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Slow Cooker Amish Poor Man’s Stew is the kind of supper I can put together without even thinking, just like my mother and the neighbor ladies used to do on busy farm days. This simple Amish-style poor man’s stew starts with raw potatoes layered on the bottom of the slow cooker, ground beef crumbled right over the top by hand, and just three more pantry ingredients to bring everything together. It’s humble, hearty, and comforting, the kind of meat-and-potato dish that has nourished Midwestern families for generations when money was tight but everyone still needed a full belly.
I love ladling this Slow Cooker Amish Poor Man’s Stew into wide bowls and adding a little extra salt and pepper at the table. It’s especially good with a slice of buttered white bread or cornbread to soak up the flavorful juices. A simple side of green beans, coleslaw, or a crisp lettuce salad with tangy dressing brightens the plate. And if you’re feeding farmhands or hungry grandkids, set out a jar of pickles and some applesauce on the side just like we always did growing up.
Ingredients
- Potatoes, russet
- Quantity: 2 pounds, peeled and cut into 1 inch cubes.
- Notes: Peel the potato (Russet), and cut the potato in 1-inch cubes.
- Ground beef
- Quantity: 1 pound (80-85% lean)
- Notes: Add the uncooked ground meat and with clean hands, crumble the meat over the potatoes and onions in the slow cooker. Cut it into small, loosely over rather than large lumps so as it can cook through evenly and impart flavor to the potatoes as they cook.
- Yellow onion
- Quantity: 1 medium, chopped
- Notes: Evenly sprinkle the potatoes with chopped onion. This adds a fine sweet tenderness to the stew as it gets cooked.
- Condensed tomato soup
- Quantity: 1 can (10.5 ounces)
- Notes: Meanwhile, combine the condensed tomato soup and the beef broth, in a small bowl or large measuring cup, stirring them until relatively smooth. It does not have to be correct, it should be stirred up well enough that the soup is not a single lump.
- Beef broth (or water with beef bouillon granules)
- Quantity: 1 cup beef broth (or 1 cup of water with 1 teaspoon of beef bouillon granules)
- Notes: Add the mixture of the soup and broth and pour it evenly over the crumbled beef, potatoes and onions in the slow cooker. Stir not, but let the liquid run between the layers as it cooks.
- Salt
- Quantity: 1 teaspoon
- Notes: Add the salt and black pepper to the potatoes and onions, and stir it around with your fingers to ensure that the entire lot gets some.
- Black pepper
- Quantity: 1/2 teaspoon
- Notes: Add the salt and black pepper to the potatoes and onions, and stir it around with your fingers to ensure that the entire lot gets some.
Slow Cooker Amish Poor Man’s Stew
Directions
Slow Cooker Amish Poor Man’s Stew
Step 1
Ready the potatoes then they can directly enter the slow cooker. Peel the potato (Russet), and cut the potato in 1-inch cubes. Evenly sprinkle the chopped potatoes in the bottom of a 4 to 6-quart slow cooker.
Step 2
Evenly sprinkle the potatoes with chopped onion. This adds a fine sweet tenderness to the stew as it gets cooked.
Step 3
Add the salt and black pepper to the potatoes and onions, and stir it around with your fingers to ensure that the entire lot gets some.
Step 4
Add the uncooked ground meat and with clean hands, crumble the meat over the potatoes and onions in the slow cooker. Cut it into small, loosely over rather than large lumps so as it can cook through evenly and impart flavor to the potatoes as they cook.
Step 5
Meanwhile, combine the condensed tomato soup and the beef broth, in a small bowl or large measuring cup, stirring them until relatively smooth. It does not have to be correct, it should be stirred up well enough that the soup is not a single lump.
Step 6
Add the mixture of the soup and broth and pour it evenly over the crumbled beef, potatoes and onions in the slow cooker. Stir not, but let the liquid run between the layers as it cooks.
Step 7
Cover the slow cooker with the lid and cook on LOW of 7-8 hours or HIGH of approximately 4 hours until the potatoes are tender and the ground beef is done cooking. Do not open the lid frequently in order to have the stew remain hot and to cook evenly.
Step 8
After cooking, stir the stew gently at the bottom to make all the ingredients of potatoes, beef, and the entire sauce mixed. Add taste and add additional salt and pepper (where necessary).
Step 9
Allow the stew to boil without its lid about 5- 10 minutes, to slightly thicken, and pour into bowls and serve warm.
Variations & Tips
Add vegetables
To add a little more color and sweetness you may add 1-2 chopped carrots on top of the potatoes and leave the rest of the recipe.
Adjust tomato flavor
In case you do not want a strong taste of tomatoes, substitute half of the tomato soup with additional beef broth.
Extra richness
To add more flavor, add a tablespoon of butter to the dish at the time of cooking, or sprinkle a small handful of shredded cheddar cheese on top of each bowl.
Make larger quantity
In order to accommodate more people at the table, add one or two more potatoes and a dash of additional broth.
Ingredient substitutes
In case you have to use what you have around you, any basic potato (Yukon Gold, red potatoes) will do and in a pinch, you can use a few tablespoons of dried minced onion instead of the yellow one.
Leaner option
To make a leaner stew, 90% lean ground beef is needed and in case the stew has some fat on it after cooking then you can simply use a spoon to remove the fat before serving.
