Syn Free Beef and Vegetable Casserole - a great hearty meal that can be cooked in a slow cooker, instant pot or oven.
Sometimes you want a meal where you can just throw some ingredients into a pan or slow cooker and leave it to do it's work. This Syn Free Beef and Vegetable Casserole is one of those dishes, and the end result tastes amazing.
The only complicated part is roasting the pepper for the paste and it's worth it for the flavour it adds.
I love casseroles, and my kids do to. It's always a great way to incorporate lots of different vegetables, as you can literally add whatever vegetables you have and most will dig in and enjoy the lot. At least that is the case with my kids. A dish like this Syn Free Beef and Vegetable Casserole is one way I know I can get them to eat a decent serving of vegetables.
I remember as a child I wasn't a veggie fan either. Serve me up veggies on a plate as they were and I hated them, but serve me up a casserole or stew then I would clear the plate.
Luckily I love vegetables now, the hate I had for them as a child has long gone. Instead I now source as many different vegetables as I can. Slimming World encourages us to eat at least a ⅓ of our plate speed foods, so it's a great excuse to get adventurous and start looking for new vegetables to try.
The more varied and interesting you make them, the more you will begin to love them if you one of those veggie avoiders. Remember - vegetables are high satiety, lower in calories and great for bulking out meals. So they are going to help keep you fuller for longer when paired up with other food groups and will speed your weight loss as they naturally reduce the portions of the other foods on your plate when you follow the ⅓ speed foods advice.
Still confused about speed foods? Check out my post here on The Benefit of Speed Foods
This Beef and Vegetable Casserole was literally using up some vegetables I had, with a few additions of some seasoning and spices. The final result was packed with flavour.
It can be cooked in an Instant Pot (a multi function Pressure Cooker and one of my most used kitchen items). This is one of the best things I have ever bought and I use it almost daily in one way or another.
It is basically a 7in1 cooker, and it slow cooks, pressure cooks, saute’s, has settings for soup, chilli, rice, porridge and even makes yoghurt (I haven’t tried that yet). Hey I even cook my boiled eggs in this, you should see how effortlessly they peel.
Check out my other: Instant Pot Recipes
Click here to read more about the instant pot on Amazon
or if you want a delicious meal when you get home from work, add it to a slow cooker. Don't have either of those? Then don't worry as you can also cook this in the oven.
I served with my delicious Syn Free Mashed Potatoes, as you need something to mop up all that lovely sauce and some oven roasted zucchini.
It's a great freezer friendly dish and completely SYN FREE too. You don't need a better excuse to make this Syn Free Beef and Vegetable Casserole.
Looking for some more recipes to try? – Previously on Slimming Eats
- 1 year ago: Bulgur Wheat, Onion, Sage and Sausage Stuffed Chicken
- 2 years ago: Asian Chicken Meatballs
- 4 years ago: Double Baked Smoked Mackerel Stuffed Sweet Potato
- 5 years ago: Garlic and Herb Roast Potatoes
- 6 years ago: Bacon and Lentil Soup
- 7 years ago: Shepherds Pie
- 8 years ago: Syn Free Spicy Spanish Chicken with Rice
with many more recipes in my full: Recipe Index
Syn Free Beef and Vegetable Casserole (Oven, Slow Cooker, Instant Pot)
Prep
Cook
Total
Yield 4 servings
This recipe is gluten free, dairy free, paleo, Slimming World and Weight Watchers friendly
- Extra Easy - syn free per serving
- Original/SP - syn free per serving
- WW Smart Points - 5
Ingredients
For the red pepper paste:
- 1 red bell pepper, chopped
- 1 small onion, finely chopped
- salt and black pepper
- spray oil
- 2 tbs of tomato paste (puree)
For the casserole:
- 700g (24.5oz) of lean stewing beef (all visible fat removed)
- 1 large red onion, chopped
- 2 garlic cloves crushed
- 1 stalk of celery, chopped
- 1 teaspoon of cumin seeds
- 1 teaspoon of mustard seeds
- 1 teaspoon of dried thyme leaves
- 2 large carrots, chopped
- 250g (90z) of butternut squash, chopped
- 2 cups (480ml) of beef stock
- 1 tbs of balsamic vinegar
- salt and black pepper
- Spray oil
Instructions
For the red pepper paste:
- Preheat Oven to 200c or 400f (gas mark 6)
- Add the red pepper and onion to oven proof dish
- Spray over the top with spray oil and season with salt and black pepper.
- Roast for approx 25-30 mins, until red pepper and often are softened.
- Add to a blender or food processor, along with the tomato paste and blend till you have a smooth paste. Add a little bit of stock to loosen if it is too thick to blend.
- Set aside.
For the casserole:
- Reduce oven to 160ºC/300ºF or gas mark 2
- Spray a deep ovenproof pot over a medium high heat with some spray oil. Add the onion, garlic and celery and fry for 5 minutes to soften.
- Add in all remaining ingredients including the red pepper paste, season with salt and black pepper and mix well to combine, bring to a simmer and then place in the oven with lid and bake for 3 hours until meat is lovely and tender, removing the lid for the last half hour of cooking time.
- Serve with your choice of sides.
Notes
Slow Cooker: Follow steps up to frying onion, garlic and celery and then add to slow cooker and set on low for 8 hours.
Instant Pot: Follow steps for red pepper paste. Set to saute mode and fry onions, celery and garlic in spray oil. Add all other ingredients and set to manual high pressure for 30 mins, close valve and allow the pressure to release naturally. Set to saute function once you remove lid, if sauce needs to thicken a bit more.
Nutritional information is an estimate and is to be used for informational purposes only.
Ingredients can vary greatly from brand to brand and therefore it would be impossible to give accurate information.
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Nutrition Facts
Serving Size 1 serving
Amount Per Serving | ||
|---|---|---|
Calories 336 | ||
% Daily Value | ||
Total Fat 9.5 g | 15% | |
Saturated Fat 3.1 g | 16% | |
Cholesterol 114 mg | 38% | |
Sodium 437 mg | 18% | |
Total Carbohydrates 20.6 g | 7% | |
Dietary Fiber 5.3 g | 21% | |
Sugars 2 g | ||
Protein 42.1 g | 84% | |
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily values may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.
Another lovely recipe. I did mine in the slow cooker. really nice. Might finish it off in the oven next time to thicken the sauce, either way another family hit!!
Thanks
thanks for this one served it with mash and peas yummy
This was my official first stew and and first Instant Pot meal, worked perfectly! Lovely recipe Shev. Couldn't find squash in my local shop but used sweet potato instead, turned out just fine. I don't have the same comfort food love for stew, but my husband certainly does, so it was a perfect inauguration for the pot. Used celery in the saute, though btw think it's missing in the ingredients list... we had it with rice, and it all went. Thanks for the inspiration, now I'm hooked!
So happy to hear you are loving the instant pot. Thanks for letting me know about the missing step, I'll make sure to amend.
This casserole was a real hit with us, full of flavour and hearty. Would definitely recommend. I did mine in the slow cooker on low overnight.
Just made this in my instant pot, pressure cooker mode. It is delicious didn’t have mustard seeds so used whole grain mustard. Which I will syn another winner