Slow Cooker Orange Beef Stew

I’m always on the lookout for healthy, nourishing, and delicious meals. I love my Mandarin chicken recipe so I thought I’d try orange beef. I’m so glad I did! This orange beef stew is a perfect recipe for adding a little bit of sweet to a savory dish. It’s also very easy to make and a great meal to make ahead and freeze for another night.

Healthy Orange Beef Stew Ingredients

This nourishing and hearty stew is great on a cold day or when you need to feed a crowd. It’s packed with nutrients for a filling and delicious meal. Here are some of the healthy ingredients in this recipe:

Bone Broth

Beef bone broth is arguably an even more nutritious food than the beef itself. Bone broth contains many of the vitamins and minerals of the beef but in an easier to digest form. Its amino acid structure and high gelatin content makes it soothing and healing for the gut.

Orange Juice

I don’t typically drink juice or let my kids drink juice because it is very high in sugar and it’s easy to drink too much. But in this case, we’re using juice as a sweetener. The orange juice also includes many of the vitamins and minerals of an orange (if it’s freshly squeezed and not pasteurized), making it a healthy sweetener.

Healthy Soy Sauce

Conventional soy sauce is delicious but contains soy and gluten–two things I like to avoid. So I use a healthier soy sauce alternative instead. If I have the extra time, I’ll make this DIY version (there is also a link to a store-bought version if you’re short on time).

Sweet Potatoes

This starchy vegetable is a great source of beta-carotene (a precursor to vitamin A). It’s also a good source of vitamin C, manganese, copper, pantothenic acid, vitamin B6, biotin, and other vitamins and minerals.

Grass-Fed Beef

Grass-fed beef is a tasty and nourishing food. It has higher amounts of omega-3 fatty acids and healthy fats like Conjugated Linoleic Acid (CLA) than conventional beef. It also contains B vitamins, antioxidants, protein, selenium, zinc, phosphorus, choline, pantothenic acid, iron, and potassium. If you can’t find grass-fed beef from a local farm, there are online options for quality grass-fed beef.

Want More? Comfort Foods for Cold Days

If you’re looking for more comfort food recipes for the cold days and nights of winter, here are some of my favorites:

• Mandarin Chicken – This recipe rivals the restaurant version but doesn’t include unhealthy ingredients like high fructose corn syrup.
• Boeuf Bourguignon – This Julia Child inspired recipe is hearty, rich, and amazing!
• Cauliflower Beef Stroganoff – Cauliflower is the base in this recipe (instead of egg noodle) for a healthier version.
• Bean-Free Chili – This delicious recipe only takes a few ingredients, making it an easy pantry meal.
• Garlic Soup – There’s nothing better than garlic when it’s cold outside (and cold season is raging). This hearty soup is great for boosting the immune system.
• Instant Pot Beef Curry – This recipe is on my list to try, as I’m always a fan of a good curry!

Orange Beef Stew

Katie Wells

This hearty beef stew gets the "orange" in its name from the sweet potato chunks and orange juice used in the broth.

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Prep Time 15 mins

Cook Time 4 hrs

Total Time 4 hrs 15 mins

Course Dinner

Cuisine American

Servings 10 people

Calories 349 kcal

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

• 2 sweet potatoes
• 1 bunch scallions
• 1 TBSP rapadura sugar
• 2 TBSP arrowroot powder
• 2 TBSP fermented soy sauce
• 2 TBSP garlic (minced)
• 2 cups orange juice
• 3-4 lbs chuck roast
• 2 cups beef broth
• 1 tsp salt (to taste)
• ½ tsp black pepper (to taste)

Instructions

 

• Peel and chop the sweet potatoes into one-inch chunks and add them to the slow cooker.
• Roughly chop the scallions and add them to the sweet potatoes.
• Add the sugar, arrowroot flour, soy sauce, minced garlic, and orange juice and stir to combine.
• Add the roast, beef broth, salt, and pepper to the slow cooker.
• Cover and cook on low for 8 hours or high for 4 hours until the meat and vegetables are tender.
• Serve with fresh salad and homemade sourdough bread.

Notes

This stew is an excellent freezer meal. Combine all the ingredients except the roast and broth and freeze, then add to the slow cooker with the roast and broth and cook until the roast is tender and falling apart.

You can make several batches at a time and freeze them so that you have several meals ready to go.

Nutrition

Serving: 1cupCalories: 349kcalCarbohydrates: 13gProtein: 32gFat: 18gSaturated Fat: 8gCholesterol: 109mgSodium: 756mgPotassium: 760mgFiber: 1gSugar: 6gVitamin A: 3830IUVitamin C: 26.4mgCalcium: 48mgIron: 3.8mg

Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

What is your favorite beef stew recipe? I’d love to try it!