Beef and beef stew: what stewing keeps, what it adds, and what trials have tested

The strongest review on this page is also the thinnest on beef itself. A systematic review of 9 randomized trials in adults 50 and over reported a positive effect of beef and its nutrients on wellbeing, without pooling the results into one number, and eight of the nine trials tested single nutrients found in beef, in older adults with one or more chronic diseases. One tested the meat. What is solid is composition. Per 100 g, UK lean stewing steak goes from 22.6 g protein and 5.7 mg zinc raw to 32 g and 8.6 mg stewed, mostly because water leaves the meat. The liquid is where a stew differs from boiled beef. By USDA factors for simmered beef as a group, not measured on stew, the meat keeps 55 percent of its potassium and 60 percent of its B12 when the cooking liquid is poured off, and 100 and 75 percent when you eat it too. The dish is another matter. One homemade UK beef stew recipe gives 12.2 g protein and 260 mg sodium per 3.5 oz (100 g), and the salt depends on the cook. The US dietary survey counts a cup of stew as 255 g.

How much is actually in it

• Stewing concentrates lean beef as it loses water: per 3.5 oz (100 g) the UK table goes from 22.6 g protein and 5.7 mg zinc raw to 32 g and 8.6 mg once stewed. — UK composition table entries Beef, stewing steak, raw, lean (18-076) and stewed, lean (18-080) Evidence E source
  Per 100 g raw to stewed: protein 22.6 to 32.0 g; fat 3.5 to 6.3 g; zinc 5.7 to 8.6 mg; iron 2.10 to 2.60 mg; vitamin B12 2.0 to 3.0 mcg; water 73.4 to 61.6 g
• Raw US beef chuck for stew gives about 101% DV of vitamin B12 and half the DV of zinc per 3.5 oz (100 g), while selenium differs fourfold between the US and UK tables. — USDA SR Legacy records for beef chuck for stew (6 records, reference FDC 170809) against CoFID Beef, stewing steak, raw, lean (18-076) Evidence E source
  USDA per 3.5 oz (100 g): vitamin B12 2.42 mcg (range 2.27 to 2.85), zinc 5.51 mg (5.41 to 8.47), selenium 26 mcg (23.6 to 35.3); CoFID selenium 7 mcg

What a real portion looks like

• The US dietary survey counts one serving of beef stew as a cup, which weighs 9 oz (255 g). — FNDDS portion weights for Stew, beef (food code 27311410) Evidence E source
  1 cup 255 g; quantity not specified 255 g

What your body absorbs

• In a randomized trial in 52 iron-deficient women, taking an iron supplement with 4 oz (113 g) of beef daily for 8 weeks raised ferritin no more than taking it with a plant-based burger. — 52 nonpregnant women aged about 24 with serum ferritin under 25 mcg/L, 32 mg iron as ferrous sulfate with a lunch of 4 oz beef or Beyond Meat daily for 8 weeks (n = 52) Evidence B source
  Ferritin +10.7 mcg/L and hemoglobin +0.5 g/dL over time in both arms; treatment-by-time interaction P > 0.05 for all indicators

What cooking and storage change

• Eating the cooking liquid is what separates stew from boiled beef: simmered beef keeps 55% of its potassium and 60% of its B12 without the drippings, and 100% and 75% with them. — USDA retention factors for the group Beef Products, BEEF, ROAST, SIMMERED without drippings (653) and with drippings (654) Evidence E source
  Without drippings: vitamin B6 35%, thiamin 45%, potassium 55%, niacin 55%, vitamin B12 60%; with drippings: B6 50%, thiamin 60%, potassium 100%, niacin 90%, B12 75%; iron and zinc 100% in both
• Across 28 studies, cooked beef carried much more of four cancer-linked PAH compounds than raw, with smoking and grilling over coal or wood the worst. — 28 studies measuring PAH4 in beef and beef products under different cooking conditions (n = 28 studies) Evidence C source
  Thermally processed versus control beef g' = 1.64 (P < 0.001); smoking above grilling and barbecuing (g' > 0.8); highest with coal and wood, surface 394 to 662 °F (201 to 350 °C), over 30 min
• How beef is cooked changes its heterocyclic amines 50-fold: very well-done beef had 31.8 ng/g PhIP from churrasco, 16.3 from grilling and 0.58 from pan-frying. — Beef, chicken, pork and fish cooked by typical Brazilian methods to varying doneness, laboratory analysis Evidence D source
  PhIP in very well-done non-marinated beef: churrasco 31.8, grilled 16.3, pan-fried 0.58 ng/g; marinade lowered PhIP

What it does to your health

• In a cluster-randomized school feeding trial in 12 Kenyan schools, children given the local bean and maize stew with meat added had the steepest gains on Raven's reasoning test. — Standard I pupils in 12 rural primary schools in Embu District, Kenya, fed githeri with meat, milk or added fat, or no feeding (n = 12 schools) Evidence B source
  Meat group steepest rise in Raven's Progressive Matrices scores; near doubling of upper midarm muscle area

Safety, limits and interactions

• WHO's cancer agency classifies red meat, beef included, as probably carcinogenic to humans (Group 2A). — IARC Monographs volume 114 evaluation, as summarized by WHO Evidence E source
  Red meat Group 2A; processed meat Group 1

Who this works differently for

• In a crossover trial in 17 breastfeeding mothers, swapping 339 g a day of beef for a plant-based substitute for 6 days lowered arachidonic acid in breast milk from 0.41% to 0.35%. — 17 lactating women exclusively breastfeeding, two 6-day phases of 339 g/day beef or plant-based beef substitute, all meals provided (n = 17) Evidence B source
  Milk arachidonic acid 0.41 versus 0.35% (P < 0.001); lauric acid 4.47 versus 9.32% on the substitute
• In 23 people with a history of calcium kidney stones, two servings of beef a day gave the same urinary stone risk as an equal amount of plant protein in a randomized crossover trial. — 23 normocalciuric patients with a history of calcium kidney stones, 2 servings of beef daily (43 to 50 g protein) or equal plant protein (n = 23) Evidence B source
  Urinary calcium, oxalate, citrate and Tiselius risk index did not differ between diets
• A systematic review of 9 randomized trials in adults 50 and over found a positive effect of beef and its nutrients on wellbeing, but only one trial tested beef itself. — adults aged 50 and over, 9 randomized controlled trials with 55 measurements of wellbeing markers; the eight nutrient trials in older adults with one or more chronic diseases (n = 9 trials) Evidence A source
  Overall positive effect on wellbeing and physical function; no effect for arginine, vitamin B12, leucine or zinc alone

What is still unknown

• A homemade UK beef stew gives 93 calories, 12.2 g protein and 260 mg sodium per 3.5 oz (100 g), far less protein than the stewed beef in it but nearly five times the sodium. — UK composition table entry Stew, beef, made with lean beef, homemade (19-550), against Beef, stewing steak, stewed, lean (18-080) Evidence E source
  Stew per 3.5 oz (100 g): 93 calories, protein 12.2 g, fat 3.1 g, iron 1.22 mg, zinc 2.9 mg, sodium 260 mg; stewed lean steak: protein 32.0 g, sodium 54 mg

The bottom line

Raw US beef chuck for stew carries 2.42 mcg of vitamin B12 per 3.5 oz (100 g), about 101 percent of the Daily Value, and 5.51 mg of zinc, half of it. Selenium is 26 mcg in the US table and 7 mcg in the UK one, a fourfold gap between two national tables. The claim that beef helps you absorb iron has one direct test here. In a randomized trial in 52 young women with low iron stores, taking 32 mg of supplemental iron with 4 oz (113 g) of beef at lunch for 8 weeks raised ferritin no more than taking it with a plant-based burger. Both groups gained about 10.7 mcg/L. That trial tested beef alongside supplement iron, and the iron in the beef itself was not the question. In 12 rural Kenyan schools, undernourished children given the local bean and maize stew with meat added showed the steepest rise on a reasoning test, in a cluster-randomized trial with few schools that does not carry over to well-fed children. How beef is cooked changes what forms on it. Across 28 studies, cooked beef carried much more of four cancer-linked PAH compounds than raw, with smoking worst and coal or wood fires highest. In one laboratory study, very well-done beef had 31.8 ng/g of the amine PhIP from Brazilian churrasco, 16.3 from grilling and 0.58 from pan-frying. Neither measured stewing, so we cannot place a stew on that scale. Who should know what. WHO's cancer agency classes red meat, beef included, as probably carcinogenic to humans (Group 2A), a hazard label on limited human evidence that does not measure how much risk a serving adds. In 17 breastfeeding mothers, swapping 339 g a day of beef for a plant-based substitute for 6 days lowered arachidonic acid in their milk from 0.41 to 0.35 percent, and nobody measured the effect on the babies. In 23 people with a history of calcium kidney stones, two servings of beef a day gave the same urine stone markers as an equal amount of plant protein, in a short crossover trial that counted no new stones. We found nothing on beef allergy or on beef alongside medicines.

Sources

1. bfst-r8-01 · CoFID 2021, dataset
   Beef, stewing steak, raw, lean (18-076): protein 22.6 g, fat 3.5 g, zinc 5.7 mg, iron 2.10 mg, vitamin B12 2.0 ug, water 73.4 g; Beef, stewing steak, stewed, lean (18-080): protein 32.0 g, fat 6.3 g, zinc 8.6 mg, iron 2.60 mg, vitamin B12 3.0 ug, water 61.6 g
   CoFID 2021, Public Health England / OGL v3.0, codes 18-076 and 18-080 · checked 2026-09-29
2. bfst-r8-05 · USDA FoodData Central SR Legacy, dataset
   Beef, chuck for stew, separable lean and fat, select, raw (FDC 170809, SR Legacy): vitamin B12 2.42 ug = 101% DV; zinc 5.51 mg = 50% DV; selenium 26 ug = 47% DV; across 6 records B12 2.27-2.85 ug, zinc 5.41-8.47 mg, selenium 23.6-35.3 ug; CoFID 18-076 selenium 7 ug
   USDA FoodData Central, SR Legacy, FDC 170809 · checked 2026-09-29
3. bfst-r8-04 · USDA FNDDS portion weights, dataset
   Stew, beef (FNDDS 27311410, FDC 2706592): 1 cup 255 g; Quantity not specified 255 g
   USDA FNDDS, Stew, beef, food code 27311410, FDC 2706592 · checked 2026-09-29
4. bfst-r8-06 · randomized controlled trial
   Daily consumption of an iron supplement with a lunch meal for 8 wk improved serum ferritin concentrations (main time effect: +10.7 ± 9.6 μg/L, P < 0.0001), transferrin saturation (main time effect: +5.1% ± 18.7%, P = 0.048), soluble transferrin receptor (main time effect: -0.6 ± 1.0 mg/L, P < 0.001), body iron stores (main time effect: +2.8 ± 3.1 mg/kg, P < 0.0001), and hemoglobin (main time effect: +0.5 ± 0.9 g/dL, P = 0.0002) regardless of whether the meals contained Animal or Plant (treatment-by-time interaction: P > 0.05 for all indicators).
   Am J Clin Nutr, 2025 · checked 2026-09-29
5. bfst-r8-03 · USDA Table of Nutrient Retention Factors, dataset
   BEEF,ROAST,SIMMERED,WO/DRIPPINGS (USDA-RETN-R6:653): vitamin_b6_mg 35%; thiamin_mg 45%; potassium_mg 55%; niacin_mg 55%; vitamin_b12_ug 60%; iron_mg 100%; zinc_mg 100%. BEEF,ROAST,SIMMERED,W/DRIP (USDA-RETN-R6:654): vitamin_b6_mg 50%; thiamin_mg 60%; potassium_mg 100%; niacin_mg 90%; vitamin_b12_ug 75%; iron_mg 100%; zinc_mg 100%
   USDA Table of Nutrient Retention Factors, Release 6, 2007, Retn_Codes 653 and 654 · checked 2026-09-29
6. bfst-r8-11 · meta-analysis of laboratory measurements
   A meta-analysis of 28 articles indicated that thermally processed beef had significantly higher PAH4 levels than did the control beef (g' = 1.64; P < 0.001). Smoking caused greater PAH4 buildup than did grilling and barbecuing (g' > 0.8; P < 0.001).
   Meat Sci, 2026 · checked 2026-09-29
7. bfst-r8-12 · food chemistry study
   PhIP levels (ng/g) in very well-done, non-marinated beef were significantly higher for churrasco (31.8 for the exterior portion),than for grilling (16.3) and pan-frying (0.58) (Table 5 and Table 9).
   J Food Compost Anal, 2010 · checked 2026-09-29
8. bfst-r8-07 · randomized controlled trial
   Twelve primary schools were randomly assigned to 1 of 4 groups. Children in Standard I classes received the local plant-based dish githeri as a midmorning school snack supplemented with meat, milk, or fat added to equalize energy content in all feedings. ... For cognitive function, the Meat group showed the steepest rate of increase on Raven's Progressive Matrices scores and in zone-wide school end-term total and arithmetic test scores.
   J Nutr, 2007 · checked 2026-09-29
9. bfst-r8-10 · agency position
   Red meat refers to all mammalian muscle meat, including beef, veal, pork, lamb, mutton, horse and goat. ... Red meat has been classified as Group 2A, probably carcinogenic to humans.
   WHO, Cancer: Carcinogenicity of the consumption of red meat and processed meat, Q&A · checked 2026-09-29
10. bfst-r8-08 · randomized controlled trial
    Human milk collected during the substitute diet contained higher levels of tropical oil-derived medium-chain saturated fatty acids, such as lauric acid (12:0: 9.32 ± 1.8 compared with 4.47 ± 1.82, P < 0.001) and lower levels of long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (LCPUFAs), including arachidonic acid (20:4n-6: 0.35 ± 0.06 compared with 0.41 ± 0.06, P < 0.001) compared with milk form the beef diet.
    Am J Clin Nutr, 2026 · checked 2026-09-29
11. bfst-r8-09 · randomized controlled trial
    Urinary calcium, oxalate, magnesium, citrate, phosphorus, volume, and TRI did not differ between diets.
    J Am Diet Assoc, 2001 · checked 2026-09-29
12. bfst-r8-13 · systematic review of RCTs
    We identified nine RCTs with results from 55 measurements of markers of wellbeing. An overall positive effect was found of beef and beef's nutrients on wellbeing. ... Eight of the studies found focused on specific nutrients found in beef, and not beef itself in older adults with one or more chronic diseases.
    Meat Sci, 2022 · checked 2026-09-29
13. bfst-r8-02 · CoFID 2021, dataset
    Stew, beef, made with lean beef, homemade (19-550): energy 93 kcal, protein 12.2 g, fat 3.1 g, iron 1.22 mg, zinc 2.9 mg, sodium 260 mg; Beef, stewing steak, stewed, lean (18-080): protein 32.0 g, sodium 54 mg
    CoFID 2021, Public Health England / OGL v3.0, codes 19-550 and 18-080 · checked 2026-09-29