Saint Patrick’s Day is only a few short days away, and while I know corned beef and cabbage is going to be on many an Irish dinner table that evening, there are other options, and one of them is this beef stew.
But not just any beef stew…beef stew that has been cooked slowly and lovingly all afternoon in a simmering bath of Guinness draught.
Tender beef with lots of veggies and a sauce that will bring you right back to the old country, even if you have never been there.
I have most definitely been there – here I am during a trip for a family wedding with my grandparents, kissing the Blarney Stone, which legend has it endows the kisser with the gift of gab.
(This all makes sense to those of you who know me now, right?)
Kissing the Blarney stone is a little more complicated than you might think.
It involves lying on your back with your head hanging upside down inside a kind of high opening which is is sheer drop down to the ground, your legs being held by a guy whose job it is to hold folks’ legs so they don’t plummet down to earth.
You need to be MOTIVATED. Or twelve years old, one or the other.
I promise I am now getting to the point, which is that Guinness beef stew is a warm and wonderful concoction of beef, vegetables and a lovely sauce. You do need to hunt down some of this.
Guinness Stout, which is an Irish beer that has been around since the 1700’s and is pretty easy to find right in with all the other beers, especially at this time of year.
Here’s How To Make Guinness Beef Stew!
Preheat your oven to 325.
Season a three to four pound beef chuck roast with salt and pepper.
Heat 3 tablespoons of vegetable oil in Dutch oven or other large heavy pot over medium high heat and add 2 peeled and chopped sweet onions. Stir until they are starting to brown, about 5 minutes.
Add 2 tablespoons of tomato paste and stir until it is nice and mixed in with the onions. Stir in a quarter cup of flour, and then whisk in 3 cups of beef broth, 3/4 cup of Guinness, 2 tablespoons of brown sugar and a tablespoon of fresh thyme. Simmer this glorious concoction for 3 minutes.
Add the beef and give it all a stir. Transfer the pot to the oven and cook uncovered for 90 minutes.
Add a pound and a half of cut up Yukon Gold potatoes and one pound of peeled and sliced carrots to the pot, stir and continue cooking in the oven until the meat and veggies are tender, another 60 minutes.
Add the remaining Guinness, stir and add salt and pepper as needed. Serve on warmed plates, garnished with parsley.
More tips for making Guinness Beef Stew!
NO!!! Okay, yes, if you really can’t find Guinness…another kind of stout or dark beer will be best.
If you are using Yukon Golds (sometimes known as butter potatoes) you don’t have to peel them – their skin is very thin. Just scrub them up well before you cut them. If you can’t find Yukons and need to use Idaho or russet potatoes, I would peel them.
Yep! But cut the amount down to a teaspoon.
All that time in the oven will concentrate all the beer and broth and other wonderful ingredients down to a flavorful perfect sauce, and although there are potatoes in this dish, if you need some bread on the side to make sure you get every scrumptious drop, I totally understand.
Happy St. Pat’s to you and yours!
OTHER IRISH RECIPES WE LOVE!
Guinness Beef Stew
Beef stew gets a touch of the Irish when it is slowly simmered in Guinness in this easy and delicious recipe!
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 2 hours, 40 minutes
- Total Time: 2 hours 55 minutes
- Yield: 6 1x
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Oven, Stovetop
- Cuisine: Irish
- Diet: Low Lactose
Ingredients
- 3–4 pounds beef chuck roast, cut into 1 inch chunks
- Salt and pepper
- 3 tablespoons canola oil
- 2 sweet onions, peeled and chopped
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1/4 cup flour
- 3 cups beef broth
- 1 1/4 cups Guinness Draught Stout
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon fresh thyme
- 1 1/2 pounds Yukon Gold potatoes, cut into 1 inch pieces
- 1 pound carrots, peeled and cut into 1 inch pieces (or you can use baby carrots)
- Chopped fresh parsley for garnish
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325.
- Season beef with salt and pepper. Heat oil in Dutch oven over medium high heat and add onions. Stir until they are starting to brown, about 5 minutes.
- Add tomato paste and stir until well-combined. Stir in flour, and then whisk in broth, 3/4 cup Guinness, sugar and thyme. Simmer for 3 minutes.
- Add beef and stir. Transfer the pot to the oven and cook uncovered for 90 minutes.
- Add potatoes and carrots to the pot, stir and continue cooking until the meat and veggies are tender, another 60 minutes.
- Add remaining Guinness, stir and add salt and pepper as needed. Sserve on warmed plates, garnished with parsley.
Notes
Need to add something to your kitchen equipment to make this recipe? Below are some of the items we used in the Framed Cooks kitchen to help cook this up. These are affiliate links to things we use and love, which helps to pay for all that bacon I keep buying (without any extra cost to you)! Thanks for using them to keep our kitchen cooking…xoxo!
Updated (and made even more delicious!) from a previously published Framed Cooks post!
Martha says
Love this easy recipe beef strew! We love an Irish twist for St Pattys (or all year long really!)
St Patrick’s Day all year long is a great plan!!