pea Stew rounds things out with a thick, hearty texture that’s comforting and packed with veggies.
Is it possible to do this with frozen ground meat instead of cooking it beforehand? Cook it for longer maybe?
I’ve seen recipes where this is done. It would probably be fine.
So, I stumbled onto this recipe, and I wrote it all down trying to follow it but my personality has issues with following rules! I ended up using what ever i had similar in my house because Im dead poor. I used can marinara sauce and 2 extra tomatoes, cut up, instead of paste, i added chicken broth from a previous meal, and a whole onion because other than salt and pepper and chili flakes, i don’t have spices very much. I did end up using the chili haha! and I added cut up mushrooms because its my husbands favorite. I didn’t have potatoes so I added about 4 ounces of bean/barley mix to soak up the water. Its thick but really great! I also used raw meat, because I had it cooking around 10 hours while I was at work, and I was afraid it’ll get destroyed. It was like a carrot stew/chili It came out great though! Thank you
I love what you did with the recipe!
We love this recipe. The only difference is we add a few good glugs of Worcester Sauce once all the other ingredients are in (We are British and UK based and love the flavours Worcester Sauce adds to stews and casseroles). Thank you for this recipe!!
I love to cook with Worcestershire as well I put it o. Just about every meat I cook. Would you suggest maybe a beef bullion cube for flavor as well, haven’t made it yet but I am planning on it an just curious!!!
This is one of those rare recipes I’ve found that frequently stays in our dinner circulation. I’ve been making it for years. Everyone thinks it’s impossible to eat healthy on a budget and this recipe begs to differ. Thank you!
Thank you for letting me know. So great to hear!
I make this a lot and it’s very popular in my house!! However 7 hours is WAY too long unless you want this to turn into absolute MUSH. I usually cook it for 4 hours and it’s great.
Hi Sarah,
Made the Poor Man’s Stew. It had a good flavor and I enjoyed it. I delivered some to my mom and she liked it , too. I would suggest checking it after about 5 hours. I left mine go for 7 hours without peeking and it burnt a bit and stuck to the sides of the pot. But, it’s a good recipe and I’ll make it again. Thanks
I made this but substituted beef for venison and added 2 tsp garlic powder, 2 tsp old bay seasoning and 6 stalks celery. Turned out great!
Definitely going to make this. Your recipe is very much like what we made “back in the olden days” at Girl Scout camp. Just think, I now use a slow cooker instead of a coffee can!! Thanks for the recipe and bringing back a memory.
That’s a great memory Cheryl!
Sweetie you may have inspired by some old movie to make this, but it has been around longer than you have been alive.
Sweetie, you are incredibly rude!
I’m much older than this movie, but thanks for the compliment!
I’m making this right now. Seems like a good basic recipe. I did add a few extra/different things. I used 1 cup beef broth 1 cup water. I added a can of stewed tomatoes and some celery to it. I used Italian seasoning in it too. Can’t wait, it smells good already.