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Vegetable Beef Soup

Vegetable beef soup with browned stew meat, tender potato cubes, and hearty vegetables simmered in a mahogany broth. Made in a Dutch oven until the beef is fork-tender and the potatoes are soft.
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour
Total Time 1 hour 20 minutes
Servings: 8 servings
Course: Main Dish
Cuisine: American
Calories: 420

Ingredients
  

Beef stew meat
  • 1.5 lb beef stew meat, cubed
Potatoes
  • 3 potatoes, peeled and cubed
Carrots
  • 3 carrots, sliced
Celery
  • 3 celery, sliced
Onion
  • 1 onion, diced
Garlic
  • 4 garlic, minced
Green beans
  • 1 cup green beans, cut
Frozen corn
  • 1 cup frozen corn
Diced tomatoes
  • 1 can (14 oz) diced tomatoes
Beef broth
  • 6 cup beef broth
Tomato paste
  • 2 tbsp tomato paste
Worcestershire sauce
  • 1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
Olive oil
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
Dried thyme
  • 1 tsp dried thyme
Bay leaf
  • 1 bay leaf
Salt and pepper
  • 1 salt and pepper to taste

Equipment

  • 1 Dutch oven

Method
 

Brown the beef
  1. Heat the olive oil in a large Dutch oven, then sear the beef in batches until browned on all sides, about 3-5 minutes per batch, keeping the pieces in a single layer until a deep color forms. Remove the beef to a plate.
Build the soup base
  1. Sauté the onion, carrots, and celery in the same Dutch oven for 5 minutes until softened, stirring occasionally so they pick up a little color.
  2. Add the garlic and tomato paste, then cook for 2 minutes until fragrant and darkened slightly.
Simmer
  1. Return the browned beef to the pot, then add the beef broth, diced tomatoes, Worcestershire sauce, dried thyme, and bay leaf.
  2. Bring the mixture to a boil over high heat, then reduce to a simmer and cook for 30 minutes so the broth turns rich and the beef starts to become tender.
  3. Add the potatoes and cook for 15 minutes at a steady simmer, stirring once or twice, until the potatoes are beginning to soften.
  4. Add the green beans and frozen corn for the last 8 minutes of cooking, simmering until the beans are crisp-tender and the corn is hot.
  5. Remove the bay leaf, then season with salt and pepper to taste so the flavors round out.

Notes

For the best flavor, don’t crowd the Dutch oven when browning the beef—work in batches for true browning. Store leftovers in the refrigerator up to 4 days in a sealed container; reheat gently until steaming. Freeze for up to 3 months (add potatoes if you prefer softer texture after thawing). Dietary swap: use gluten-free Worcestershire sauce if needed.