Take all the flavours of fall and toss them in the slow cooker - Pumpkin Squash Stew will cook all day, tempting you with the aroma and making you hungry for dinner!
When the weather gets chilly, and a few snowflakes start to fall (yup, already happens in October here!) I start dreaming of an easy meal that's ready to go. Slow cooker barely beef stew is the way to go! This is thick, hearty, and feeds a crowd!
I also love my Instant Pot. It certainly saves my bacon when I forget to thaw something out. Ham Bone Soup is made in a jiffy, or whip up a quick Venison Stew.
Carry the theme through with Pumpkin Dinner Rolls or Dutch Oven Sourdough. Whatever you choose, you must have bread to get every last drop of stew!
Key Ingredients
Squash - Kabocha is a great option, or use a sugar/pie pumpkin. Truly any hard winter squash will work here.
Meat - Beef stew meat is typical, but you can use any wild game you like.
Beans - Kidney beans are delicious and I like them in a stew because they are larger and sturdy, to hold up to the long cooking time.
Barley - Pearled barley will thicken the stew and add a really great chewy texture to your bowl.
Broth - Soups and stews are a great way to get nutrient-dense broth into your family.
How to Make Pumpkin Barley Stew
***See recipe card below for precise measurements and instructions.***
Step 1: Scoop out the seeds, then slice and dice the squash into bite-sized pieces.
Step 2: Wash and chop the carrots, and add with the squash and beans.
Step 3: Add remaining ingredients, then season and cook on low all day.
Step 4: Feel free to add more seasoning or more broth towards the end of cooking to make it just the way you like.
Tips and Tricks
- This is a great way to use up potatoes that might be a bit wrinkly. They also make great Twice-Baked Potatoes.
- Do not use "quick" barley. It may or may not say pearled, but as long as it isn't a quick-cooking version it's right.
- Use any type of meat you like. Beef would be an easy one that most people enjoy, but this is also a great recipe to introduce someone to wild game.
- You can use home cooked and canned beans, cook some now, or just use cans. Use what ya got! But only use cooked beans as there isn't enough liquid to cook dry beans.
FAQs
Winter squash has quite the tough skin on it, so I prefer not to peel with a vegetable peeler. We keep our knives very sharp, which is much safer for you. Carefully cut the squash in half so you can scoop out the seeds (save them!!). Then you can cut into slices and carefully slice off the peel before dicing.
Barley will either come in a bag like dried lentils and beans, or sometimes in a box (generally Quaker brand), or brands like Bob's Red Mill in bags. It might or might not be called "pearled." As long as it isn't a quick-cooking variety you should be ok to use it. The quick ones either have the hull removed or are par-cooked and will turn to mush in the slow cooker.
Pop it in the fridge for up to 5 days. You can also freeze in individual portions for easy lunches. The bonus of a stew is there isn't a ton of liquid, so you can easily freeze it and add liquid when reheating. Keep in mind the barley will continue to soak up any liquid in the fridge, so you will likely want to add more broth when reheating. Stew is great for a crowd because you can add even more broth to make it more like a soup to stretch it further.
Photos by Dante from Shire by the Sea
More Fall Recipes
Hey friends, don't forget to follow me over on Instagram, cause if you like me here, I post there a LOT! I'm also on YouTube with tutorials and Facebook for all sorts of things.
If you like this recipe, I’d love if you reviewed it so others can find it easier. Sharing this recipe on Facebook or Pinterest is another way you can help us out at no cost to you. Thanks, xo Kate
Pumpkin Squash Stew
Equipment
- 6-7 quart slow cooker
Ingredients
- 1 small sugar pumpkin or other winter squash such as Kabocha*
- 2 - 3 medium onions
- 2 - 3 cloves garlic
- 4 - 5 medium potatoes any type
- 4 cups kidney beans home cooked or use 2 cans (drained and rinsed)
- 2 cups barley rinsed
- 1 ½ - 2 pounds beef stew meat bite-sized
- 1 bunch carrots chopped
- 8 cups beef broth
- 2 teaspoons salt
- Pepper to taste
- Water to top
Instructions
- Slice and dice pumpkin into bite-sized chunks. Add with broth to the slow cooker, cover, and turn to low while you prepare remaining ingredients.
- Rinse barley and add with chopped carrots.
- Chop onion and dice garlic finely and add to slow cooker.
- Add kidney beans and chopped beef.
- Add your salt and pepper after all ingredients are in. Top off with water to ensure ingredients are mostly covered.
- As you are checking in on stew, taste broth and salt/pepper more to taste if necessary.
- Cook for 5-6 hours on low, or until everything is cooked to your liking. Add more broth if desired.
Notes
- *Keep pulp and seeds in a bowl and soak in water to separate seeds later if you wish to roast them. Dry seeds on tea towel or paper towel after cleaning.
- This is a thick stew, as the barley will soak up most all of the liquid while cooking. You can add more broth in the final 30 minutes of cooking if you want more liquid. This will heat it up.
- Use any type of red meat stew meat here.
Leave a Reply