Martha Stewart's Instant Pot Beef Stew With Dijon & Tomato Recipe on Food52 (2024)

Instant Pot

by: Food52

October13,2018

4

47 Ratings

  • Cook time 1 hour 15 minutes
  • Serves 6

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Author Notes

Recipe reprinted from Martha Stewart's Pressure Cooker: 100+ Fabulous New Recipes for the Pressure Cooker, Multicooker, and Instant Pot®. Copyright © 2018 by Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia. Photograph copyright © 2018 by Marcus Nilsson. Published by Clarkson Potter/Publishers, an imprint of Penguin Random House LLC.

A bowl of beef stew can take the chill off even the most wintery day. This one employs tangy Dijon mustard to unite all the other ingredients—beef chuck, onions, mushrooms, carrots, and tomatoes. You can make it a meal by serving it with mashed potatoes or crusty bread, some greens, and a bottle of red wine such as Cabernet or Zinfandel. —Food52

Test Kitchen Notes

Featured in: . —The Editors

  • Test Kitchen-Approved

What You'll Need

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Martha Stewart's Instant Pot Beef Stew With Dijon &Tomato

Ingredients
  • 2 tablespoonsextra-virgin olive oil
  • 3 poundsboneless beef chuck, cut into 1½-inch cubes
  • Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper
  • 2 or 4 cupswater
  • 1 poundwhite mushrooms, trimmed and halved or quartered if large
  • 2 medium onions, finely chopped
  • 1 medium carrot, finely chopped
  • 1 celery stalk, finely chopped
  • 2 garlic cloves, coarsely chopped
  • 1 can (28 ounces) whole tomatoes
  • 1/4 cupDijon mustard
Directions
  1. Heat oil in 6- to 8-quart stovetop pressure cooker over medium-high, or in an electric pressure cooker set to sauté. Pat beef dry and season with 1½ teaspoons salt and ¾ teaspoon pepper. Working in batches, cook beef until browned on all sides, 6 to 8minutes; transfer to a plate.
  2. Add 1 cup water to pressure cooker, scraping up brown bits with a wooden spoon. Add 3 cups more water for stovetop, and 1 cup more water for electric. Add mushrooms, onions, carrot, celery, garlic, tomatoes (with their juices), mustard, and ½ teaspoon salt. Return beef to pressure cooker along with any accumulated juices.
  3. Stovetop: Secure lid. Bring to high pressure over medium-high heat; reduce heat to maintain pressure and cook for 60 minutes. Remove from heat, quickly release pressure, then remove lid.

    Electric: Secure lid. Manually set cooker to 60 minutes and let it come to pressure. Once time is complete, turn off, quickly release pressure, then remove lid.

  4. Skim any fat from surface. Top stew with basil, if using, and serve.

Tags:

  • Stew
  • American
  • Beef
  • Weeknight Cooking
  • Instant Pot
  • Pressure Cook
  • Dinner

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17 Reviews

SilverStreak January 8, 2024

Very confusing instructions! Criss-crossed stovetop vs. Instant Pot within the same steps… I thought this was supposed to be an Instant Pot recipe (as it says in the title). Perhaps this is why some people got soup-like results; using 3 or 4 cups of liquid in the Instant Pot instead of the total 2 cups? I’m going to give it a try, but it seems very poorly written.

MarkMac May 15, 2023

Delicious! The meat turns out very tender. The recipe as written is for the larger sized Instant Pot, btw. My modifications: browned the meat in iron skillet in two batches, keeping the pieces separated. Deglazed the skillet with 1 cup red wine, allowing for some reduction / evaporation of the wine. Added 1 cup of chicken broth instead of water as I did not have beef broth (I would not use water in this recipe, rather broth, wine, bouillon, etc.). The Instant Pot recipe calls for two cups of liquid and the 28 oz can of tomatoes-- next time, I might use just the cup of wine, and a half cup of beef broth, in addition to the can and juice of the tomatoes. It turned out very well.

Michael M. February 19, 2023

Hi everyone! We made this recipe in our instant pot and it was delicious. We used beef stock in place of the 3 cups of water and we used red wine in place of the extra cup of water. Other than that, made exactly as written and it was perfect.

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Cynthia G. October 30, 2020

This is really just a beef soup. The flavors are totally dilutedNothing like the picture. If I were to nake this again I aould deglaze with 1)2 cup of water and use diced or crushed tomatoes. Really a disappointment.

Adrianne April 7, 2019

This is delicious! I did not use the instant release, rather just went natural. Meat was very tender. Stew was very brothy, more like soup. Served it over a dollop of mashed potatoes. Homemade bread on the side. Will make this again.

mickeyc February 12, 2019

I bought an Instant Pot last year and it stated in the manual to NEVER use the Instant Release when done cooking MEAT, or the meat would be tough. It said to Natural Release until the little metal thing (float valve) drops down. That takes 10 to 40 minutes. My slow cooker on the Instant Pot never worked right, it wouldn't get hot, so I returned it and bought a new Instant Pot and the book is different now, and no where does it say to NOT use the instant release, like in the old manual. There is a recipe for pot roast and it says when it done to use the instant release, so I don't know why it changed. I will continue to do the natural release anyway on meats. In the new recipe book, it says to do what the recipe states, so there must be cases where one would use the Natural Release. Maybe they found out that some meats, like chicken, would get overly tender? Just guessing.

Jennie April 7, 2019

I have used instant release and natural release for pot roast, and found instant release makes the surface of the meat stringy and tough. Maybe there is enough moisture covering the meat in the recipe to avoid that.

Mindthegap December 9, 2018

A lot less heavy than I’d thought it would be and yes, a bit soupy as earlier reviewer mentioned (maybe reduce additional water if you like it a little thicker). Tomatoes did not burn in Instant Pot: the key is to layer mushrooms, onions, carrots, celery and then tomatoes on top of that, which keeps them off the bottom of the pot and prevents the dreaded “burn” notice. Tender meat. Mixed in a little horseradish to zip up the flavor.

Barb M. December 9, 2018

Everything that I have read about cooking meat the InstantPot says to never do a "quick release" on it. That it makes the meat tough. Has anyone tried this recipe?

Sherri D. December 9, 2018

Just released pressure and gave it a taste. Meat is very tender. This is more of a soup than stew in my opinion. Will be serving over rice or potatoes for dinner tonight. Husband likes it.

Mathew H. December 9, 2018

I tried it tonight. Beef came out as tender as I had hoped for. Overall good recipe. Not life-changing, but good beef stew in an afternoon. Not sure about the meat/quick release rules.

Fred H. December 19, 2018

I've used the Instant Pot dozens of times, almost always with "quick release" recipes, and I've never had it produce tough meat. Where is this "everything" you've read?

Barb M. December 19, 2018

Whoops. Have you not had your medication today?

Fred H. December 19, 2018

Setting aside the implicit shaming of folks with mental difficulties — no; I was just wondering where you'd seen the lore about quick release making the meat tough. You said "everything that I have read" says that — but *nothing* that I've read has. So: what were your sources?

Sf2oak January 14, 2019

Here's where I've seen the lore of NPR (among many other places.)
https://www.hippressurecooking.com/meat-openings-pcs/
So it's interesting to know that you don't find QR toughens meat.
"...Slow Release – A piece of meat that is pressure cooked, but opened with a slow pressure release, like my recommended Natural Pressure Release, will evaporate slightly more moisture than the one that was conventionally cooked – but, not a lot.

Fast Release – And, finally, let’s see what happens to a pressure cooker roast which was pulled out of the pressure cooker as fast as possible using quickest pressure release, such as Normal pressure release. The meat is really, really hot and a majority of the moisture begins evaporating away super quickly.

And that’s why for most recipes I recommend using the Natural pressure release. It gives the meat’s juices enough time to lower their temperature slowing the evaporation..."

Jennie April 7, 2019

I have used instant release and natural release for pot roast, and found instant release makes the surface of the meat stringy and tough. Maybe there is enough moisture covering the meat in the recipe to avoid that.

Martha Stewart's Instant Pot Beef Stew With Dijon & Tomato Recipe on Food52 (2024)

FAQs

Why is my stew meat tough in Instant Pot? ›

Stew meat can become tough in the instant pot if you cook it too quickly.

Is stew better in the slow cooker or instant pot? ›

Taste: For overall taste, the pressure cooker was the hands-down winner. Beef, carrots, and potatoes all retained their rich flavors. After 8 hours in the slow cooker, they emerged bland and seemed to need salt.

What's the difference between soup and stew on instant pot? ›

Stews are generally thicker and chunkier than a soup. Ingredients can be similar or identical to ones found in soup, but with less liquid (barely covering ingredients), and are cooked by simmering or stewing.

How do you set up an instant pot for stew? ›

Add all ingredients - except for the cornstarch - to the instant pot. Close the pot and select the "Stew" setting on the Instant Pot Duo. (If yours does not have such a setting, then cook on high pressure for 35 minutes.) Let it naturally release for 10 mins and then flip the quick release.

Do you have to brown stew meat before Instant Pot? ›

Searing the beef cubes first creates all those tasty browned bits that make the finished sauce that much more delicious, but you don't have to spend a lot of time searing the cubes all over.

Is it better to slow cook or pressure cook beef? ›

This completely depends on the type of meat you are planning on cooking. Because slow cookers take longer to cook, they are better suited to breaking down fat in meat while adding moisture. So if you are planning on cooking a whole rump beef, then a slow cooker is a better choice.

How long does it take to cook 2 pounds of beef in the Instant Pot? ›

Then add the fresh herbs and potatoes. Seal the Instant Pot and cook at high pressure. The cooking time depends on how much beef you have. I like to assume 20 minutes for every pound of meat.

What is the best meat for stew? ›

Go for the chuck

The most common beef used for stew is chuck steak, also known as gravy beef or braising steak.

How do you keep stew from burning in Instant Pot? ›

Here are our recommendations to avoid the dreaded "burn" message:
  1. Place Tomatoes On Top. ...
  2. Cook Pot-in-Pot. ...
  3. Avoid Processed Ingredients. ...
  4. Take Extra Steps in Sauté Mode. ...
  5. Add More Water.
Oct 4, 2021

How long can stew stay in Instant Pot? ›

Unlike nonstick cooking surfaces, the stainless steel pot presents no threat of harmful chemicals. Instant Pot also switches to a “warm” setting when it's done cooking, keeping food at a safe temperature for up to 10 hours.

What is the advantage of cooking a stew in a pressure cooker? ›

Benefits of a pressure cooker. Pressure cooking reduces the cooking time for most foods. This shorter cooking time can result in fewer nutrients being leeched out of food during the cooking process. Put another way, your food keeps more of the nutrients inside.

What does the soup broth button do on Instant Pot? ›

Instant Pot SOUP Setting (SOUP/BROTH BUTTON) The default Instant Pot soup setting is pre-programmed to set the pot to cook at HIGH pressure for 30 minutes. The soup program brings the contents of the pot to a slow simmer and results in a clear broth due to lack of boiling motion.

Why is my Instant Pot not pressurizing my stew? ›

Your Instant Pot needs liquid to work. If there's not enough, your pot won't be able to create enough steam to build pressure. About 1 cup is the minimum amount of liquid, so if you're cooking a recipe that will absorb water, like rice or beans, you'll need even more.

How do you thicken beef stew? ›

Whisk a teaspoon of flour in a little cold water to make a slurry, then stir into the stew as it's cooking. Don't add dry flour directly to the stew as it may clump. After adding the slurry, bring the stew to boil. This will cook out the flour taste and allow the starch to swell.

How to make beef stew meat tender? ›

The most important key to making stew meat tender is being sure to cook it for a long time. If you want super tender beef, you'll need to cook it on a low heat in a Dutch oven on the stove or a slow cooker for at least a few hours.

What to do if meat is tough in Instant Pot? ›

Otherwise, if your meat ends up tough due to undercooking, that's easy to fix; just return the beef to the pot and let it cook a little longer.

What to do if stew meat is tough? ›

The most important key to making stew meat tender is being sure to cook it for a long time. If you want super tender beef, you'll need to cook it on a low heat in a Dutch oven on the stove or a slow cooker for at least a few hours.

Does stew meat get tougher the longer you cook it? ›

Don't Stew the Stew Too Long Either

It might seem that cooking your beef stew on low for 8 hours will make it even better, but that is not true at all. Your beef will be tough if you don't cook it enough and it will be tough if you cook it too much. It's just science, take it from us!

How do you tenderize meat in an Instant Pot? ›

Tips and Notes for Perfect Instant Pot Steak

The key to tender beef in a pressure cooker is not just the cooking time but also the natural release of pressure instead of quick release. This allows the meat fibers to relax and retain moisture, making them tender and juicy.

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