SLOW COOKER BEEF AND BEAN SOUP

This comforting stew-like soup is full of root vegetables, fresh herbs, chunks of beef and hardy beans. It’s a cinch to put together in the slow cooker.

Yield: Serves 6.

SLOW COOKER BEEF AND BEAN SOUP

Ingredients

  • ​1 tbsp canola oil
  • 1 1/2 lb (0.75 kg) stewing beef, cut into 1 inch cubes
  • 1 cup dry red wine
  • 2 cups chopped carrots
  • 2 cups chopped onions
  • 2 cups chopped peeled parsnip
  • 2 cups cubed peeled butternut squash (1/2 inch)
  • 4 cups no-salt-added beef broth
  • 3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 2 tsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp freshly ground pepper
  • 1 can (19 oz/540 mL) navy beans or white kidney beans, rinsed and drained
  • 2 tbsp chopped fresh parsley
  • 1 tbsp chopped fresh rosemary

Directions

  1. Heat oil in a large non-reactive frypan over medium-high heat. Add beef in batches and brown on all sides; transfer beef to a plate. Add wine to frypan and cook, scraping to loosen browned bits, until wine is reduced by half.
  2. Place wine, beef and any accumulated juices in a 6 quart slow cooker. Add carrots, onions, parsnip, squash, broth, garlic, bay leaves, salt and pepper; stir to combine.
  3. Cover and cook on high heat setting for 4 hours.
  4. Uncover slow cooker. Add beans, parsley and rosemary; stir to combine. Cover and cook on low heat setting until beans are heated through, about 15 minutes. Remove and discard bay leaves.
Nutritional analysis per serving:

360 calories, 8.2 g fat, 33.4 g protein, 34.7 g carbohydrate, 9.3 g fibre, 1038 mg sodium

Tip:

Navy beans are small white beans often used in baked beans and soups. Their name comes from the fact that they have been historically served to the United States Navy as a staple part of their meal plan.