Soup and stews are one of my personal favorite foods. Matt is not a huge fan of them, but whenever I make one and he tries it, he gives it a thumbs up. He was particularly a huge fan of this low carb beef stew. The big chunks of short rib and radishes to replace the starchy potato turn this into a keto stew paradise. Our Low Carb Beef Stew is great for any night of the week and will surely be loved by even the pickiest of eaters!
The Low Carb Beef Stew Recipe
If I had to rate a food or recipe using only one factor on why it’s the best, I would definitely go by nutritional value over taste. Maybe that’s just me, but what makes this beef stew the best is the nutrition. It’s low-carb, but doesn’t feel so low-carb or in any way unsatisfying!
When I hear the word stew, I automatically think of hearty (and cold winter nights, but that is besides the point) so when making this stew, I really had to get in the mindset of what would make this, not only the best nutritionally, but the best on the flavor level.
I had to come up with the perfect recipe that compiled the best nutrition, best flavor and wasn’t over the top with ridiculous ingredients. I succeeded and I’ll explain why below.
How to Thicken Beef Stew?
I should fill you in on the fact that Matthew and I are firm believers on “if it fits your macros” so while some of you may say carrots aren’t keto, we beg to differ. For this Low-Carb Beef stew, we used carrots and radishes, (yes radishes) as the vegetables. If you haven’t cooked with radishes, you need to start now! They provided the perfect starchy to meaty to stewy ratio in this beef stew recipe. And for the “roux” component, we used our favorite go-to, xanthan gum!
Low Carb Beef Stew
While some recipes are easier than others to make keto versions of, we take most pride in the ones that seem impossible at first, such as most of our desserts!
For this beef stew recipe, we do have two major tips that we’ve kind of glossed over, but will help you greatly down the road. Invest in xanthan gum. You really only need a little, but it is by far our favorite thickening agent for all sorts of recipes, such as in our Keto Broccoli Cheese Soup.
Another tip is to start using radishes in your everyday cooking. They are low in carbs and a great replacement for potatoes, such as in our Low Carb Breakfast Skillet. But, before you make those recipes, you need to put our tips to use in making this Low-Carb Beef Stew!
Recipe can be quickly added to MyFitnessPal – Search “KetoConnect – Low Carb Beef Stew”
Low Carb Beef Stew
Ingredients:
- 1 lb Beef Short Rib
- 2 cups beef broth
- 4 cloves minced garlic
- 100 gram Onion
- 100 gram carrot
- 100 gram radishes
- 1/4 tsp Pink Himalayan Salt
- 1/4 tsp pepper
- 1/2 tsp xanthan Gum
- 1 tbsp Butter
- 1 tbsp coconut oil
Instructions:
- Chop the short rib into bite sized chunks, salt and pepper and set aside.
- Heat a large saucepan to medium-high heat and coconut oil. Add short rib and brown on all side.Remove from saucepan and set aside.
- Chop onions, carrots and radishes into bite sized pieces and mince garlic.
- Add onions, garlic and butter and cook down for a couple minutes, scraping the bottom with the spatula/spoon.
- Once onions are tender add the broth and combine. Add the xanthan gum and combine.
- Allow broth mixture to come to boil and then add the meat back in and cook for thirty minutes with a lid on. Stir frequently scrapping the as you stir,
- After thirty minutes add the carrots and radishes and cook for an additional thirty minutes, stirring frequently. Broth should have thickened a lot at this point. If you feel the need you can add more broth or some water.
- Serve warm and enjoy!
Notes
Written by
Megha Barot
Megha has always been a passionate cook, but she took this to a new level after starting her keo journey in 2015. She loves creating new recipes and producing educational content for KetoConnect, which she co-founded in 2016 with Matt. Her passion for healthy eating and personal development continues to thrive. She's the proud mom of two awesome kids.
Amy says
I love your recipes!! Unfortunately I didn’t like this one. Guess I’m not a fan of the baked radishes.
Julie says
I haven’t made this yet but it sounds delicious! Question, could I make this in the crockpot?
Jo says
I have never really been a fan of radishes before because they were hot tasting. When cooking them like this, are they still peppery hot tasting?
Paula says
Everything was super tender and perfect. Cooked this overnight in the crockpot.
Patsy Hulsey says
This stew is delicious! I have never eaten a cooked radish or heard of anyone who has. What a surprise! The stew got rave reviews all around. I waited until the reviews were in before disclosing the ingredients. Thank you for sharing this recipe.
Miranda (KetoConnect) says
Haha, smart! We love sneak attacks like that 😉
Jody says
I’ve been making an awesome beef stew quite a few times since I’ve been eating keto for over a year now and through trial and error I think I’ve found a perfect spice and veggie mixture. I agree with you that carrots are definitely keto when eaten in measure. The nutritional value far outweighs the minimal sugar in them, plus they really “make” a stew. I also use onions, cabbage and celery. I’m going to try adding radishes tomorrow and eager to see what all the yahoo is all about. 😉 I do have a question about the xanthan gum. I have tried it once in my stew and do not know what I did wrong but there was a strange slimy texture to the broth that I was deterred from ever using it again. Do you perhaps know why it did that? I used barely 1/2 teaspoon in it and was excited to see if it thickened it. It did but was disappointed with the slimy texture.
Miranda Dauphinee says
Try starting with just a sprinkling and working your way up as necessary!
Sabrina says
Hi. I’m a newbie to keto. Can we add celery to this?
Olivia Kendrick says
Sure!
Gary Pollock says
I use Jamaica a lot instead of potatoes. As a matter of fact, I am making stew right now.
I have a kidney transplant, and can’t use a lot of meat protein. My stew has jackfruit in it. Have you done a video on how to ketofy a normal recipe? I’m using the myfitness pal and my nutritional scales to try to figure it out. Not sure how close I am.
Kayla says
Turned out great! First time cooking with radishes and won’t be my last. I recommend doubling the recipe if you want leftovers.
Nich says
My partner and I made this last night for our meal prep for the week! It is by and far the best meal I have had since starting Keto. We substituted carrots for Jicama and added cremini mushrooms and celery to the boil. It is the hearty and flavorful! Thank you so much for these amazing recipes!
Barbara Roe says
This was very good. My husband did not guess he was eating a radish. I added mushrooms and used bone broth instead of beef broth (by mistake). I would serve this to company.
Amber says
My fitness pal says it 288 calories
20g protein and 20 gr fat and 8 carbs.. can’t find the one with the nutritional y’all posted!! It was delicious!! Thank you
Fred says
Hi!
I just really don’t understand how you get 432 cal/portion with 36g of fat. Am i missing something because even on MyFitnessPal it’s 288 cal and the macros are completely different.
Thank you!
Olivia Kendrick says
I guess it really depends on what meat you used and the fat percentage of the meat. I would go by what your recipe says for tracking.
Susan says
I use radishes instead of potatoes when I roast vegetables too. No radish taste, just like potatoes!
Carter says
I hate to bust your bubble, but cooked carrots are about 80 on the glycemic index.
Olivia Kendrick says
Per serving, you are consuming a minimal amount of carrots, so it still will fit into your carbs for the day.
Jo says
Thank you for sharing this recipe. I’m going to try it this weekend. Im curious though what measurement is considered a serving size? 1 cup?
Olivia Kendrick says
The recipe makes 4 servings, so 1/4th of the soup. I am not sure of the volume measurement.
Katie says
Hello, excited to try this. Is there any way to view the ingredients in metrics rather than grams?
Olivia Kendrick says
No, not at the moment.
Brooke says
Megha, this sounds great I am going to have to try it.
Noticed a small typo maybe at the intro:
“replace the starry potato” did you mean starchy?
Olivia Kendrick says
Yes, haha
Lisa says
What is the serving size?
Olivia Kendrick says
This recipe makes 4 servings so divide the stew by 4.