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Pour the oil into a large skillet and heat on the stove over medium-high heat. Meanwhile, make sure that your beef and vegetables are already prepared. The beef should be cut into 1-in (2.5-cm) cubes. You can usually find pre-cut beef stew meat in the butcher's department at the grocery store, but if not, you can trim and cut a chuck roast or bottom round cut. The garlic clove should be minced. If using pre-minced garlic, use 1/2 tsp (2.5 ml). If using garlic powder, use 1/8 tsp (0.625 ml). The onion and celery should be roughly chopped. You can use 3 large baking potatoes or 6 to 9 baby potatoes. Use 4 standard carrots or 2 cups (500 ml) baby carrots. Mix the flour, salt, and pepper in a large bowl. Add the beef to the mixture and toss to coat. Make sure that the flour, salt, and pepper are thoroughly combined before adding the beef. Stir the beef well so that all sides of each piece are covered. You should have little to no flour left once done. Coating the beef in flour allows the beef to brown better and also makes the finished stew thicker. Transfer the coated beef to the hot oil in your skillet. Cook for several minutes, uncovered, stirring frequently until all sides are browned. Browning the beef is only optional, so you can skip this step if you are short on time. Most cooks prefer to brown the beef, though, because doing so creates a more complex taste. Moreover, browning the beef prevents grease from causing the meat to clump together in your crock pot. Transfer the beef to the crock pot. Layer the potatoes, carrots, onion, celery, and garlic on top. Add the bay leaf, paprika, and Worcestershire sauce, then pour the beef broth over everything. The exact order of ingredients does not matter much, but for best results, the beef, potatoes, and carrots should make up the bottom three layers since these ingredients require the most heat to cook through. Note that the heating element of the crock pot is located on the bottom of the device. You could also cook the stew on High for 4 to 6 hours. Keep the crock pot covered as the stew cooks. A slow cooker needs to build up heat in order to cook properly, and the heat will be unable to build up if the lid is kept off or removed during the cooking process. Remove the bay leaf when done and ladle the warm stew into serving bowls. Keep the slow cooker on a Low or Warm setting until everyone has been served.
Heat the oil in a large skillet. Coat the beef with flour, salt, and pepper. Brown the beef. Place all the beef stew ingredients in the slow cooker. Cook on Low for 10 to 12 hours. Serve hot.