Top 34+ beautiful slow cooker beef recipes & cooking tips
- The best cuts for slow cooker beef recipes
- You’ll need these…
- Tips for slow cooking success
- Slow cooker biryani
- Slow cooker beef ragu
- Slow cooker beef soup with chickpea & chorizo
- Slow cooker massaman beef curry
- Slow-cooker beef stroganoff
- Slow cooker beef ramen with shiitake mushrooms
- Slow-cooker beef cheeks in pedro ximénez
- Beef and mushroom pies
- Slow-cooker beer and thyme beef cheeks
- Slow cooker five ingredient cottage pie
- Beer and thyme beef cheeks
- Slow-cooked Mexican beef chilli mole
- Beef and vegetable soup
- Coconut curried beef
- Lasagne-style crock-pot
- Beef casserole with cheesy herb dumplings
- Coriander beef curry
- Tuscan beef stew
- What to serve with your slow cooker beef
- More slow cooker inspiration
- Even more slow cooker dinners
From curries and casseroles to ribs and stews, these slow cooker beef recipes will inspire you for a big batch cook or just for dinner tonight.
Scroll through our collection of slow cooker beef recipes to find your new favourites, and check out our tips for slow cooking success below – from browning the beef to how to freeze leftovers.
The best cuts for slow cooker beef recipes
The best cuts of beef for slow cooking are topside, oyster, blade, skirt, round, chuck and gravy beef. Long, slow cooking will tenderise even the toughest cut of beef.
Tough cuts are usually inexpensive, but cutting the meat off the bone yourself can save you more money, as you’re not paying for the convenience of pre-cut meat. Cutting up the meat yourself also gives you the opportunity to trim off visible fat and make the pieces a uniform size.
You’ll need these…
Tips for slow cooking success

Brown the beef first for maximum flavour.
Brown the beef first
Although most slow cooker recipes are straightforward, it is best not to just throw all your beef in at once. Browning the meat first enhances the flavour and gives the meat a beautiful rich colour.
Do this in a heated, oiled large frying pan, adding the meat in batches, and turning it so that it browns evenly, as shown in the video below. Make sure there is a sufficient amount of oil in the pan so that the meat caramelises rather than scorches. Be sure to have the pan heated before adding the meat.
It is also important to maintain the heat during the browning process; if the pan is not hot enough, the meat will stew rather than brown.
If you’re pushed for time, brown the meat the night before. Once everything is browned, put it in an airtight container along with any juices and refrigerate until the next day.
Thicken the sauce
Coating beef in flour before browning will result in a sauce that is thick enough to make a light coating gravy. If the slow cooker recipe does not suggest coating the beef, then it is a good idea to thicken the sauce using plain flour or cornflour.
Blend the flour or cornflour with butter or a cold liquid, such as water or some of the cooled juices from the cooker; this will help it to combine with the cooking juices when stirred into the pan at the end of the cooking time. Put the lid back on and leave the sauce to thicken while the cooker is on the highest setting – this will take 10–20 minutes.
Another trick to thicken the sauce is to blend some of the cooked vegetables until smooth and then stir them into the cooking juices.

Julie Goodwin’s 6-hour bolognese sauce is perfect for freezing.
How to freeze slow cooker beef recipes
Slow-cooked meals will freeze for up to 3 months. There is usually a large quantity of liquid so transfer the meat and vegetables to appropriate-sized freezer-friendly containers, then pour in enough of the liquid to cover the meat and/or vegetables. Leave a 2.5cm space between the food and the lid to allow for expansion, then seal the container. Label and date the container before placing it in the freezer.
If a slow cooker recipe has a large quantity of mushrooms or potatoes, or a large piece of beef as an ingredient, we usually advise against freezing. However, if you don’t mind the food looking a bit sad after it’s thawed, almost anything will tolerate being frozen.

Slow cooker beef stew

Slow cooker biryani recipe
Slow cooker biryani

Slow cooker corned beef with horseradish sauce on a plate

slow cooker beef ragu
Slow cooker beef ragu

Slow cooker beef soup with chickpea & chorizo
Slow cooker beef soup with chickpea & chorizo

Slow cooker chilli con carne served with with corn chips and lime wedges

Spaghetti bolognese

Slow-cooker massaman beef curry
Slow cooker massaman beef curry

slow cooker beef stroganoff
Slow-cooker beef stroganoff

Bowl of beef ramen with shiitake mushrooms
Slow cooker beef ramen with shiitake mushrooms

two bowls filled with beef cheeks, beans and mash on a set table
Slow-cooker beef cheeks in pedro ximénez

Shredded beef and mushroom pies
Beef and mushroom pies

tray of cooked beef cheeks
Slow-cooker beer and thyme beef cheeks

Slow cooker five ingredient cottage pie
Slow cooker five ingredient cottage pie

Slow cooker beef casserole

Texas-style brisket with corn & slaw

Beer and thyme beef cheeks
Beer and thyme beef cheeks

beef stew and casserole recipes

slow cooker beef rendang

Slow-cooker cottage pie

SHREDDED BEEF TACOS

Five ingredient beef tacos

Vietnamese beef brisket

Slow-cooked beef rib bourguignon

Women's Weekly slow cooker recipes

Slow-cooked Mexican beef chilli mole
Slow-cooked Mexican beef chilli mole

Beef and vegetable soup
Beef and vegetable soup

easy beef curry recipes
Coconut curried beef

Julie Goodwin's 6-hour bolognese

Lasagne-style crock-pot
Lasagne-style crock-pot

beef casserole with cheesy herb dumplings
Beef casserole with cheesy herb dumplings

coriander beef curry
Coriander beef curry

tuscan beef stew
Tuscan beef stew

Slow cooker meatballs
What to serve with your slow cooker beef
Often the recipes will contain a serving suggestion, like rice and roti for curries. However, some classic accompaniments for slow cooker beef include mashed potato or a potato bake.
More slow cooker inspiration
For tips on how to adapt your favourite non-slow-cooker recipes for the appliance, check out our Test Kitchen guide to adapting recipes to suit your slow cooker.






