Make in a 6-quart slow-cooker. To Make Ahead: The night before or day in advance, prepare the recipe through step 2. Instead of adding the ingredients to the slow cooker, refrigerate them, but be sure to store the browned meat in one container and the sauteed vegetables and liquid in another container. In the morning, and the chilled ingredients to the slow cooker, then add the broth, bay leaves, thyme, potatoes, and carrots to the slow cooker, cover, and proceed with step 3. The cooking time will run to the high end of the range given in the recipe.