Go Back
red-brown beef broth with tender shredded beef, carrot rounds, celery, green beans, corn, peas and diced tomatoes in an ordinary bowl, with no bones, potatoes or garnish
Melissa Hart

Crockpot Vegetable Beef Soup

Beef shanks give this vegetable soup a broth with some body and coarse shreds of meat that are different from ground-beef soup or a bowl of cubed chuck stew. Let the carrots and tomatoes have the long cook with the beef, then remove every bone before green beans, corn and peas go in for their shorter finish, keeping the vegetables recognizable instead of cooking the entire freezer bag until everything has the same soft texture.
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 25 minutes
Cook Time 9 hours 45 minutes
Total Time 10 hours 10 minutes
Servings: 6
Ingredients Method

Ingredients
  

  • 2 lb bone-in beef shank crosscuts about 1 1/2 inches thick
  • 1 tbsp neutral oil
  • 1 medium yellow onion diced
  • 3 medium carrots cut into 1/2-inch rounds
  • 2 celery ribs sliced
  • 2 garlic cloves minced
  • 1 can 14.5 oz diced tomatoes with juices
  • 6 cups low-sodium beef broth
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 3/4 tsp fine salt
  • 1/2 tsp black pepper
  • 1 1/2 cups frozen cut green beans
  • 1 cup frozen corn
  • 1/2 cup frozen peas
  • 1 tbsp red wine vinegar

Method
 

  1. Pat shanks dry and season with salt and pepper. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat and brown shanks for about 4 minutes per side, then transfer to a 6-quart slow cooker.
  2. Add onion to the skillet and cook for 4 minutes. Stir in garlic for 30 seconds, pour in 1 cup of the measured broth and scrape up the browned bits.
  3. Pour skillet liquid into the cooker and add remaining broth, carrots, celery, tomatoes and bay leaf. Cover and cook on low for 8 to 9 hours until beef is fully fork-tender and well above 145°F.
  4. Lift shanks onto a clean plate. Remove and discard every bone and any tough connective pieces, pull the meat into bite-size shreds and return it to the broth; discard the bay leaf and skim excess fat.
  5. Stir in green beans, corn and peas. Cover and cook on high for 25 to 30 minutes until the vegetables are hot and tender.
  6. Stir in red wine vinegar and divide among 6 bowls, checking once more for stray bone fragments as you ladle.