Slow cooker beef shin is an easy, healthy family meal. It's a budget-friendly cut of beef which is super flavoursome, and this recipe is great for meal prep and batch cooking.
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What you'll love about the recipe
- Just 10 minutes prep time and the slow cooker does the rest
- No need to brown the meat - less washing up
- Flexible cooking time
- Budget friendly (you might also like this Scotch broth recipe which uses an economical cut of lamb in the slow cooker.)
- Two portions of veggies per serving (add more if you like!)
- Slow cooker beef shin is nutritious and healthy
- Add these gluten free dumplings to make a complete meal
Ingredients
Shin of beef. As you can imagine, this cut comes from the leg of the animal, and it's a muscle that does a lot of work. Shin of beef needs slow cooking to break down the fibres, but when it is slow cooked it's delicious, tender, and produces a thick rich gravy.
It's one of the most economic cuts of beef, especially if you add lots of vegetables to make it go further.
My beef was trimmed and cut off the bone. You may also be able to buy it on the bone, probably cut into slices about 3cm thick. In which case, cook it on the bone as it will be even more flavoursome. Just add the slices to the slow cooker with the other ingredients.
If you can't find beef shin, you can also make slow cooker braised beef.
Carrots, onion and celery add both flavour and nutrients to this beef casserole. You can also add other veg such as parsnips, swede or leeks if you have them.
Tinned tomatoes and tomato puree. These will break down and disappear into the sauce during cooking, but the tomatoes help to tenderise the beef and add extra flavour to the gravy.
Cornflour. Although the shin of beef will naturally thicken the sauce to some degree, I like to add an extra thickener. Cornflour is naturally gluten free and really easy to use.
Garlic, bay leaf and beef stock all add extra flavour. There'll be plenty of juices as the dish cooks, so you don't need a lot of extra stock. I use just half of a stock cube so that the slow cooked shin of beef isn't overly salty. You could also use half a stock pot.
If you don't have a bay leaf, switch in rosemary or thyme.
If you'd prefer to cook your beef in red wine, take a look at this easy beef bourguignon recipe.
Caramelized onion chutney. This is optional, but I love to add a dollop to the gravy as I think it makes for a deeper, richer flavour.
How to make slow cooker beef shin
The prep for this recipe takes very little time.
Peel the onions and cut into chunks about 2cm in size. Wash the other vegetables, and cut into similar sized pieces. The chunks should be large enough to stand up to long slow cooking without disintegrating.
Add the veggies to the slow cooker.
Peel and very finely chop the garlic and add to the other veggies, along with the herbs. Add the beef.
Stir the cornflour into 200ml cold water and add the stock cube and tomato puree. Add to the slow cooker along with the tin of tomatoes and onion chutney. Mix well.
Cook on low for 8-10 hours or on high for 4-6 hours.
Serving and storage
Serve your slow cooker beef shin casserole with some extra greens on the side. Sautéed spinach or leeks and peas both go well. You could also add some low fat dauphinoise potatoes or mashed potatoes without butter.
Like many casseroles, this tastes even better the next day. Store it in the fridge and heat through thoroughly.
Slow cooker beef shin also freezes brilliantly. Depending on the size of your slow cooker you may be able to double the recipe and freeze the extra portions.
Frequently asked questions
Cooked well, shin beef is meltingly tender and delicious. But it is essential that this cut of beef is slow cooked over a long period. Beef shin has tough fibres that need to be broken down through long slow cooking.
Yes. On a low setting, you can cook beef shin for up to about 10 hours. But if you continue to cook it for many hours longer than this, it will eventually start to dry out.
Yes. Like other cuts of beef, shin is a good source of protein, B vitamins and minerals including iron and zinc. In addition, the very fibres that make beef shin tough are also a great source of collagen which may help your joints, bones and digestive health.
Other healthy family meals
You might like to browse the healthy dinners category, or there's a few suggestions below, including a whole poached chicken (great for meal prep!) and chicken curry which can both be done in the slow cooker. You could also try a slow cooker sausage curry.
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Recipe
Slow Cooker Beef Shin
Equipment
- Slow cooker
Ingredients
- 500 g shin of beef
- 4 large carrots
- 2 onions
- 2 sticks celery
- 1 clove garlic
- 400 g tinned tomatoes
- 1 tablespoon tomato puree
- 2 tablespoon cornflour
- ½ beef stock cube or stock pot
- 1 bay leaf or use rosemary or thyme
- 1 tablespoon caramelised onion chutney optional
Instructions
- Peel and cut the onion into 2cm chunks. Wash the carrots and celery and cut into similar sized pieces. Peel and very finely chop the garlic.4 large carrots, 2 onions, 2 sticks celery, 1 clove garlic
- Add the vegetables to the slow cooker, along with the bay leaf. Add the beef.1 bay leaf, 500 g shin of beef
- Stir the cornflour into 200ml cold water. Add the stock cube and tomato puree.2 tablespoon cornflour, ½ beef stock cube or stock pot, 1 tablespoon tomato puree
- Add the cornflour mixture to the slow cooker along with the tinned tomatoes and onion chutney if using. Mix well.1 tablespoon caramelised onion chutney, 400 g tinned tomatoes
- Cook for 4-6 hours on high or 8-10 hours on low.
Notes
- Add other vegetables as you like. Swede, leeks and parsnips all work well.
- If your shin on beef is on the bone, you can cook it whole in the slow cooker.
- If you are on a gluten free diet, double check that your stock is gluten free.
Nutrition
Please note nutritional information is for guidance only
Tim says
I add a small blob (size of an orange pip at most) of yeast extract to the gravy - adds another level of flavor. Don't overdo it though as you should not be able to identify it in there when cooked. 🙂
Urse says
I was unsure how to cook it and this produced an easy to cook and a great tasting dish
Wendy Faulkner says
Thank you very much, I'm so glad you enjoyed it:)
Jon says
Really rich and delicious - I'm converted to beef shin now!