Imagine your kitchen is filled with a delicious smell while you can relax. These tender slow-cooker Dutch Sukadelapjes (beef steaks) are the ultimate comfort food for busy days. The meat becomes buttery soft and falls apart.
The sauce is rich in flavor, thanks to the herbs, dark beer, stock, and apple butter. Serve it with mashed potatoes, a fresh salad, or a piece of crusty bread to dip in the sauce. This is slow cooking, as it should be!

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Melt-in-Your-Mouth Braised Beef Stew
In the past, my grandmother always had a large pan of beef steak on the stove on Sundays. The smell alone was delicious! The meat was so tender that it fell apart, and that gravy went over everything: fries, potatoes, or just a piece of bread. Pure nostalgia!
I felt like having those old-fashioned beef steaks today, but I made them nice and easy in the slow cooker. No worries, and a perfect result. Ideal, right? While the slow cooker does its job, you can do something else, like… typing this blog. 😉
What do you need?
In the recipe card below, you will find the full list of ingredients, but here are some handy tips:

- Blade steaks: You can also use chuck roast, round roast, or tri-tip roast.
- Balsamic vinegar: Gives a deep flavor. You can replace it with apple cider vinegar or red wine vinegar.
- Dark beer: For a caramel flavor. No alcohol? Leave it out and add ½ cup (120 ml) extra stock.
Preparation in 4 steps

- Step 1: Place the sliced onions and pressed garlic in the bottom of the slow cooker. Let the blade steaks come to room temperature, then generously sprinkle with salt and pepper.

- Step 2: Pour the beer, stock, apple syrup, and balsamic vinegar over the meat. Add the bay leaves and sprigs of thyme. Stir everything well.

- Step 3: Spread the bread slices with mustard and place them, mustard-side down, on top of the meat. Set the slow cooker on the low setting for 7 ½ hours.

- Step 4: Remove the meat from the slow cooker and place it on a plate. Mix cornstarch with water and add it to the sauce. Stir well, then add the meat back. Put the slow cooker on high for another 30 minutes. The gravy will thicken and become deliciously soft.
What do you serve with it?
- Mashed potatoes: The creamy flavor goes perfectly with the rich sauce.
- Fresh vegetables: Try green beans, red cabbage with apples, or a fresh chicory salad with apples.
- Bread: A crusty piece of baguette is delicious for dipping the sauce.

Did you make this recipe? Tag #byandreajanssen via Instagram. I enjoy seeing what your creation looks like. Video recipes can be found on my YouTube channel. And don't forget to save the recipes on Pinterest so you can easily find them next time!
📖 Recipe
RECIPE CARD
Ingredients
- 1 onion, in rings
- 2 cloves garlic, pressed
- 2 pounds blade steaks, room temperature
- salt and pepper, to taste
- 4 sprigs fresh thyme
- 2 bay leaves
- ½ cup dark beer
- 1 cup beef stock
- 1 tablespoon apple butter
- 1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
- 3 slices bread
- 1 tablespoon mustard
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- 2 tablespoons water
All my recipes are written both in Metric (gram / ml) and US Customary (cups / pounds). Here you can select which type of amount you would like to see.
Instructions
- Place the onion rings and pressed garlic in the bottom of the slow cooker.1 onion, 2 cloves garlic
- Flavor the blade steaks with salt and pepper and place the meat on the onion and garlic.2 pounds blade steaks, salt and pepper
- Add the sprigs of thyme and the bay leaves.4 sprigs fresh thyme, 2 bay leaves
- Pour the dark beer and beef stock over the meat.½ cup dark beer, 1 cup beef stock
- Stir the apple butter and balsamic vinegar into the liquid in the slow cooker.1 tablespoon apple butter, 1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
- Spread the slices of bread with mustard.3 slices bread, 1 tablespoon mustard
- Place the slices of bread with the mustard side down on the meat.
- Close the slow cooker with the lid.
- Cook the meat on low for 7 ½ hours.
- Remove the meat from the slow cooker and set aside.
- Mix the cornstarch with the water to form a paste.1 tablespoon cornstarch, 2 tablespoons water
- Stir this mixture into the sauce in the slow cooker.
- Return the meat to the slow cooker.
- Cook on high for another 30 minutes to thicken the sauce.
Notes
- Refrigerator: Let the meat cool down quickly. You can store it covered for 2 days.
- Freezer: Store the meat in an airtight container or bag for up to 3 months. Let it defrost slowly in the refrigerator.
- Reheating: Heat the meat and sauce on medium heat until it is nice and hot.
Andréa says
My family loved this recipe. The meat was tender and got so much flavor. Certainly going to make it more often!