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    Home » Freezer Friendly » {Prep Ahead} Spicy Instant Pot Beef & Lentil Stew

    {Prep Ahead} Spicy Instant Pot Beef & Lentil Stew

    Published: Nov 2, 2017 · Modified: Jan 4, 2023 by Steph · This post may contain affiliate links · This blog generates income via ads · About 3 minutes to read this article.

    Spicy Instant Pot Beef Lentil Stew
    Spicy Instant Pot Beef Lentil Stew
    Spicy Instant Pot Beef Lentil Stew

    Prep Ahead Spicy Instant Pot Beef Lentil Stew

    I do love sweater weather here in Canada, it means fireplace goes on, and instant pot soups and beef stews for days!

    While I am no stranger to making Instant Pot soups,  Instant Pot beef and lentil stews are a bit new.

    Umm.... why did I wait so long. This beef stew is warm and spicy - perfect cold weather combination.

    This recipe is designed to be prepped ahead and frozen. Not fully cooked and frozen.

    This method of food prep is great because your prep day involves NO COOKING and this assembles in about 10 minutes.

    Prep Ahead Spicy Instant Pot Beef Lentil Stew

    On cook day, it is as simple as dumping the ingredients in and pressing a button. BUT... because I like my beef stew meat tender, and my veggies not mush, I do this recipe in two steps on cook day.

    First, I cook the meat and aromatics.

    Prep Ahead Spicy Instant Pot Beef Lentil Stew

    Then I add the veggie bag contents for only 5 minutes - this makes the beef fall apart tender, but the veggies not mush!

    Prep Ahead Spicy Instant Pot Beef Lentil Stew

    And in the end.... you get this irresistible winter warm up beauty beef and lentil stew.

    Prep Ahead Spicy Instant Pot Beef Lentil Stew

    4 Types of Meal Prep to Fit Your Lifestyle
    Print Pin
    3.24 from 13 votes

    {Prep Ahead} Spicy Instant Pot Beef & Lentil Stew

    Prep Time 10 minutes
    Cook Time 35 minutes
    Total Time 45 minutes
    Servings 4 -6
    Calories 373kcal
    Author Confessions of a Meal Plan Addict

    Ingredients

    • 2 lbs beef stew meat cut into bit size pieces
    • 1 teaspoon pepper
    • 2 10 oz cans of Rotel tomatoes if you want no spice, use regular diced tomatoes
    • 2 Tablespoons Beef Bouillon Powder
    • 1 onion diced
    • 4 garlic cloves diced
    • 1 teaspoon dried Thyme
    • 1 teaspoon dried Oregano
    • 1 cup dried green lentils
    • 2 cups chopped chunky carrots
    • 2 cups halved mushrooms
    • 4 cups water
    • Flour slurry - ¼ cup flour + ¼ cup water

    Instructions

    On prep day:

    • To a one gallon freezer bag, add the beef, pepper, diced tomatoes, bouillon powder, thyme, oregano, garlic and onion.
    • To a sandwich size freezer bag, add the lentils, carrots, and mushrooms.
    • Place the two bags into a gallon size bag and label the bag.
    • I don't portion the flour out for my prep, but you can. Just ensure it is separate and on it's own.

    On cook day:

    • Dump the contents of the thawed meat bag into the instant pot.
    • Add 4 cups of water.
    • Seal the pot and set on manual for 30 minutes.
    • After 30 minutes, quick release the pressure.
    • Add the contents of the veggie bag.
    • Set the pot on manual for 5 minutes.
    • Let the pot NPR for 10 minutes, then release remaining pressure.
    • Remove lid and mix in the flour slurry - stir ensuring no flour clumps.

    Notes

    To make this non spicy - replace the Rotel tomatoes with regular diced tomatoes.
    If you live in Canada where you cannot get Rotel, use regular diced tomatoes and add a small can of diced chilis.
    This recipe takes just over one hour when you include the pressure up and depressurization times.

    Nutrition

    Calories: 373kcal | Carbohydrates: 32g | Protein: 44g | Fat: 7g | Fiber: 13g | Sugar: 6g

    Be warned, this recipe as written is spicy spicy spicy (thank you rotel!). You could dampen the heat by using one can of regular diced tomatoes and one can of rotel, or just use straight regular diced tomatoes!

    So, there you have it. A Prep Ahead Spicy Beef and Lentil Instant Pot Stew that is perfect for this sweater weather!

    If you like cooking in your instant pot as much as I do, check out some other prep ahead friendly IP recipes I have:

    Honey Apple Pork Tenderloin

    Coconut Curried Sweet Potato Stew

    How I Turn $75 Bulk Meat into 10 Freezer Instant Pot Dinners

     

    « 4 Types of Freezer Meals That ARE NOT Slow Cooker
    5 Types of Meal Prep to Fit Your Lifestyle »

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Clare helling says

      November 03, 2017 at 6:22 am

      This is the way I do my freezer prep too! However I’ve added one step. I type out my directions and I place them inside a small ziplock bag that goes inside the gallon bag. I can save that bag for the future meals. (The sharpie marker on the outer bag has rubbed off a few times, leaving me guessing or having to look up directions).

      Reply
      • Steph says

        November 04, 2017 at 9:24 am

        Brilliant!!!! I also have invested in freezer specific labels, they work great!

        Reply
    2. Debbie Dorombozi says

      June 22, 2018 at 3:20 pm

      I made this soup today, it was very tasty and will definitely make this again. How long would I cook this if I just wish to make a half batch?

      Reply
    3. Erin says

      January 11, 2019 at 4:15 pm

      3 stars
      Very good. More like a soup then a stew though.

      Reply
      • Steph says

        January 12, 2019 at 8:02 pm

        You can definitely add more thickener or decrease the liquid to adjust the thickness!

        Reply

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