2 Easy Slow Cooker Beef Recipes

Slow Cooker Roast with Vegetables

This is a simple but delicious recipe for cooking a roast in your slow cooker. The roast is so tender it nearly falls apart. The vegetables have a wonderful flavor that only a slow cooker can give. There's also plenty of gravy for pouring over the roast and vegetables.

Ingredients:

4 lbs. roast (English or Chuck roast work well)
5 to 6 potatoes, quartered
5 carrots, cut into large pieces
2 medium onions, quartered
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 cup water
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon celery seed (optional)
1 teaspoon salt
Cooked egg noodles, amount desired

Preparation:

1. Mix together the cream of mushroom soup, water, pepper and salt together in slow cooker.

2. Place roast in soup mixture in slow cooker, coating both sides of roast with liquid mixture. On low setting, cook in slow cooker 4 to 5 hours.

3. Place potatoes, carrots and onions under roast in the slow cooker after no more than 5 hours. Place roast on top of vegetables. Continue to cook on low for another 2 1/2 to 3 hours, or until the roast is very tender and the vegetables are cooked through.

4. Just before removing ingredients from the slow cooker, cook egg noodles until al dente is reached. Remove roast and vegetables, cover and set in a warm place. Add cooked noodles to gravy mixture in slow cooker. Allow to cook until noodles are hot. (Before adding noodles to slow cooker you may want to thicken the gravy using either cornstarch or flour). Serve gravy over roast, vegetables, and egg noodles.

On low setting, complete cooking time is 6 1/2 to 8 hours.

Slow Cooker Ground Beef Steak and Potatoes

This recipe is a family favorite as a main dinner dish. It's very easy to prepare and can cook slowly while you are away from home. This is also a budget-friendly recipe. It's prepared using common items found stocked in nearly every kitchen pantry. The steak is quite tender and flavorful, while the tender potatoes are covered in delicious gravy.

Ingredients for steak:

2 1/2 to 3 pounds ground beef
3/4 sleeve of saltine crackers, crushed
1/2 cup milk
1 1/2 teaspoons garlic powder
1 1/2 teaspoons onion powder
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon salt
Flour for coating steak
2 tablespoons vegetable oil

Ingredients for Gravy:
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
3 beef bouillon cubes or 3 teaspoons beef bouillon granules
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups water
1 1/2 cups milk

6 potatoes, quartered

Preparation:

1. In a large bowl, mix together the ground beef, saltine crackers, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, pepper, and milk. Mix until well blended. Shape into round patties or ovals and set aside.

2. Grease the bottom of the slow cooker and put in potatoes.

3. Dissolve the bouillon cubes in the water. Put flour, salt and pepper in a separate bowl. Add small amounts of the bouillon water at a time, mixing well. Once this forms a paste, add milk and mix well to keep lumps from forming. Pour over potatoes in slow cooker.

4. Dredge each side of beef patties in flour.

5. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Brown both side of beef patties. Add each patty to slow cooker as soon as browned.

6. Cook on low setting for 5 to 6 hours. On high setting, cook for 3 to 4 hours.

Serving suggestion:

Use the gravy to pour over your steak and potatoes, if desired. Add a green vegetable for a complete meal.

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