1. Toss stew meat in flour and brown on all sides. Add beer and broth and bring to a boil. Transfer to slow cooker (unless your slow cooker is stovetop safe).
2. Add onion, garlic (or garlic powder), carrots, potatoes, bay leaves and butter.
3. Cook on low for 8 hours or high for 4 hours. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
4. Whisk cornstarch and cool water together to form slurry. Whisk slurry into stew, boil for 2-3 minutes.
5. If using parsnips see notes.

Notes:

Parsnips are absolutely delicious in this stew but if your parsnips are old and very large they can turn the stew very bitter. Choose young, tender parsnips for the best experience. Roast them separately and add once cooking is complete instead of boiling them to help prevent stew from getting bitter.

In a rush?

Use a more tender cut of meat and cut your vegetables into smaller pieces (medium dice) and medium simmer for 1 hour for an easy dinner.

Going to be gone all day or just hate mushy vegetable?

Cut your vegetables into extra large chunks (3-4 inches) or leave the vegetables out of the slow cooker entirely and roast them in the oven for 30 minutes at 400 degrees. Add to stew just before serving. Save time with this technique by roasting them the night before or in the morning before you head out!