Slow Cooker Guinness Beef Stew
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Slow cooker beef stew is a hearty and filling meal. Veggies and beef are slow-cooked in Guinness until tender to achieve the best flavor!
Guys, if you are looking for St. Patrick’s dinner meal ideas, I have a few recipes for you:
Main: Instant pot Guinness chicken thighs or this slow cooker Guinness beef stew.
Side: Irish colcannon – an easy and tasty mashed potato dish.
Dessert: Irish cream cheesecake.
But now let’s get back to this slow-cooker beef stew:
What beef is used for stew?
Chuck meat (chuck shoulder, roast, top chuck, …) is the most popular cut for stews. You can also buy stew meat chunks in supermarkets which is what I used.
Why is stew meat tough?
This is usually a sign that you need to cook the stew longer. I prefer cooking this beef stew on low setting for the best results.
What’s the difference between a stew and a casserole?
Stew is cooked on a stovetop/in a slow cooker while casserole is usually cooked in the oven.
How to make slow cooker Guinness beef stew
To achieve the best flavors, I brown the meat first. Now, before I start, I combine flour, salt and pepper together and then coat all the meat pieces. Then, I heat about a teaspoon of oil (yes, a teaspoon should be enough for 1¼ pound of meat).
Make sure the pan and oil are hot before you add the meat in. Browning should take about 3-4 minutes in total. Transfer it to a slow cooker.
In the same pan, heat some more oil and saute the onion, leeks and celery for about 3 minutes before adding minced garlic. Stir for about a minute before turning off the heat.
At this stage, all you have to do is transfer all the ingredients into the slow cooker, give it a good stir, close the lid and cook until ready.
Serve this crock pot Guinness stew with some fresh French baguette, mashed potatoes or on its own.
Expert tips
- Guinness might not be to everyone’s liking so if you prefer cooking without it, you can. If you do, use chicken/beef/vegetable stock or broth instead.
- O’Hara’s Extra Irish Stout/Chocolate Porter are also good alternatives.
- Guinness draught tastes more bitter than Guinness stout.
- Turnips – older and larger turnips taste more bitter than the young ones. If not sure, omit this vegetable to reduce the bitterness level.
- I only added 2 cups of liquid as I feel that it is enough for this slow cooker Irish beef stew recipe. You can add more, if you like. Just note that you might need to thicken it with cornstarch at the very end.
- Worcestershire sauce can be omitted, if you don’t have it on hand.
- The cooking time may vary depending on the ingredients you are using.
More stew recipes you might like to try:
- Chickpea Stew with Chorizo
- Instant Pot Pork Stew
- Star Anise Chicken
- Calamari Stew
- Spanish Oxtail Stew
Slow Cooker Guinness Beef Stew
Ingredients
- 1¼ pound beef chunks , see note 1
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ⅛ tespoon black pepper
- 2 tablespoon all-purpose flour
- 3 teaspoon oil
- 2 celery stalks , finely chopped
- 1 leek , chopped
- 1 onion , small, finely diced
- 2 carrots , medium, chopped
- 2 parsnips , about ½ cup chopped
- 1 pound baby potatoes , halved (450 grams), see note 6
- 1 garlic clove , minced
- 1 bay leaf
- 2 tablespoons tomato puree
- 1.5 cups beef stock (370 milliliters)
- 1 cup Guinness (250 milliliters)
- 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
Instructions
- Coat the beef pieces in a mixture of salt, pepper and flour. Heat up 1 teaspoon of oil in a large skillet/frying pan and brown the meat on all sides (about 4-5 minutes) before transferring it into the slow cooker.
- In the same skillet/frying pan, heat the rest of the oil and sauté the celery, leek and onion for about 3–4 minutes. Then stir in minced garlic and sauté for a further minute. Turn off the heat and transfer the sautéed veggies into the slow cooker.
- Add the rest of the ingredients and give everything a good mix before covering with lid.
- Cook on HIGH for 3-4 hours or on LOW for 7-8 hours.
- Taste and add more seasoning, if needed.
- Enjoy warm!
Notes
- I used ready-packaged beef chunks but you can buy chuck meat and cut it yourself.
- This recipe fits in a 4-quart/4-liter slow cooker.
- Beef stock can be substituted with chicken stock/vegetable stock/broth.
- I highly recommend cooking this stew on the low setting to achieve the best flavors.
- This stew is quite thick so if you prefer more liquid, add an extra ½ cup to 1 cup of stock.
- You can reduce the amount of potatoes, if you prefer.
- Parsnips can be omitted.
- Cornstarch can be added to thicken the stew, if preferred.
- For more tips and detailed information, I recommend checking out the whole post.
Guinness adds so much flavour to a stew. This looks really hearty and comforting.
Thanks, Dannii!
This looks so simple to make and so delicious to eat. Love the spiciness and amazing Dinner option to this stew. This is so picture perfect too.
Thanks, Veena.
What a hearty looking beef stew! Love your pictures… they’re making me hungry! I would love to have this with some brown rice.
Thanks, Saima!
I much prefer to cook with Guinness than drink it! This looks like a delicious stew recipe.
Haha, I am the same :)
I can do this! Looks absolutely delicious — I love stew and I love Guinness. What a combination. Thank you very much for this recipe.
You are welcome! :)