Guinness Beef Stew

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We all know a savoury, hearty stew is the ultimate comfort food on a cold dreary day and this Guinness Beef Stew is no exception. Plus, it’s a great meal to serve on St. Patrick’s Day with some traditional Irish Soda Bread.

To make this stew I started with my Slow-Cooker Beef Stew recipe as the base with a couple of adjustments and, of course, added the Guinness beer which gives this stew a delicious dark brown gravy that you’re going to want to sop up with the soda bread.

Traditional Irish Stew is made with lamb and usually no beer so I’m not claiming that this is a traditional Irish dish. I chose to use our own Lazy Spoon Farms beef stew meat instead of lamb and added the Guinness for that delicious, dark gravy.

If you can’t find stewing beef cubes at the grocery store, you can make your own cubes from an inexpensive cut from the chuck (shoulder and neck) or shank (lower leg). These cuts are best for stewing (or pot-roasting) because long, slow cooking turns the large amount of collagen in the muscle into soft, silky gelatin.

May the luck of the Irish be with you!

Guinness Beef Stew Recipe

What You’ll Need

• Large pot
• Wooden spoon
• Garlic press
• Vegetable peeler
• Vegetable chopping knife

Ingredients

• 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 2-3 pounds stewing beef cubes (or make your own cubes from a cheaper cut like a chuck/blade roast)
• 1 large yellow onion, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/3 cup flour (tapioca or all-purpose)
• 1 can (1.5 cups) Guinness beer
• 3 cups beef stock (I make my stocks from GoBIO! Organic Beef Bouillon Cubes or Better Than Bouillon)
• 3 large carrots, peeled and sliced
• 4 Yukon Gold potatoes cut into cubes
• 1 can (156 mL) tomato paste
• 1 large bay leaf
• 3 sprigs of fresh thyme (or 1 teaspoon dried)

Directions

1. Pat your beef cubes dry with a paper towel and season with salt and pepper.
2. Heat 1 tbsp of olive oil in a large pot over high heat and brown the meat. Remove browned meat from the pot. You may have to do this in a couple of batches. Add 1tbsp of olive oil to the pot to brown the second batch.
3. Reduce heat to medium and add remaining 1tbsp of olive oil to the pot. Add onion and cook for about 3-5 minutes until translucent.
4. Add garlic and cook for another minute then add flour to coat the onions and garlic.
5. Slowly add the Guinness beer and stir with a wooden spoon while scraping up the brown bits from the bottom of the pot.
6. Stir in beef stock, carrots, potatoes, tomato paste, bay leaf, and thyme.
7. Return the browned beef cubes to the pot.
8. Continue to cook on medium until the stew begins to simmer.
9. Reduce heat to medium-low and cover for 1.5 to 2 hours. Then remove the lid and continue to cook on low for another 30 minutes. The beef should be tender and the sauce thick.
10. Remove bay leaf and thyme sprigs before serving.
11. Serve with traditional Irish Soda Bread.

I chose to make this recipe in my Le Creuset Dutch Oven but there are many less expensive pots you could use like the Lodge Dutch Oven or Staub Round Cocotte.

If you want to prepare this stew in a Slow Cooker, follow the directions up to #5 in your large pot or skillet and then transfer to your slow cooker where you would add the remaining ingredients and cook on low for 6-8 hours (depending on your slow-cooker).

You can also make this recipe in an Instant Pot. Start by setting your Instant pot to the Saute setting and completing steps 1-5. Add remaining ingredients, close the lid and steam valve and pressure cook on High for 35 minutes. Release naturally for 15 minutes before using quick release.