Searing meat is worth the effort every time. I skipped this crucial step a couple of times, citing the same reasons of time and dirty pans, and regretted it immensely.

Searing meat also makes a nice fond at the bottom of the pan that when deglazed, definitely makes the gravy/sauce/braising liquid more flavorful!

I always sear, but I was reading Jamie Oliver and he claims that after experimenting with browning and not browning, he found the stews he made that weren't browned tasted better, so he has pretty much stopped browning for stews...

http://www.jamieoliver.com/recipes/meat/jools_s_favourite_beef_stew

I have a specific beef soup I make, and my husband decided to make it once, but didn't take the time to brown/sear the meat first or caramelize any of the veggies. First, there was a big difference in flavor, and this is going to sound gross, but there was an excess of foamy boiled blood at the top of his soup (hopefully, you know what I'm talking about, it's hard to describe). The soup wasn't near as brown as mine turns out either. I always caramelize items like onions too, because I think it adds to the flavor. So personally I prefer seared meat.

Yeah, I was in a rush a month or two ago and didn't dredge/sear the beef before making my standby stew, and there was definitely a drop in flavor. It was still good, but not luscious. Too bad; it really is a pain for the slow-cooker stuff where you aren't going to cook in the same dutch oven you can sear in...

Also...don't forget to marinate the meat with olive oil before you drop the delicious piece into the searing pan or pot. I made that mistake once and the meat sort of stuck to the dutch oven that I used.

On a note, in the second paragraph, you have two "is a" before flavour profile; did you do that on purpose or it's a typo? There was a study out there that said we block out these simple words when we read( another example is the word "THE". Many people don't notice a repeat of "THE" in a sentence when they conducted the experiment). So I was just wondering if you did that just to get a kick out of it.

I believe in searing, too, for all of the reasons mentioned here. It only takes a few minutes & the results are definitely worth the effort.

It's the little things that count, and searing does. I mean, look how far just a dash of salt goes!

For a dinner party dish I might, but otherwise I don´t bother. If the beef is good and you take care to let the vegetables cook well, it´s perfectly fine by me. I add some caramel for colour, though.

not searing meat before braising would be like not caramelizing onions before making french onion soup. just plain weird.

I have to disagree with Chef Jamie. Skip browning the stew meat and you lose a lot of the flavor in the broth. It improves the color and texture, too.

Besides, if I didn't, my Grandmother would reach down from heaven and swat me with her slipper.

While I almost always sear my meat (deep, deep brown - sometimes almost charred!) I think it does depend on the dish. I recently had a very light, finely shredded pulled pork. It wouldn't really make sense to have seared it before cooking. The flavor and texture were light and almost airy, and a darkly browned crust wouldn't have worked in the dish.

But for most beef and pork roasts and stews, yes, I'll brown it deeply.

Sometimes you just don't want or need that browned flavor.

Depends. Traditionally, tagines and some Middle Eastern stews (eg, Persian lamb stew with dried lime and split peas, chicken with pomegranate and walnuts) do NOT require the meat to be seared or stirred, just cooked long and slow with a few spices, fruit or pulses, and topped with fresh herbs. I think they would be perfect for making in a crockpot.

It depends on the dish...I do think that it concentrates the flavors and then provides the nice crunchy bits that deglazing will bring out.

I do, not so much for flavor but becuase i love that crusty outer that the meat gets. I also love making sauces from the results of searing.

Cook's Illustrated has done a lot of testing on this -- check out their Spanish-style beef stew from the Jan/Feb issue ... just made it this weekend and it was good. Thought about adding a searing step for my own test.

I always sear meat before a braise in the same dutch oven that I braise in. I just sear first, remove the meat to a plate, sweat the aromatics, add the liquid, and then add the meat back in later.

I think you're going to get a just about universal "yes!" from the commenters on this site. Why would I have the opportunity to make meat more flavorful and not? I don't think most readers here actually believe it seals in juices. That's a fairly old myth, but it absolutely adds flavor, braising or slow cooker-ing or otherwise.

That said, I don't always sear meats. Cause sometimes I'm lazy and want to toss it in a crock pot and be out the door!

Searing meat beforehand adds better flavor to the final dish. I couldn't imagine adding raw meat to a soup or stew.

"...not caramelizing onions before making french onion soup."
No way! I am clutching my pearls at the thought.

It depends on the flavor profile you're going for. If you're looking for something with deep flavors in wintery dishes, I think it's essential. If you're doing something with bright fresh flavors it can muddy things up.

It does depend on the dish--for my chicken broth, I like to roast the chicken and vegetables beforehand, but I recently made my grandmother's oxtail soup, which doesn't call for any browning of any of the meat (just bringing the oxtails to a simmer three times in freshwater to avoid the otherwise inevitable scum that floats to the top), and I think the flavor is fantastic.

Yes it builds flavor but it can also make for a tough exterior. I actually sear less than I did in the past.

My roommate made a pot roast once in the crockpot without searing and it was basically gray meat with gluey sauce. I'm not a picky eater, but I couldn't even eat it. SEARING IS FLAVOR.

I always sear the meat unless it's brisket. It's ridiculously difficult to sear an entire brisket.

I alway sear my meats no matter the end result, stew, soup, oven-baked. Salt, pepper, garlic, sear. Even when breading a piece of meat, I sear it for one to two minutes, rest it, bread it and back in the pan to bake in the oven. Its helps to have cookware that can go from the stove-top to an oven, it helps to have sizzle pans on hand. I have eaten unseared meats from a lazy wanna be cook and it's just not that flavorful or appealing.

I just fire up the outside gas grill for 5 minutes and sear over that - nothing like open flame to add taste :) Plus no dirty dishes.

It's worth it if you enjoy things that taste exceptionally good. I always sear my meat in the same pan I braise it in. I thought everyone did this. Why wouldn't you do this?

Re: Cooks Illustrated comment cited above. They skip the searing step because when the meat is braised in that and other non-searing recipes the liquid is almost always not quite covering the meat. Not sure why they think this is an acceptable substitute for searing, but that's what they claim.

Unbelievable to not sear. I have a large enameled cast iron dutch oven that has become my most favorite pot of choice. And it was a Le Cruset knock off for $30.

Kenji at seriouseats offers says to just sear one side. That gives enough extra flavor without toughening the meat all over.

Darn. I was hoping the answer would be no...especially for those giant cuts of meat!

Searing is the main reason my Dutch oven gets more play than my slow cooker. I get the tasty brown stuff and don't have to wash anything extra.

I always sear my stew meat before making beef stew. I've made it and not seared and it is pasty and grey looking if I don't, plus, the stew has a meatier flavor. And I don't think that's my imagination....

Yeah, I read serious eats too, and was really intrigued to read what kenji has to say about it. Here is an excerpt from his Easy Pork and Three Bean Chili recipe:

You might be tempted to brown all the meat, thinking that more browning = more flavor, but it's a trade-off. Browned meat will always turn out dryer and tougher than un-browned meat, as the temperatures required for browning will cause muscle proteins to tighten beyond the point of no return.

The solution is one I discovered in my Real Texas Chile Con Carne adventures. Rather than browning all of the meat, just brown one side. Since most of the flavorful compounds developed during the browning process are water soluble, even by browning one side of the meat, the flavor developed will still manage to spread throughout the entire stew. You end up with plenty of flavor, and super-tender and moist pork.