Crumble ground beef over raw chopped potatoes, combined with 3 ingredients, into slow cooker for a simple supper I make without even thinking

This is the kind of supper I can put together without even thinking, the way my mother and the neighbor ladies used to do on busy farm days. It’s a simple Amish-style poor man’s stew: raw potatoes on the bottom of the slow cooker, ground beef crumbled right over the top with your hands, then just three more pantry ingredients to bring it all together. It’s humble, filling, and comforting, the sort of meat-and-potato dish that has fed Midwestern families for generations when money was tight but bellies still needed to be full.

I like to ladle this stew into wide bowls and sprinkle a little extra salt and pepper over the top at the table. It’s wonderful with a slice of buttered white bread or cornbread to soak up the juices. A simple side of green beans, coleslaw, or a lettuce salad with a tangy dressing brightens up the plate. If you’re feeding farmhands or hungry grandkids, set out a jar of pickles and some applesauce on the side, just like we did when I was growing up.

Servings: 4-6

2 pounds russet potatoes, peeled and chopped into 1-inch cubes

Prepare the potatoes first so they can go straight into the slow cooker. Peel the russet potatoes and chop them into roughly 1-inch cubes. Scatter the chopped potatoes evenly over the bottom of a 4- to 6-quart slow cooker.

Sprinkle the chopped onion evenly over the potatoes. This gives the stew a nice, gentle sweetness as it cooks down.

Season the potatoes and onions with the salt and black pepper, spreading it around with your fingers so everything gets a little.

Take the raw ground beef and, using clean hands, crumble it directly over the potatoes and onions in the slow cooker. Break it up into small, loose pieces instead of big clumps so it can cook through evenly and flavor the potatoes as it simmers.

In a small bowl or large measuring cup, stir together the condensed tomato soup and the beef broth until fairly smooth. It doesn’t have to be perfect, just mixed enough so the soup isn’t one big lump.

Pour the soup and broth mixture evenly over the crumbled beef, potatoes, and onions in the slow cooker. Do not stir; just let the liquid seep down through the layers as it cooks.

Cover the slow cooker with the lid and cook on LOW for 7–8 hours, or on HIGH for about 4 hours, until the potatoes are tender and the ground beef is cooked through. Avoid lifting the lid too often so the stew can stay hot and cook evenly.

Once the cooking time is up, gently stir the stew from the bottom so the potatoes, beef, and sauce are all combined. Taste and adjust seasoning with a little more salt and pepper if needed.

Let the stew sit with the lid off for about 5–10 minutes to thicken slightly, then ladle into bowls and serve warm.

For a bit more color and sweetness, you can add 1–2 chopped carrots on top of the potatoes, keeping the rest of the recipe the same. If you prefer a milder tomato flavor, replace half of the tomato soup with extra beef broth. For a richer version, stir in a tablespoon of butter at the end of cooking, or top each bowl with a small handful of shredded cheddar cheese. To stretch the meal for a bigger family, add an extra potato or two and a splash more broth. If you need to use what you have on hand, any basic potato (Yukon Gold, red potatoes) will work, and you can swap the yellow onion for a few tablespoons of dried minced onion in a pinch. For a leaner stew, use 90% lean ground beef and, if there’s extra fat on top after cooking, just skim it off with a spoon before serving.