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Fancy making a nice slow cooker beef casserole? Don’t want to put too much effort in? I’ve got you covered!
This slow cooker beef casserole takes just 5 minutes to get ready and you can even cook dumplings in the pot.
You can make this for under £5, serving 3-4 hungry people. Obviously, this depends on the appetite and the quality of the ingredients that you buy. If your budget is small then you do what you can. Anyway, here we go.
My slow cooker beef casserole – the super lazy version! Scroll near the end of this post if you want to see my printable slow cooker beef casserole recipe card.
If you’re looking for some inspiration for other slow cooker recipes then be sure to check out my easy slow cooker recipes (UK recipes).

Ingredients for slow cooker beef casserole
3 medium onions
5 medium carrots
2 stalks of celery
450g casserole beef (you can use a cheaper cut as it will cook for hours)
500ml beef stock – I used a stock cube this time as I had no homemade stock.
30g plain flour
Garlic cloves (I used 3)
Salt & pepper
3 Tablespoons of fresh thyme or 2 tablespoons of dried thyme
Splash of Worcestershire sauce
Splash of brown sauce
That is it! Now you can add more vegetables as you like. Also, you can add a splash of wine, a bay leaf and balsamic vinegar if you want to make it extra special. I didn’t and it was lovely still!
Extra for slow cooker beef casserole – dumplings
100g plain flour
50g suet
Enough water until you get a wet, slightly sticky dough – I usually find a couple of tablespoons are enough.
Method for slow cooker beef casserole
Throw everything in the slow cooker. Apart from the flour.

This is it once it is all mixed together and the cooking begins. I always start off on high for 1 hour. Then I turn down to low for 5-6 hours. You can cook this on high in 4 hours. You can also leave it 8 hours on low. It will not ruin it.

One hour before the end stir through the flour.
As you can see once the flour is added it thickens and goes all lovely and glossy.

Also, add the dumplings now if you’re making them. I make around 8-10 dumplings from the ingredients I have mentioned above. This is ideal if you’re feeding a few people.
In our home, there is usually 3 of us eating and we have seconds – yum! Add more veg to feed more people without spending much more money.
Products I use when making my slow cooker beef casserole:
Looking for some other slow cooker beef recipes?
Want a few ways to make this recipe even easier?
You can use a casserole mix, both a mix of vegetables and a mix in terms of the flavours. You can just throw these together, along with some water, and it’ll cook for you.
However, my ingredients are quite cheap to source, easy to prepare and make for a super simple, but absolutely delicious beef casserole in the slow cooker.
What are the best vegetables for a slow cooked beef casserole?
Personally I just love any root vegetables. My favourites are onions, parsnips, celery, carrots, turnips and then potatoes (not technically a root vegetable I know!) go SO well too and help make this a really filling hearty meal.
If you’re looking to stretch this a little further then look to add some grated ingredients, such as carrots and courgette, to really stretch out the meal without a much larger cost.
Can you cook dumplings in the slow cooker?
Absolutely! Follow my recipe above. Be sure to keep the lid on for the whole of the cooking time to create the best cooking environment.
Want to make a cheap beef casserole?
While casserole beef in supermarkets is typically cheap there are even cheap cuts that you may be able to source from a local butcher. Brisket, skirt, shin and flank would all work really well for this slow cooked beef casserole.
How to make my slow cooked beef casserole:

slow cooker beef casserole
Ingredients
Casserole ingredients
- 3 medium onions
- 5 medium carrots
- 2 stalks of celery
- 450 g casserole beef
- 500 ml beef stock
- 30 g plain flour
- 3 garlic cloves
- 1/4 tsp salt & pepper
- 2 tbsps fresh thyme or 1 tbsp of dried thyme
- Splash worcestershire sauce
- Splash brown sauce
Dumplings
- 100 g plain flour
- 50 g suet
- water to make a slightly sticky dough
Instructions
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Add all of the casserole ingredients into the slow cooker, apart from the flour.
-
Mix together.
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Cook on high for 4 hours or low for 5-6 hours. I always start with 1 hour on high. If you need to leave it longer you can easily cook for 8-10 hours, or overnight.
-
One hour before serving stir through the flour (diluted in a little water)
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If you’re having dumplings then add them for the final hour. I always make them smaller than when I’m cooking them in the slow cooker so that one hour is enough time.
Recipe Notes
Add lots more vegetables if you want to bulk this out. They will release a little juice, which will help create more stock too.
Like this slow cooker beef casserole recipe? Fancy trying another one of my recipes? Here are some great ones:
Slow cooker whole chicken uk recipe
Why not try one of these fantastic slow cooker accessories or cookbooks:
If you enjoyed this post I’d love it if you could pin it on Pinterest!

Eileen Kerriadge
Monday 24th of February 2020
Great to see a site with UK recipes
katykicker
Tuesday 25th of February 2020
Thank you! x
Sue
Thursday 27th of December 2018
That looks delicious, itโs making me hungry ? I donโt have a slow cooker though so will have to use the oven. I remember my mum using one when I was a kid.
katykicker
Tuesday 1st of January 2019
If you're interested in a slow cooker then keep your eyes peeled. Often the supermarkets have a bargain one for ยฃ10 around this time of the year!
katykicker
Sunday 16th of July 2017
Mine too! I love a nice easy dinner. Thanks for the comment x