Irish Stew is pure comfort food deliciousness. Browned lamb, fresh veggies, and aromatic herbs are simmered low and slow in a deliciously rich beer and beef broth gravy for a stew you’re going to love!
Stew in the winter is a staple in our house. It warms us up on a chilly day, and fills our belly with hearty meat and veggies that we crave in these colder months. Stews like this make life just a little bit easier, because we’re not scrambling to get dinner on the table in time! We start this earlier in the day, and then it just has to simmer on the stove to bring out all of those amazing flavors, leaving us to just dish it out and sit down at the table together to enjoy. We’ve decided that stews like this must be eaten with your favorite dinner roll or crusty bread, and we highly recommend you do too!
Beer:
Guinness beer is the most common, and in our opinion, the best beer for this Irish stew, as it is from Ireland. If you do not want to use Guinness you can also use any dark stout beer.
If you prefer not to cook with alcohol, you do not have to use beer to make this Irish stew. Simply replace regular beer with non-alcoholic beer, or you can replace it with beef broth.
What kind of potatoes are best for Comforting Irish Stew?
Red potatoes and Yukon Gold potatoes hold up better than russet potatoes in a stew. Russet potatoes can get grainy because they are more starchy. Bonus: Yukon Gold and Red potatoes don’t need to be peeled. Win-win!
Wine:
If you prefer to leave out the alcohol, you do not have to add wine. We love the added depth of flavor it brings, but you can always replace the cooking wine with beef broth.
Meat Options:
Lamb or Mutton are traditionally used for an Irish stew. That being said, lamb and mutton can be hard to find in many stores! Beef is a common and great substitute when you can’t find lamb.
Storage and Reheating Instructions:
Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Reheat in a saucepan on the stovetop over medium-low heat until warmed through.
If you like this recipe, you may be interested in these other delicious soup and stew recipes:
Watch the video below where Caytlin will walk you through every step of this recipe. Sometimes it helps to have a visual, and we’ve always got you covered with our cooking show. You can find the complete collection of recipes on YouTube, Facebook Watch, or our Facebook Page, or right here on our website with their corresponding recipes.
Comforting Irish Stew
- 2 pounds potatoes cut into 2" pieces
- 4 carrots cut 1/2" pieces
- 1 onion chopped, yellow or white
- 3 garlic cloves minced, about 2 teaspoons
- 2 lbs lamb shoulder or beef chuck cut into 2 inch chunks
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 4 tbsp vegetable oil divided
- 1/4 cup flour
- 22 oz Guinness Beer
- 4 cups beef broth
- 1 cup red wine optional
- 3 sprigs thyme
- 4 bay leaves
- Parsley chopped for garnishing
- Peel and cut up potatoes, carrots and onion. Mince garlic. Cut the beef or lamb into 2" chunks. Pat dry and sprinkle with kosher salt and pepper.
- Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a Dutch oven or heavy based pot over high heat. Add meat in batches and brown on all sides. Remove to plate and repeat with remaining meat. Set aside.
- Lower heat to medium and add remaining 2 tablespoons of oil.
- Add onion and cook for 3 minutes until softened, then add garlic, cook 2 minutes. Stir flour into the vegetable mixture and cook for 3 more minutes.
- Add Guinness beer stirring and scraping up browned bits on bottom of pan then add beef broth and red wine.
- Return browned meat to the pot, including any juices, along with carrots, potatoes, thyme and bay leaves.
- Bring to a boil, stir then lower heat and cover so it is bubbling gently. Cook 2 hours then remove lid and simmer for a further 30 minutes until meat falls apart and the sauce has reduced and thickened.
- Remove thyme and bay leaves. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Instant Pot Instructions:
- Peel and cut up potatoes, carrots and onion. Mince garlic. Cut the beef or lamb into 2″ chunks. Pat dry and sprinkle with kosher salt and pepper.
- Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in Instant Pot using the saute setting. Add meat in batches and brown on all sides. Remove to plate and repeat with remaining meat. Set aside.
- Add in 2 more tablespoons of oil. Add onion and cook for 5 minutes until softened, then add garlic, cook 3 minutes. Stir flour into the vegetable mixture and cook for 5 more minutes.
- Add Guinness beer stirring and scraping up browned bits on bottom of pan then add beef broth and red wine.
- Return browned meat to the pot, including any juices, along with carrots, potatoes, thyme and bay leaves.
- Secure lid and set to high for 1 hour. Then remove lid and simmer with Saute setting for a further 10-15 more minutes to thicken the stew.
Slow Cooker Instructions:
- Peel and cut up potatoes, carrots and onion. Mince garlic. Cut the beef or lamb into 2″ chunks. Pat dry and sprinkle with kosher salt and pepper.
- Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a skillet high heat. Add meat in batches and brown well all over. Remove to plate and repeat with remaining meat. Add to slow cooker.
- Using 1/2 cup of beef broth, make a cornstarch slurry by adding beef broth to 1/2 cup of corn starch. Stir until well combined.
- Add in all remaining ingredients including the slurry to the slow cooker.
- Set on high for 3-4 hours or low for 6-8 hours until the meat and vegetables are tender to your liking.
- Remove lid the last 30-45 minutes to help the broth thicken more.
Nutrition
