Beef & Guinness Stew Recipe (2024)

Prep Time 20 minutes minutes

Cook Time 1 hour hour 45 minutes minutes

Total Time 2 hours hours 5 minutes minutes

Servings 8 servings

Author Holly Nilsson

• ▢ 2 pounds chuck beef stewing beef, or lamb shoulder, trimmed and cubed
• ▢ 3 tablespoons flour
• ▢ ½ teaspoon salt
• ▢ ½ teaspoon black pepper
• ▢ 3 tablespoons olive oil
• ▢ 2 medium yellow onions chopped into ½" pieces
• ▢ 2 cups Guinness beer
• ▢ 5 cups beef broth
• ▢ 3 tablespoons tomato paste
• ▢ 1 pound baby potatoes halved
• ▢ 3 carrots cut into ½" pieces
• ▢ 3 stalks celery cut into ½" pieces
• ▢ 1 bay leaf
• ▢ ½ teaspoon dried rosemary or 1 sprig fresh
• ▢ ½ teaspoon dried thyme or 4 sprigs fresh

For Thickening

• ▢ 2 tablespoons cornstarch
• ▢ 2 tablespoons water

• In a large bowl or freezer bag, combine flour, salt, & pepper. Add the beef and toss to coat.

• In a large Dutch oven or pot, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Shake off any excess flour from the beef and brown in small batches. Remove and set aside in a bowl.

• Add the onions to the pot, adding more oil as needed, and cook until they begin to soften, about 3 minutes. Remove and add to the beef cubes.

• Pour the Guinness into the pot while scraping up any brown bits in the pan with a spatula. Stir in broth, tomato paste, and the beef and onions.

• Bring to a boil, reduce the heat to medium-low, and simmer covered for 45 minutes.

• Add in the potatoes, carrots, celery, bay leaf, rosemary, and thyme. Simmer for an additional 45 minutes or until the beef and vegetables are tender. Remove and discard the bay leaf.

• Mix the cornstarch and water to create a slurry. Slowly add the slurry to the boiling stew to reach desired consistency (you may not need all of the slurry).

• Brown the meat in small batches so it browns. If you overcrowd the pan, the meat will simmer instead of brown.
• The beer adds flavor to the broth, and you will be able to taste the beer in the final stew.
• Cook the meat on a low and gentle simmer to make it nice and tender.
• Use baby potatoes or thin-skinned Yukon gold potatoes; they require no peeling and hold their shape nicely. Vegetables can be changed based on what you have on hand. Mushrooms, parsnips, cloves of minced garlic, or sweet potatoes are great additions.
• If desired, thawed frozen peas can be stirred in before serving, they do not need to be simmered.
• We like to thicken the stew with a cornstarch slurry before serving. Mix equal parts cornstarch and water or broth and whisk it a bit at a time into the boiling stew until it thickens to your liking.

Course Beef, Dinner, Main Course

Cuisine American, Irish