This Juice Is The Secret Ingredient That Will Transform Your Beef Stew

Beef stew is the ultimate comfort meal. It has hearty chunks of tender beef complemented with fragrant herbs and veggies softened from long, slow-and-low simmering. However, V8 Vegetable Juice may be one ingredient you haven't considered for elevating your beef stew with minimal effort.

Original V8 contains a concentrated blend of tomato and vegetable juices. Tomatoes or tomato paste are often an ingredient in beef stew recipes, so subbing in V8 for extra veggie flavor and nutrients is a no-brainer. The untold truth of V8 is that it's been around since 1933 and was initially created to make the nutrition from vegetables more accessible during the Great Depression. One 8-ounce serving contains two helpings of veggies, so it adds extra vitamins and nutrients to your beef stew without watering it down.

The acidity of V8's tomato juice will cut through the richness of the meat and enhance the stew's flavors, while its sweet carrots and earthy beets give it more dimension. Leafy greens like spinach and watercress bring subtle herbal notes for even more complexity. Plus, you get these benefits without prepping a bunch of vegetables (aside from the chunky ones you add to the stew).

Enhancing beef stew with V8 is as easy as adding it to any of your favorite recipes, but consider the other ingredients to keep your stew balanced. V8 contains tomatoes, carrots, celery, beets, parsley, lettuce, watercress, and spinach, but it also contains salt, so you should reduce its content in your recipe to taste. The same goes for any tomatoes or tomato paste (which is extra concentrated).

It's a good idea to add V8 in place of an equal amount of another liquid in your recipe. Our hearty beef stew calls for both red wine and beef broth, so you can substitute V8 for one or both of these to amplify the veggie flavor. Also, V8 is available in small cans which may be more convenient since the larger bottles must be used within 14 days of opening.

If you're preparing your stew on the stovetop, add the juice toward the end, giving it just enough time to simmer and blend without over-reducing. However, if you're making our Instant Pot beef stew or using a slow cooker, V8 can be added at the start with the rest of the ingredients. Spice lovers may even want to experiment with V8 Spicy Hot Vegetable Juice for an even zippier finish.