Have you ever had Guinness Beef Stew? If not, you don’t know what you’re missing!
A few years ago I got to visit Killarney, Ireland and was amazed at how good the food was. I wasn’t expecting the cuisine to be very exciting or that delicious.
What I found was a country that enjoyed good food and young creative chefs that had embraced the local movement and raised the culinary level to new heights!
While their creativity created amazing new dishes, they hadn’t forgotten their roots and continued to serve hearty old-world Irish dishes like this Guinness Beef Stew.
I was fortunate enough to learn how to make this stew while I was in Killarney and this is the recipe I was taught (with a few minor variations). I hope you enjoy it as much as we did!
What do I need to make Guinness Beef Stew?
The ingredients are pretty basic with the only real change being whether you add potatoes to the stew or serve the stew over mashed potatoes. Of course, that doesn’t mean you can’t change up the recipe to suit your tastes. Remember recipes are guidelines.
Let’s start by gathering the ingredients we need to make Guinness Beef Stew. In chef speak this is called the Mise en Place which loosely translates into everything in its place. Not only does setting your ingredients up ahead of time speed the cooking process, but it also helps ensure you have everything you need to make the dish.
*(beef stock and beer are missing from the picture)
What type of vegetables do I need for Beef Stew?
Most chefs or home cooks would tell you that the three basic ingredients (aka holy trinity) are the basis for any stew. Those would be carrots, onions and celery. The size shape and variety really doesn’t matter.
- Cut the vegetables into bite-size pieces or larger if you don’t mind cutting them as you eat.
- Peel the potatoes or don’t. It’s up to you. You can also use any variety of potato you like.
- Use any variety of onion you prefer. I used pearl onions but they broke up as they cooked so you really couldn’t tell they were cute little onions.
- Generally, carrots are orange these days, but if you find heirloom carrots in hues of purple, yellow and white, by all means, use those.
- I used mushrooms in my stew because that’s how I was taught and I love mushrooms. You don’t need to use mushrooms if you don’t like mushrooms.
- You could use whole tomatoes instead of tomato paste. But I prefer the rich flavor the tomato paste helps build.
- Garlic is an important ingredient, and trust me you won’t taste it in the stew. But it does play an important role in developing flavors. I wouldn’t leave it out, but it’s up to you.
**Other vegetables you can add are parsnips, turnips, peas, green beans and corn. That might be straying from tradition but if you like it, it’s okay!
What Type of meat should I use for Beef Stew?
The best (and least expensive) cut of beef for stews is chuck. That comes from the front shoulder of the steer. The beef round which comes from the rear muscle is also a good choice. The chuck has more connective tissue and that’s why it’s my first choice.
The cheaper cuts of meat come from muscles that work more and would generally be tougher. But that also means more collagen-rich connective tissue. This connective tissue dissolves into the meat, adding to the body and richness to the stew that more expensive cuts of meat won’t give you. It also keeps the meat tender and moist which is exactly what you want with stew meat.
Other good choices would be bone-in short ribs and oxtail.
Lets’s get started making our Guinness Beef Stew.
Can I make this stew with lamb?
You sure can! Some of the Irish stews I had in Ireland were made with lamb and the lamb in Ireland is the best I’ve ever had.
Just follow the instructions as written substituting the beef. You may have more fat to skim off, but other than that, it should be delicious!
The first step is pan-searing the beef cubes in a very hot pan with olive oil. Turn the cubes so that all the sides are seared. Remove all the beef from the pan.
Add the garlic, onions, and mushrooms to a large pot and let them cook for 3-4 minutes. Season with salt and pepper and add the bacon. Let the ingredients cook for another 5 minutes to let the bacon cook down.
I use my favorite 6 qt. Copper Core 5-ply All-Clad pot for this stew. It’s classified as a roaster and is a great pan for use in your kitchen, making soups, stews and sauces.
Next, add the carrots and celery to the pan. Cook for 3-5 minutes then add the flour and let the mixture cook for an additional 2-3 minutes to let the flour cook, getting rid of the raw flavor.
The next step is deglazing the pan with a bottle of Guinness. I used the Foreign Extra Stout because that’s what I had on hand. Feel free to use any variety of Guinness Stout that you like to drink. You can (gasp) substitute other stouts or porters that you might have on hand.
Deglazing the pan helps unstick all of the delicious little bits that have attached themselves to the bottom of the pan during the cooking process. By adding a cooler liquid to the hot pan it helps release those tasty bits. What’s left on the pan can be dislodged with a spoon.
The last step is adding the beef cubes back into the pot with the potatoes, beef stock and thyme (bay leaves are optional if you’d like to add one). Bring the stew to a light boil, then reduce the heat to low and cover the pot allowing the stew to simmer for 2 hours.
Check on the stew occasionally, stirring the pot when you do. After two hours, remove the lid from the pot and turn down the heat to simmer and allow it to continue to cook for 1 -2 hours. This is when the magic happens.
Allowing the stew to cook a little longer will make the beef tender and the broth rich and ah-mazingly flavorful. At this point, all you need to do is check the seasonings adding more sea salt and black pepper if needed.
Can I make this stew in a slow cooker?
Yes you can. I would suggest searing the bacon, meat and vegetables first. That will give you the best flavor. Allowing the caramelization adds a lot of flavor to the stew.
Can I make this stew in an Instant Pot?
Yes you can. You know your instant pot and how to work it to get the best results. Here are my suggestions to help give you the best results. Adjust them as needed.
- Turn on the sauté function on the Instant Pot. Add the olive oil then the stew meat. Sear the beef for about 2-3 minutes on each side, allowing the meat to caramelize. Remove the beef and set aside until needed.
- Add more oil if needed, then continue to saute the bacon until it begins to crisp up a little. Then add the mushrooms, garlic, onions, celery and carrots. Continue to cook the vegetables for 5-7 minutes. Again we want to caramelize the vegetables to bring out the depth of flavors.
- Deglaze the pan with the Guinness using a spoon to get all the delicious bits off the bottom of the pan.
- Add the beef stock and tomato paste. Mix well.
- Add the browned beef into the pot (including any juices)and potatoes.
- Follow instructions for pressurizing your Instant Pot and push the “Meat/Stew” button which should default to 35 minutes.
- Your pot should show OnPressure will start building pressure. Because of the large amount of ingredients this can take up to 25 minutes. Once you build up adequate pressure the 35 minutes cooking process will begin.
- When the cooking process has finished, allow your Instant Pot to cool for 10 – 15 minutes before releasing the pressure.
If your stew looks a little thin, make a roux to add to the stew to thicken the gravy. In a small pan melt two tablespoons of butter and add two tablespoons of flour to the melted butter. Over low heat let the roux cook for 3-4 minutes.
Remove a cup or more of the liquid from the pot and whip in the roux to the liquid. When the roux has been mixed in well, add the mixture back into the instant pot and mix well. Bring the heat back up to finish thickening the sauce.
Recipe FAQ’s
Stoudt is a bitter beer and you might think it will make the stew bitter, but in truth the flavors enhance the stew. But if it does taste bitter to you, try adding a little brown sugar.
If your stew isn’t thick enough add one tablespoon of cornstarch to one cup of liquid from the stew. This will help thicken the stew. You can also make a slurry with equal parts corn starch and water mixed together and added directly to the stew.
Chuck, Short Ribs and Oxtail are my preferred choices for beef stew. The cheaper cuts of meat come from muscles that work more and would generally be tougher. But that also means more collagen-rich connective tissue. This connective tissue dissolves into the meat, adding to the body and richness to the stew that more expensive cuts of meat won’t give you. It also keeps the meat tender and moist which is exactly what you want with stew meat.
Serve this deliciousness with crusty bread and good Irish butter and you’ll be living the good life!
More Recipes You’ll Love
Guinness Beef Stew
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp olive oil more if needed
- 2½ lb beef chuck cut into 1½ – 2 inch cubes
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 2 cups pearl onions or any onion roughly chopped
- 6 oz bacon sliced in small strips
- 3 tbsp all-purpose flour
- 14.9 oz Guinness Beer
- 4 tbsp tomato paste
- 3 cups beef stock
- 1 cup carrots peeled and cut into chunks
- 1 cup celery rough cut
- 2 cups mushrooms thick slice
- 3 sprigs thyme
- ¾ tsp sea salt (to taste)
- ½ tsp black pepper (to taste)
- 2 cups baby potatoes cut in half. (can sub any type of potato)
Instructions
- Cut the beef into 1 ½ -2" chunks. Pat dry then sprinkle with salt and pepper.
- Heat oil in a heavy-based wide pot over high heat (I used my All-Clad 6 qt 5 ply pot). Add beef and brown the pieces well on all sides. Remove and place on a plate until needed.
- Lower the heat to medium. If needed add additional oil.
- Add garlic, onions and mushrooms and cook for 3-4 minutes.
- Add Bacon and continue to cook until the bacon is browned (about 5 minutes)
- Add carrots and celery and continue to cook for 3-5 minutes.
- Add flour to the pan and mix in well. Allow the mixture to cook for 2-3 minutes to get the raw taste out of the flour.
- Add Guinness to deglaze the pan and get all the bits off the pan into the sauce. Then add the beef stock and tomato paste. Mix well.
- Add the browned beef into the pot (including any juices) along with the potatoes and thyme.
- Cover, lower heat so it is bubbling gently. Let the stew cook covered for 2 hours. At this point the beef should be pretty tender. Remove lid and let the stew continue to simmer for an additional 1-2 hours. The sauce will have reduced and be amazingly flavorful.
- Skim off any fat that may be on the surface of the stew. Adjust seasonings to taste with sea salt and pepper. Remove thyme and serve.
janelynn
In all my years of cooking I never made this; is its trademark that it has beer in it?
Chef Dennis Littley
I prefer making it with the beer, but you could use coke, dr. pepper or root beer. Its the natural sugar in the beer that does some of the magic, that and slow cooking
Jean
Absolutely delicious! My furnace went out so no heat! UGH! I needed something warm and yummy and this recipe hit it for me. I did add worchestershire sauce for additional depth. Definitely a keeper!!
LHK
Wow, so glad I found your website. The stew is amazing! I made this today and the entire family loved it – best stew ever, mom. I used beef consommé instead of stock because that is what I had in the pantry. We took the kids to Ireland two years ago and they agreed it is spot on…maybe even a little better (the bacon and mushrooms!). Thanks so much chef.
Chef Dennis Littley
Thanks for the great comment and review! I hope you find more recipes on my website for your family to enjoy.
Edie
I assume you add the thyme when you add the meat and the potatoes, perhaps this is the remaining seasoning??
Chef Dennis Littley
yes that’s the only seasoning left to add so it is the remaining seasoning. Thanks for letting me know it was confusing, I added thyme instead of remaining seasoning.
Jessalyn Harmon
Just to confirm it’s 3-4 cook time? 2 hours lid on while simmering, and another 1-2 hours simmering lid off? 3-4 hours total simmer?
Chef Dennis Littley
hi Jessalyn, Yes it’s 2 hours covered and it should only be 1 hour more uncovered but could take a little longer if the sauce hasn’t reduced enough. Allowing it to cook longer will improve the overall flavor as well as make the beef more tender
Patrice Glancy
This stew sounds delicious & very similar to the stew my Irish Grandmother use to make, though she used the lamb. Is the bacon a need? I don’t remember her using it. What is the benefit to using it?
Tysm
Chef Dennis Littley
hi Patrice
traditionally it would be made with lamb and you can certainly leave the bacon out, it’s not a deal-breaker, I just like the added flavor.
Heather
When do you add the potatoes? Is it when you add the meat back to the pan? The recipe doesn’t say, but that’s what it looks like from the photos.
Chef Dennis Littley
hi its in step #9 of the recipe. I didn’t have it in the description under the picture but just added it. Thanks for bringing it to my attention.
Alene
I have a question that might make this impossible for me to eat. I have to be gluten free and, regrettably, beer is off the table. There are gluten free beers, but they certainly don’t taste or have the mouth feel of Guinness, which I adored before I figured out what was wrong with me. Do you think there is anything I can substitute beer with?
Chef Dennis Littley
Alene, Guinness does have a distinct flavor. You may be able to recreate a little of that flavor using nutritional yeast, although I’m not sure how much to tell you to use. You could also swap out the Guinness for one of the Gluten-Free hard Rootbeers, Coney Island Hard Rootbeer is one that I know of.
Kay
I’ve made versions of Irish stew over the years, and this sounds like a classic recipe, well presented. My querstion is, do you think it woujld work in an Instant Pot? I’d sear the meat and mirepoix ingredients first, of course. Should I pressure cook the stew without the potatoes and maybe the mushrooms, then pressure cook again after adding them?
Chef Dennis Littley
hi Kay
I had to do some research on the subject and added an instant pot section to the stew post. You can see my recommendations there. If you do make it in the instant pot, I would appreciate any insights you may have of the process.
Ania
This looks wonderful! Wondering if, instead of cooking for the 2 hours on the stove, I could put it into the oven, the finish off on the stove to reduce?
Eliza
Looks good and simple to cook. Only concern is the time need to stew it.
I hv a brunch party. Can I cook the stew earlier and leave for overnite ? Will it affect the taste ?
Tq
Chef Dennis Littley
you can cook the stew the day before and reheat it before serving. It will actually taste better after sitting for a day. You may need to add a little water or stock if it gets too thick.
Barbara
I was thinking of doing this recipe with lamb. Any suggestions?
Also was thinking of using my crock pot once everything is browned etc. Can you see any difficulties that might cause?
The recipe looks rich and fragrant! Many thanks!
Chef Dennis Littley
hi Barbara
I think it would excellent with Lamb. You may end up with more fat, that will need to be skimmed off, but it should delicious. The lamb I had in Ireland was amazing and I did have a few of the stews made with lamb. The crock pot will work nicely, but I would definitely sear the meat first and if possible the carrots, onions and celery as well. Then you can leave it to simmer in your crock pot.
Let me know how it turns out.
Clint
I make Guiness stew yearly and sometimes experiment with what I have and my family now prefers that I add some cabbage to the above. I also add a little semisweet chocolate chips that I took from a Irish pub recipe
Brian
Well done !
Can’t wait
To taste and of course
EAT!
Talk later.
Brian
Kacey Perez
Wow this stew looks amazing! So rich and flavorful. I have never tried Guinness in a stew before but I can imagine it is going to add a whole new level of flavor to the rest of the ingredients! Thanks for sharing this!Kacey
Charity
I haven’t made a Guinness stew in forever. Now I have the time! Adding the ingredients to my shopping list. Thanks!
Loreto and Nicoletta Nardelli
Your Guinness beef stew looks amazing! It seems very flavorful and something our family would love to have on the table one of these days. Thank you!
Veronika
There is nothing better than a bowl of delicious homemade beef stew! I’m sure my hubby will appreciate the beer and mushrooms in it!
Ty Brumfield
Thanks for sharing Chef. This is exactly the kind of Guinness stew that I’ve been looking for. I’ll have no problem staying indoors with this!!!
Jacqui DeBono
There is nothing better than a rich beef stew, with a chunk of homemade wheaten bread – heaven! And even better for leftovers the next day too.
Amanda
It doesn’t get cozier than this stew! I love how simple the ingredients are, but it transforms into the most flavorful dish. Definitely making this again!