crock pot irish guinness beef stew
While vacationing on the north shore of Lake Superior this past August, I made beef stew again. It’s always about 20 degrees cooler up north so it’s perfect “stew weather.” Jeff and Grace request it every year and it’s become a happy tradition. I usually make my version of my friend Danielle’s recipe, but this year I decided to make it Irish by adding Guinness stout in place of the wine, and changing up the root veggies and other ingredients a bit. It’s every bit as good, but different enough to warrant a new recipe post. Soooo, here ya go! Hope you love it as much as we do!
4 lb. chuck arm roast OR lamb cutlets, (excess fat removed)
1/4 cup olive oil (I used extra virgin)
coarse sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 large onion, chopped OR 1 cup chopped shallots
4 stalks celery, diced
2 cabbage leaves, thinly sliced (optional)
1 small can tomato paste (about 1/4 cup)
3 cups beef broth
12 oz. Guinness stout beer
2 Tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
4 large carrots, (peeled and cut into one inch pieces)
20 red baby bliss or yellow baby Dutch potatoes (the tiny ones) OR substitute diced rutabaga, turnip and/or parsnips in place of half of the potatoes
3 bay leaves
2 Tablespoons fresh thyme leaves
5 Tablespoons minute tapioca
2 large cloves garlic, minced
snipped chives for garnish (optional)
Cut meat of choice into 2 inch chunks and dry well with paper towels. Heat the olive oil in a heavy skillet or Dutch oven. Brown the meat in batches, and transfer them to a large (6 or 7 quart) slow cooker. Salt and pepper the meat. Add the onion/shallots and celery to the skillet and saute until transparent. Add tomato paste, broth, beer and Worcestershire to skillet. Stir to combine. Bring to a gentle simmer and carefully pour this mixture over the meat in the Crock Pot/slow cooker. Add everything else, except for the snipped chives, to the crock and stir to combine. Cover and cook on the “high” setting for 6 hours. Remove bay leaves. Salt and pepper to taste and serve with your favorite bread, brack, biscuits or scones.
Enjoy!
~Melissa
I wanted to know what I can use to substitute for the Guinness ?
Hi Kris,
Well, if you just don’t like beer in particular, you can substitute red wine. If you want to substitute because of the alcohol content, you could substitute with apple cider or more beef broth. Hope that helps!
Why NOT use the beer!!!!! ☘️ 🍻
😉 Cheers, Maggie!
Wondering how many servings you would consider this?
Where does one get tapioca from and what does it do for the stew?
You can usually find “minute tapioca” down the baking aisle at most grocery stores. It helps crock pot dishes thicken as they slowly cook. Hope that helps! Enjoy the stew 🙂
Can you use flour?
For what? 🙂