Best Traditional Irish Beef Stew Recipe - Guinness (2024)

By: Author Wendi Spraker

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I love to put the luck of the Irish in a St. Patrick’s Day Dinner with a touch of Guinness. It makes this irresistable Irish Beef Stew Recipe! If you are looking to tantalize your taste buds with savory sensation then look no further than the Very BEST Traditional Irish Beef Stew Recipe – Guinness thats out there.

Best Traditional Irish Beef Stew Recipe - Guinness (1)

Irish Beef Stew

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This stew is the ultimate comfort food bursting with tender chunks of succulent beef, hearty potatoes and creamy root vegetables. I love how just a touch of guinness beer imparts a deep rich flavor to the beef broth. My family enjoys when I Whip up a bit if Irish Soda Bread, the crusty bread favorite (then we have a guinness stew meal complete).

With these easy to follow directions and minimal prep time, our Irish Beef Stew Recipe is perfect for both seasoned chefs and novice cooks alike.

It’s a meal that sure to impress and to satisfy. There’s no reason to wait! Whip up a batch today and treat yorself to a taste of Irelands Finest Cuisine!

Please try some of our other popular stews likeClassic Beef Stew,McCormicks Beef SteworPressure Cooker Beef Stew!

Best Traditional Irish Beef Stew Recipe - Guinness (2)

Here’s What You’ll Need For This Hearty Stew

  • Beef Stew (makes a tender beef stew)
  • Waxy Potatoes (Red Baby Potatoes or yellow Yukon Gold Potatoes)
  • Carrots
  • Beef Concentrate (instead of beef stock)
  • Guinness Beef (no worries, I have some substitutions)
  • Tomato Paste
  • Garlic, onion, salt and black pepper, Accent

SECRET INGREDIENT: Fish Sauce – gives unbelievable umami to this already rich st. patrick’s day Dish

Here’s How You Make this Guinness Beef Stew

  1. On the Stove top Sear the meat on medium-high heat in vegetable or olive oil and set it aside.
  2. Add the onions and some flour.
  3. Add the liquids and deglaze the bottom of the pan. (some meat and brown stuff will stick to the bottom of the pot)
  4. Add the tomato paste and the herbs and spices. Mix well.
  5. Cook away in a large dutch oven!

OPTIONAL: You can cook this in a crock pot (slow cooker) or a pressure cooker too. Cook on low in the crockpot for 6-8 hours (could take longer). Cook in the pressure cooker (instant pot) at high pressure for 25 minutes. Allow natural release.

Best Traditional Irish Beef Stew Recipe - Guinness (3)

Tips and Tricks for This Classic Beef Stew

  • The secret to this stew is to get the most umami (deep flavour) out of the ingredients. You do that by searing the meat first causing little browned bits of delicious beef to remain stuck to the bottom of the pan. When you deglaze with the Guinness and broth, those bits add so much incredible flavor to the dish!
  • This is the perfect stew for a cold night with those starchy potatoes, beef stew meat and creamy soft carrots. This makes a real authentic Irish Stew!
  • To thicken this stew, if it isn’t as thick as you prefer you can do one of the following: Allow it to simmer longer on the stove top and this will cook off some of the liquid. Make a cornstarch slurry with a heaping table spoon of cornstarch and several tsp of cold water. mix well with a fork to a milk like consistency and add to the stew. Stir until thickened. You can repeat this until it is as thick as you prefer.
  • To thin the stew if it is thicker than you like, add beef broth or a little water, stir and repeat if neccessary.
  • The stew is done when the meat is tender, the red potatoes are tender.
  • For an extra comforting meal, serve this traditional irish stew recipes over creamy mashed potatoes and with an Irish Brown Bread.
  • In this recipe, we add a ton of flavor by using the beef concentrate (I prefer ‘Better than Bullion” brand. If you can’t find that, use beef broth in equal amounts to the water.

Substitutions

  • If you can’t find Guinness Beer, use an equal amount of black coffee.
  • This recipe works best with a waxy types of potatoes, but it is fine to use Russet Potatoes instead, just peel and cut into bite sized pieces.
  • This dish has a very long cooking time because the meat is a tougher cut of meat and requires that long to break it down into a tender meat.
  • Slow cooking rather than using a dutch oven doesn’t add the depth of flavor in my opinion.
  • To stretch this stew farther, add more carrots and potatoes.
  • Check the Stew Beef Pieces before adding them to the pan, sometimes they are cut quite large and you’ll need to cut them down to a bite size piece.

PRO TIP: Two Bay leaves added to the stew gives extra flavor as well, but don’t forget to take them out when the stew is done!

EXTRA INFO: This article gives afun history of Irish Stew!

Storage, Freezing and Reheating

For best results, store the prepared stew in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.

Freeze in freezer safe containers (remove as much air as possible) for up to 3 months.

Reheat on the stove top in a medium or large pot and heat over medium heat.

Watch Me Make It

Thank you so much for reading here about this traditional irish recipes. I hope you learned about making a thicker stew and the delicious stew that you can make with these simple ingredients!

I love to show you how to get the most about of your food, teach you new techniques and show you how to get a BANG of flavor!

Join me and Sarah on Social media next time and if you want to cruise around there today, you can see more about this traditional stew!

Leave me a comment below and I’ll be sure to answer as quickly as possible. You are the center of the universe over here at Loaves and Dishes and every time you leave a 5 STAR comment, it helps others to find the recipes here. Thank you so much for visiting!

Best Traditional Irish Beef Stew Recipe - Guinness (4)

BEST Traditional Irish Beef Stew Recipe – Guinness

Easy and delicious Traditional Irish Beef Stew Recipe using Guinness Beer. Thick and hearty, it's our favorite!

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Course: stew

Cuisine: American

Keyword: Irish Stew

Prep Time: 30 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 3 hours hours

Total Time: 3 hours hours 30 minutes minutes

Servings: 8 servings

Calories: 386kcal

Author: Wendi Spraker

Ingredients

  • 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
  • 3 pounds beef stew meat
  • 1 whole onion coarsely chopped
  • 1 tablespoon minced garlic
  • 1/4 cup all purpose flour
  • 1 cup Irish stout beer – ok to substitute black coffee
  • 4 cups water
  • 4 Tablespoons of beef concentrate
  • 1/4 cup tomato paste half a 4 oz container
  • 2 pounds small yellow potatoes halved or red potatoes
  • 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme leaves
  • 2 cups carrots washed and chopped in large pieces
  • 1 Tablespoon Fish Sauce
  • 1 Tablespoon of Accent or Hidden Valley Ranch Seasoning
  • salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 350.

  • In a dutch oven on high on the stovetop, heat the vegetable oil to hot and then sear the stew beef in sections.

  • Remove the stew beef from the pot and add the onions and sear them as well.

  • Once the onions have cooked for about a minute, add the garlic and the flour and cook for 1 minute.

  • Add the beer, water and beef concentrate and scrape the bottom of the pot to release the stuck on bits.

  • Add the tomato paste, the potatoes and carrots and thyme. Add the fish sauce and the Accent. Start with 1 tsp of salt and pepper then you can taste after its done to adjust.

  • Stir well and place the entire dutch oven with the lid on in the oven for 3 hours. After three hours, test the meat to see if it is as tender as you like, if it is not, put back in the oven for 20 minute intervals until the meat is tender.

Notes

  • The secret to this stew is to get the most umami (deep flavour) out of the ingredients. You do that by searing the meat first causing little browned bits of delicious beef to remain stuck to the bottom of the pan. When you deglaze with the Guinness and broth, those bits add so much incredible flavor to the dish!
  • This is the perfect stew for a cold night with those starchy potatoes, beef stew meat and creamy soft carrots. This makes a real authentic Irish Stew!
  • To thicken this stew, if it isn’t as thick as you prefer you can do one of the following: Allow it to simmer longer on the stove top and this will cook off some of the liquid. Make a cornstarch slurry with a heaping table spoon of cornstarch and several tsp of cold water. mix well with a fork to a milk like consistency and add to the stew. Stir until thickened. You can repeat this until it is as thick as you prefer.
  • To thin the stew if it is thicker than you like, add beef broth or a little water, stir and repeat if neccessary.
  • The stew is done when the meat is tender, the red potatoes are tender.
  • For an extra comforting meal, serve this traditional irish stew recipes over creamy mashed potatoes and with an Irish Brown Bread.
  • In this recipe, we add a ton of flavor by using the beef concentrate (I prefer ‘Better than Bullion” brand. If you can’t find that, use beef broth in equal amounts to the water.

Nutrition

Nutrition Facts

BEST Traditional Irish Beef Stew Recipe – Guinness

Amount Per Serving

Calories 386Calories from Fat 81

% Daily Value*

Fat 9g14%

Saturated Fat 3g15%

Polyunsaturated Fat 0.5g

Monounsaturated Fat 4g

Cholesterol 105mg35%

Sodium 541mg23%

Potassium 1290mg37%

Carbohydrates 31g10%

Fiber 4g16%

Sugar 4g4%

Protein 42g84%

Vitamin A 5480IU110%

Vitamin C 28mg34%

Calcium 72mg7%

Iron 5mg28%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

Tried this recipe?Mention @loavesanddishes or tag #loavesanddishes!

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Best Traditional Irish Beef Stew Recipe - Guinness (2024)

FAQs

What is the difference between beef stew and Irish stew? ›

The main difference between an Irish stew and classic beef stew comes down to the protein. Traditional Irish stew is usually made with lamb, while beef stew is always made with beef. Our version includes beef chuck, which is less traditional, but easy to make and equally delicious.

Why is my beef Guinness stew bitter? ›

Stouts, like Guinness, are known for their bitterness. If the stew is cooked too quickly or if it doesn't include ingredients to balance the bitterness, this flavor can be very pronounced.

What is traditional Irish stew made of? ›

The epitome of comfort food, traditional Irish stew has only a few ingredients: mutton, onions and potatoes. In southern Ireland carrots are added, and some cooks venture so far as to add turnips. These days, young lamb often replaces mutton for a more delicate version.

What does beef and Guinness stew taste like? ›

There's no greater comfort food than a hearty stew. And Irish Beef and Guinness Stew might be the king of them all! Guinness gives the sauce an incredible rich, deep flavour, and the beef is fall-apart tender.

What is the difference between Colcannon and Champ? ›

What is the difference between Colcannon and Champ? Both Irish dishes, Champ is mashed potatoes with chopped spring onions (scallions) and milk. Colcannon is Champ with the addition of cabbage and sometimes some herbs.

What is the real name for Irish stew? ›

Irish stew (Irish: Stobhach Gaelach) or Stobhach is a stew native to Ireland that is traditionally made with root vegetables and lamb or mutton, but also commonly with beef. As in all traditional folk dishes, the exact recipe is not consistent from time to time, or place to place.

How do you thicken Guinness stew? ›

Mix one teaspoon cornflour with a tablespoon of room temperature water and add to your stew. Then bring to the boil and cook until desired thickness is reached. Cornflour is a great gluten-free thickener. It has a slightly more gelatinous texture, so only add a teaspoon at time or your sauce may become a bit goopy.

What is Guinness and bitter called? ›

A black and tan is a beer co*cktail made by layering a pale beer (usually pale ale) and a dark beer (usually stout). In Ireland, the drink is called a half and half.

Why does my Guinness taste sour? ›

Acetaldehyde can also be produced by the oxidation of alcohol. We all know that oxygen is the enemy of a finished beer, and sometimes it will cause a sour taste.

Why do Irish people eat Irish stew? ›

The origins of Irish stew are somewhat shrouded in mystery, but it's believed to have originated in the 17th or 18th century. At that time, the dish was often made by shepherds and rural farmers who had access to only a few ingredients but needed a nourishing meal to sustain them through long days of work.

Does Irish stew contain potatoes? ›

Classic Irish Stew is easy to make but is incredibly delicious! It's made with basic ingredients like potatoes, carrots, beef broth, and beef or lamb stew meat. Cooking this dish in the oven makes the meat fall-apart-tender, the veggies saucy, and adds so much flavor to the dish.

What is an interesting fact about Irish stew? ›

The famous Irish stew made with lamb, carrots, potatoes and onion was frequently featured on menus for third-class passengers on the Titanic. The stew would be consumed as part of the passengers' high tea, which was their second and final meal of the day.

What is the tastiest beef for stew? ›

Go for the chuck

The most common beef used for stew is chuck steak, also known as gravy beef or braising steak. Beef chuck comes from the forequarter of the animal consisting of parts of the neck, shoulder blade and upper arm. It is easy to find and it's affordable, making it a great choice for your stew.

What kind of beer is best for beef stew? ›

If you're cooking pork, beef, and lamb, you will need ales, porters, and stouts. Hearty meat goes well with belgian ales. Stews pair well with ale.

Did Guinness change their recipe? ›

Beer-loving vegans will now be able to sip, or chug, the black stout, starting in 2016 when fish guts will be removed from Guinness ingredients, according to the Independent. Guinness contains isinglass, a gelatinous fish by-product used to clarify the beer and help yeast settle.

What meat does Irish stew contain? ›

While an old-fashioned, traditional Irish stew tended to contain mutton or lamb, potatoes, and maybe a few carrots, modern takes on the comforting dish range widely. While Irish stew (in the modern sense) can be made with mutton, lamb, or beef, beef stew is always made with beef.

What is the significance of Irish stew? ›

The origins of Irish stew are somewhat shrouded in mystery, but it's believed to have originated in the 17th or 18th century. At that time, the dish was often made by shepherds and rural farmers who had access to only a few ingredients but needed a nourishing meal to sustain them through long days of work.

Why is Irish stew popular? ›

A filling, flavorful peasant dish made with the cheapest, most readily available ingredients, Irish stew reflects the history of Ireland itself. The Irish raised primarily sheep and root crops for subsistence.

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