We chose beef chuck for our Guinness beef stew recipe for its beefy flavor and its succulent texture after braising. Using Guinness as the sole liquid for braising produced an overly bitter stew that lacked backbone. We found balance in using just one 12-ounce bottle of Guinness along with some chicken broth (beef broth gave the stew unpalatable tinny notes). We saved a small amount of the beer for stirring into the Guinness beef stew recipe just before serving because we found that this late infusion put an accent on the malty flavor.
Notes
Notes: Use Guinness Draught, not Guinness Extra Stout, which is too bitter.
Ingredients
Stew:
- 1 3 ½ to 4-pound boneless beef chuck-eye roast - pulled apart at seams, trimmed, and cut into 1 ½-inch pieces
- salt
- pepper
- 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 2 onions - chopped fine
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- 2 cloves garlic - minced
- ¼ cup all-purpose flour
- 3 cups low-sodium chicken broth
- 1 ¼ cups Guinness Draught
- 1 ½ tablespoons packed dark brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon minced fresh thyme
- 1 ½ pounds Yukon Gold potatoes - unpeeled, cut into 1-inch pieces
- 1 pound carrots - peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces
- 2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley
Cheddar Herb Dumplings:
- 1 ½ cups self-rising flour
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ cup shortening
- ½ cup shredded sharp cheddar
- ⅔ cup milk
- 2 tablespoons mixed fresh herbs - chopped
Instructions
For The Stew:
- Season beef with salt and pepper.
- Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position and heat oven to 325 degrees F.
- Heat oil in Dutch oven over medium-high heat until shimmering.
- Add onions and ¼ teaspoon salt and cook, stirring occasionally, until well browned, 8 to 10 minutes.
- Add tomato paste and garlic and cook until rust-colored and fragrant, about 2 minutes.
- Stir in flour and cook for 1 minute.
- Whisk in broth, ¾ cup Guinness, sugar, and thyme, scraping up any browned bits.
- Bring to simmer and cook until slightly thickened, about 3 minutes.
- Stir in beef and return to simmer.
- Transfer to oven and cook, uncovered, for 90 minutes, stirring halfway through cooking.
- Stir in potatoes and carrots and continue cooking until beef and vegetables are tender, about 1 hour, stirring halfway through cooking.
- Stir in remaining ½ cup Guinness and parsley.
- Season with salt and pepper to taste.
For The Cheddar Herb Dumplings:
- Stir together the self-rising flour and garlic powder in a medium bowl.
- Cut in the shortening until mixture resembles coarse crumbs.
- Stir in the cheddar cheese.
- Add the milk and stir until dry ingredients are moistened.
- Make small balls with the dough and add them to the stew. Remember, they will grow a lot as they steam.
- Cover and cook over medium-low 25 mins, or until dumplings are firm.
- Garnish the stew with parsley and serve.