You can easily create this healthy, flavorful Instant Pot Carne Guisada Mexican Beef Stew meal in less than an hour with your Instant Pot! This hearty dish is perfect for a busy weeknight when you need to get dinner on the table fast. It is also great for feeding a crowd!
The Instant Pot makes it possible to have an amazing meal that tastes like it has been cooking all day. Try it with my Mexican Rice or shred the meat and vegetables for delicious carne guisada tacos!
Highlights
- Made in an Instant Pot or electric pressure cooker
- Beef stew with Mexican flavor profile
- Simple and family friendly
Why it's great
Quick - cooking this stew in the Instant Pot is much quicker than it would be to make it on the stove or other cooking methods. After sautéing for just a few minutes, your stew will cook for just 35 minutes after coming to pressure.
Flavorful - if you are a fan of Mexican or Puerto Rican beef, you are absolutely going to love this dish. This Instant Pot Carne Guisada Mexican Beef Stew is absolutely packed full of flavor. The potatoes, diced tomatoes, and jalepenos along with spices like chili powder and cumin come together for maximum flavor!
Easy - this Mexican beef stew is very easy to make. All of the required ingredients are very easy to find, and this entire meal can be made in just one pot.
Key ingredients
Beef - I like to use stew meat that's already been cut up. It's a huge timesaver. You can buy a chuck roast or shoulder roast and trim it into cubes if needed. Trim excess fat if desired.
Peppers - Jalepeños will not be hot, but will add a nice flavor. Serrano peppers can be used in place of jelepeños, or you can use green or red peppers instead.
Potatoes - butter or golden potatoes work best because they will hold their shape. Red potatoes should also hold their shape. Russets can be used, but they may not hold their shape as well.
Fresh tomatoes, onions, and garlic - fresh vegetables provide the best flavor and texture.
Chili powder, cumin, oregano - these spices give this stew its unique flavor. My homemade taco seasoning would also work well.
Tomato sauce, beef broth, and Worcestershire sauce - adds richness and depth.
How to make it
Always start with clean hands, work area, and kitchen utensils.
Step One: Season stew meat generously with kosher salt and pepper.
Hit the SAUTE function on the pressure cooker. You’ll need about 15 minutes. Once hot, add some oil and sear meat until browned. Do this in batches, adding more oil if needed.
Set meat aside on a plate. Add chopped onions, tomatoes, garlic, jalapeños, chili powder, cumin, and dried oregano to the pot. Continue to sauté until vegetables are tender, about 5 minutes.
Add veggies... Cook until softened.
Step Two: Press CANCEL. Add browned stew meat back into the pot. Add broth, tomato sauce, Worcestershire sauce, potatoes, and bay leaf, and give it a stir to combine. Close and lock the lid.
Pressure cook on HIGH for 35 minutes. (It will take about 15 minutes for the instant pot to come to pressure). When the cooking cycle ends, let the pressure release naturally for 15 minutes, then use the steam release valve to release the remaining pressure. Remove the lid.
Step Three: Mix water and cornstarch to create the slurry. Be sure there aren’t any lumps. Set the pressure cooker to SAUTE and let stew come to a simmer. Slowly add slurry to stew, constantly stirring with a whisk. Let simmer until thickened, one or two minutes. Remove bay leaf before serving.
Adding a thickener like a slurry is optional. You may prefer a thinner consistency.
My tips
- Pressure cookers vary. Be sure you are familiar with yours and make any time adjustments as needed. This recipe was made in the Instant Pot brand Ultra 60 (6 quarts).
- To cook on the stovetop: use a Dutch oven or stockpot. Prepare and cook the recipe as written, allowing stew to cook on low until meat is tender. Then add slurry to thicken.
- Don’t like Mexican flavors? You can use this recipe as a base for beef stew. Skip the jalapeños, chili powder, and cumin and add more traditional herbs like rosemary, oregano and thyme. Customize to suit your taste.
- Skip the tomato sauce and try 1 cup beer or some red or white wine. You could also use water if that’s what is available.
Serving suggestions
This dish is traditionally served with either rice or flour tortillas.
Have some of my homemade guacamole with chips as an appetizer or along side. And this beefy queso would taste great too!
A salad would round out the meal nicely. Try some crisp greens with my avocado ranch drizzled over top.
Low carb: try roasted cauliflower instead of potatoes or serve over cauliflower rice.
Garnishes: A dollop of sour cream and a sprinkle of fresh cilantro would be delicious on top. If you like spice, try some fresh sliced jalepeños or some hot sauce. Salsa or green chili verde would taste great too.
Storage and reheating
Leftover beef stew can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
Store your leftover stew in an air-tight container in the freezer, making sure to leave about half an inch of space to allow for expansion. Your stew can be kept frozen for up to 3 months.
To reheat from frozen: for best results, allow stew to thaw completely in the fridge before reheating. However, you can also warm it slowly on the stove or microwave as well.
Always use your meat thermometer to be sure your meat is warmed to the safe temperature of 165 degrees F.
Common questions
Yes, you can if you allow it to cook too long. You want your instant pot to cook the meat long enough for it to get tender but not so long that it will make your meat dry.
Yes! If you choose to use ground beef rather than stew meat, be sure you brown it well before adding it to your pot. This will allow for that great flavor and color you get from searing cuts of beef like stew meat.
Carne Asada is typically made with grilled beef and does not have any gravy. Carne Guisada, on the other hand, is cooked beef with gravy.
Instant Pot Carne Guisada (Mexican Beef Stew)
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 pounds beef stew meat trimmed of excess fat
- 1-2 tablespoons oil olive canola, etc, divided
- Kosher salt and freshly cracked paper to season beef
- 1 cup onion chopped
- 3 Roma tomatoes coarsely chopped
- 3 garlic cloves chopped
- 1 jalapeno chopped or serrano pepper
- 1 tablespoon chili powder ancho or chipotle chile powder
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano leaves
- 2 ½ cups beef broth
- 1 8 ounce can tomato sauce
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 ½ pound potatoes peeled and cut into 2 inch pieces
- 1 bay leaf
Slurry to thicken
- 4 tablespoon broth or water
- 2 tablespoon cornstarch tapioca starch, flour
Instructions
- Season stew meat generously with kosher salt and pepper.
- Hit the SAUTE function on the pressure cooker. You’ll need about 15 minutes. Once hot, add some oil and sear meat until browned. Do this in batches, adding more oil if needed. Set meat aside on a plate.
- Add chopped onions, tomatoes, garlic, and jalapenos, chili powder, cumin, and dried oregano to the pot. Continue to saute until vegetables are tender, about 5 minutes.
- Press CANCEL. Add browned stew meat back into pot. Add broth, tomato sauce, Worcestershire sauce, potatoes, and bay leaf, and give it a stir to combine.
- Close and lock lid. Pressure cook on HIGH for 35 minutes. (It will take about 15 minutes for the instant pot to come to pressure).
- When the cooking cycle ends, let pressure release naturally for 15 minutes, then use the steam release valve to release remaining pressure. Remove the lid.
- Mix water and cornstarch to create the slurry. Be sure there aren’t any lumps.
- Set pressure cooker to SAUTE and let stew come to a simmer. Slowly add slurry to stew, stirring constantly with a whisk. Let simmer until thickened, one or two minutes.
- Remove bay leaf before serving.
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