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.
Hey, is the broth suppose to cover the veggies ? I have quite a bit of veggies so was just wondering how much broth I need. Thanks.
It pretty much looks just like the photo. If you added more veggies, you may want to add a little beef broth or a touch more water. 🙂
This is a great recipe! I gave it a little more of a twist as I added a can of corn, pinto beans and stewed tomatoes with a can of beef broth added for extra flavor. It is a hearty and very satisfying meal.
9 hours later and my potatoes are still not cooked…how is noone else having this problem?
I had the same problem the last time I made beef stew. Does anyone have any suggestions? Partially cook the potatoes first?
I had this happen once. The only thing I can think of is that the potatoes are old? Maybe sat on the shelf too long at the store. Normally if I don’t peek at the food in the crock pot the potatoes turn out tender.
I accidentally bought ground chicken a while back, could ground chicken be a substitute for the burger in this?
I think it would be good!
Could this be made with ground turkey, do you think it would turn out as good? My husband isn’t a fan of beef.
Making this right now. I used baby boomer potatoes and cut up baby carrots. It had been cooking for about 2 hours when I peeked in and I saw I needed to add more water. I added about a half a cup more. I taste tested it and added much more seasoning plus tumeric and a dash of chili powder. I turned it to high because my potatoes weren’t getting as done as I would like. Broth would be a much flavorful option if you want to add in that cost, but water is doing pretty well. I plan on serving this over grands 7 layer biscuits 🙂
Do you have a Sams Club nearby? This week 80/20 ground chuck was 2.68 a pound in a 10 lb roll. I cut it into the size I want and freeze it. Smaller packages are x few pennies more.. They also have 90/10. I have always been pleased. I also watch the local sales ads. Anna
I will be making this for dinner
I made this today , I followed recipe upto the water I added 11/2 cups extra plus 1 bouillon cube and I added frozen peas last 20 mins of cooking .. I put temp on high last 20 min. It was delish my family lived it do much . Thanks for sharing
Poor man’s stew has cabbage as the second most ingredient because it is so cheap. Look it up.
Carrots and potatoes are also cheap. Cabbage is NOT a required ingredient.