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 Slow Cooker 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.
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.
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Slow Cooker Poor Man’s Stew Recipe
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!
How to Video:
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 Information:
Nutrition info is auto-generated. This information is an estimate; if you are on a special diet, please use your own calculations.
andrea says
This was Delicious!!!! I added a can of cream of mushroom soup to the hamburger meat after draining. YUM!!!
Rick says
Just curious……..the top of the recipe says cook for 5 hours, while the bottom says 7 hours. Is 5 long enough? Thanks.
Sarah Olson says
Thanks for letting me know. I fixed it. I think 6 hours would be best to insure the potatoes and carrots get tender.
Rick says
Thanks for the fast reply. I checked after 5 hours and it still needs another hour…can’t wait!
June says
Made this last night for supper. I used everything you had in the recipe, at the end had to put a little water in and let it cook. It was awesome, my husband even loved it, and he is a very picky eater. I will made this again, and past the recipe on to my friends. Thanks
Grandma says
For the person who has to work extra long hours, do the beef the night before and put it back in the freezer. Use ice cubes instead of water, and leave the vegetables larger. This should make longer hours of cooking okay.
kyleigh says
I’m so excited to try this, I just put everything together & can’t wait to start it in the morning! This is my first crockpot meal ever!
Sarah Olson says
How exciting!
Jools says
This was the bees knees, so delicious, rich, tasty, so full of flavor…. hard to believe it was so inexpensive !
B says
Would ground turkey work with this? TIA!
Sarah Olson says
I don’t see why not!
Karla M says
id like to use 2 pounds of beef because we always need left overs. Do I need to change anything else for the extra beef?
barb evans says
Yes, I often use ground turkey, it’s very good.
Enjoy
Sarah Olson says
I think it may work still, if it looks dry maybe add some beef broth to stretch it.
Sean says
I made this on Friday and you talk about delicious! I added more garlic and instead of water used chicken broth/stock. This is a keeper. Thanks so much for sharing this one!
Bob says
Sounds great
Sarah says
In the crockpot now but with ground turkey breast since we don’t eat beef! Looks great!
Lynn says
One of my absolute favorite movies!! I never get tired of watching it. Everyone in the cast was perfect! Thanks for telling us about the book. I’ll have to get it.
Patricia Honberger says
Forgot to put the onion powder in the recipe. 🙂
Sarah Olson says
Thanks Patricia! I’ll fix that.
Marie says
Is it okay to keep it on low for 11 hours or will it over cook? I have long workdays and would like to put it on before I leave in the morning and have it ready in the evening.
Sarah Olson says
The longest I would cook this type of recipe is 8 hours. Next time you are in the market for a new crock pot, I highly recommend one with a timer. So many more recipes can be made with it!
Beverly Gonzalez says
You are so right Sarah about the new cockpots with timers! No 2 crockpots cook alike either so experiment a little and you’ll find how long you can cook different things. No more than 8 hours for this recipe because any longer would turn potatoes to mush. I used beef broth instead of water and didn’t find the need to thicken it. Our beef prices here in Arizona are higher in rural areas than in the city. I bought 80/20 ground beef and butter ball 93/7 ground turkey on sale and mixed it together when I cooked it. Wow great flavor. This dish is a keeper!
Araceli says
Do you cook the ground beef before putting it in the slow cooker or add it raw
Sarah Olson says
I cook it.
Anonymous says
I sear it first
Robbie Ashcraft says
You could set your crock pot on a timer. That is what I do. I bought a timer you plug into and set it to come on so it will be done when I get home.
Bonnie Vogeler says
if you use a timer, don’t you have to let your ingredients set in the crock pot? is that safe? I leave for work at 7:30 am so if I would set the timer for 9:30, the hamburger has set out for 2 hrs.
Sandy Quinn says
It will still be fine. The crock pot will keep it hot, even when it’s off.