Yummy Beef Stew

I love this stew!!! My mom used to make the best stew in the winter, with no recipe (cause that's just the way my momma rolled!) and I distinctly remember walking into the house, on a cold winters day from school.....and smelling the aroma......of the beef and veggies hanging out in that pot........calling me closer.....closer.........yes closer.......OH MAN!!! I remember asking her every 5 mintues.....do you think it's done yet???? How about now???? NOW???? I CAN'T WAIT MOM!!! *I was a patient young thing wasn't I???*

Mom didn't use a recipe.......and some things I didn't learn from her....not because I didn't want to, but because I thought I had a lifetime to learn them (and I was boy crazy in highschool. LOL That's my story and I'm sticking to it.). I miss mom......she died in 2007 and I never did learn her recipe for beef stew. BUT.............................this recipe that I snatched from a Taste of Home magazine, is the closest I have found to her homemade beef stew. But I couldn't call it, Almost Like My Mom's Stew..........or Close to My Momma's Stew........so I just call it:

Yummy Beef Stew

(serves 8)

2 lbs beef stew meet, cut into 1 inch cubes
3 T vegetable oil, divided
1 cup water
3 large potatoes, peeled and cubed, 1 inch
4 medium carrots, sliced
1 medium onion, chopped
2 tsps salt
1/2 tsp pepper
2 T beef bouillon ( or 3 beef bouillon cubes)
1 can (14.5 oz) diced tomatoes with juice

Brown stew meat in a Dutch oven. Add water, potatoes, carrot, onions, and garlic. Cover and let simmer for 2 hours. Stir in bouillon and tomatoes and heat through before serving.

Now..............because I *love* my crockpot, and I don't like to cook something, check on it, add something, cook it again, etc. Too much to remember. LOL I am a simple cook, remember??? I brown the meat in a skillet, add it and the rest of the ingredients to the crockpot, stir it exactly once, and cook it several hours on LOW (or 4-5 hours on HIGH). LOL