For Better Tasting Beef Stew, There's One Juice You Should Pour In

Hear us out, V8 juice is actually a total game changer for beef stew. When those cold days arrive, who doesn't love a classic winter soup recipe? For the meat eaters out there, winter probably means beef stew. Beef stew comes with everything you need from slow cooked meat to soft potatoes, tasty vegetables and usually some version of tomatoes.

Whether you're a fan of stewed tomatoes, the paste variety, or fresh, this fruit adds depth to beef stew in particular. Using V8 juice alongside or instead of tomatoes can take your favorite stew recipe and intensify it in a great way. According to Campbell's ingredients list there are 8 different vegetables in this juice, tomatoes, carrots, celery, beets, lettuce, watercress and spinach. Along with enhancing the meal's overall flavor, pouring some V8 in can sneak some extra nutritional value in for those who aren't as interested in the vegetable part of "beef" stew.

Incorporating V8 juice into a beef stew recipe is easy enough, but you'll want to make a couple of considerations while doing so. Recipes that already include tomatoes might need to be altered, lessening the amount you use so that the flavor isn't too overwhelming. On days that you don't have any tomatoes or don't feel like trying to save the bad tomatoes in the fridge, V8 can actually stand in as an entire substitute.

Another consideration is the salt content. High in sodium (640 mg per serving), the original V8 juice might not be the best option depending on health and dietary needs. Using the low sodium V8 with less than half the milligrams per serving can leave room to adjust your salt to preference. V8 Spicy Hot will provide even more zest than the original and it comes in a low sodium format as well. Even for those who don't like to drink V8 juice by itself should try adding it to their beef stew for a sensational series of flavors.