15 Easy, Delicious Dinners You Can Make With Budget-Friendly Beef Chuck

The versatility of beef chuck makes it a pitch-hitter of the meat counter.

By
Mimi Young
Mimi Young
Mimi Young
Editor
Mimi Young is an editor and pastry chef. She has also curated and written numerous recipe roundups for Serious Eats.
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Published November 17, 2025
Overhead view of Daube de Boeuf ala Gasconne

Serious Eats / Maureen Celestine

If you've been looking at your shopping cart and wondering "where's the beef?" you're not alone. Steak may not be in everyone's budget these days, but that doesn't mean you can't enjoy a luxurious boeuf Bourguignon or smoky slices of barbecued beef when you've got an affordable cut like beef chuck sitting at the meat counter, just waiting to be bought. The versatility of beef chuck can't be overstated. Certainly the most popular way, from France to Nigeria, is to make it into a soul-satisfying stew. But it's also at the heart of regional comfort foods, such as Texas chili con carne and Taiwanese beef noodle soup, and celebratory staples like Egyptian fatta. It even serves as the meaty backbone of borsch. These beef chuck recipes will have you positively giddy the next time there's a special for the cut at the market.

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  • Nigerian Beef Stew

    Overhead view of beef stew served with plantains and rice

    Serious Eats / Maureen Celestine

    Beef is simmered in a flavorful stock, then cut up and browned separately before stewing in a cooked aromatic base of tomatoes, onions, and peppers, along with spices and herbs, until rich and thick. Served with rice and plantains, this is a mainstay of Nigerian cuisine.

  • Boeuf Bourguignon

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    Serious Eats / Vicky Wasik

    Arguably the (French) mother of classic beef stews, this dish is resplendent with the Burgundian flavors of red wine, mushrooms, and pearl onions. You needn't have watched Julie & Julia on repeat to appreciate the majesty of a beautifully constructed boeuf Bourguignon.

  • Birria de Res (Beef Birria)

    Overhead view of birria tacos

    Serious Eats / Lorena Masso

    This Mexican birria is loaded with spoon-tender chunks of beef in a rich and complex consomé flavored with a blend of chiles, achiote paste, and the unexpected addition of savory gochujang.

  • Egyptian Fatta

    Overhead view of a half of dish of Egyptian fatta

    Serious Eats / Jen Causey

    This crowd-pleasing dish is traditionally associated with Egyptian religious celebrations. While there are subtle differences between Christian and Muslim versions, no festive meal is complete without this layered platter of seasoned, toasted pita, fragrant rice, and boldly flavored slow-cooked beef.

    Continue to 5 of 15 below

  • Rich and Flavorful Guinness Beef Stew With Potatoes

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    Serious Eats / Vicky Wasik

    Head up north to Ireland, swap the red wine and mushrooms for Guinness ale, parsnips, and potatoes and you've got a pub favorite that's perfect for a St. Paddy's Day celebration or any cold blustery night.

  • Daube de Boeuf à la Gasconne (Gascogne-Style Beef Stew)

    Bowl of stew on a plate on top of a blue napkin, with a glass of red wine, and a piece of bread on the background

    Serious Eats / Maureen Celestine

    Bold and full flavored, this beef and root vegetable stew from the Gascogne region of France is country cooking at its best. Browning the beef cubes in batches produces rich flavor without overcooking or steaming the meat, and cooking the stew at a very low temperature ensures the beef is tender.

  • Pressure Cooker Texas-Style Chili con Carne

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    Serious Eats / J. Kenji Lopez-Alt

    Beef chuck and chiles are the stars of Kenji's quick pressure-cooker version of this Tex-Mex staple. Seared whole chunks of beef and a blend of dried chiles provide maximum flavor in just 30 minutes.

  • Nigerian Peanut Stew

    Overhead view of nigerian peanut stew

    Serious Eats / Vy Tran

    This West African stew of simmered meat and vegetables coated in a velvety, thick groundnut (aka peanut) sauce is hearty, comforting, and wonderfully flavorful. Roasting the peanuts deepens their flavor and nuttiness, and adding the different vegetables at staggered stages ensures that they are tender without falling apart.

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  • Beef Rendang

    Plate of beef Rendang with rice, cucumbers, tomatoes and crisps on a banana leaf, with a woven placemat and gold cutlery

    Serious Eats / Qi Ai

    This iconic Indonesian dish of beef slow cooked in coconut milk with turmeric, coriander, and other Southeast Asian aromatics until meltingly tender.

  • Pressure Cooker Beef Barley Soup

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    Serious Eats / Vicky Wasik

    The deep, long-simmered flavors of this soup belies the fact that it takes less than an hour to make.

  • Gyudon (Japanese Simmered Beef and Rice Bowls)

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    Serious Eats / J. Kenji López-Alt

    Popularized by the Japanese fast-food chain Yoshinoya in the U.S., you can find this tasty one-bowl specialty in most shopping mall food courts these days, but it's just as easy (and tasty) to make it at home. Kenji suggests freezing chuck steak until very firm and slicing it as thin as possible.

  • Swedish Meatballs With Rich Gravy

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    Photographs: Vicky Wasik. Video: Serious Eats Video

    Ground chuck mixed with just a small ratio ground pork is the secret to achieving the ideal springy but tender, spear-with-a-toothpick Swedish meatballs. Lavished with a rich gravy, Daniel's version leaves IKEA's in the dust.

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  • Taiwanese Beef Noodle Soup

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    Serious Eats / Cathy Erway

    Chile bean sauce, Sichuan peppercorns, and star anise give this quintessentially Taiwanese comfort dish its distinctive taste. The broth is rich with collagen from beef chuck that's been simmered with smashed plum tomato and two types of soy sauce.

  • Hot Ukrainian Borscht

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    Serious Eats / Vicky Wasik

    Lean chuck is what gives this gorgeous soup laden with jeweled chunks of tender beets its meaty backbone, while dill and coriander seeds balance out the earthy flavor of the root vegetables.

  • Goulash (Hungarian Beef and Paprika Stew)

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    Serious Eats / J. Kenji López-Alt

    This rich, hearty, rib-sticking Hungarian-American version of beef goulash features big chunks of beef, carrots, and potatoes in a stew flavored with onions, garlic, peppers, and plenty of great paprika.

September 2023

n a cooked aromatic base of tomatoes, onions, and peppers, along with spices and herbs, until rich and thick. Served with rice and plantains, this is a mainstay of Nigerian cuisine.

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