Irish Guinness Beef Stew (Instant Pot, Slow Cooker, or Stovetop)
- By Amy Dong
- Published Mar. 15, 2024
A big bowl of this Irish Guinness Beef Stew makes a supremely satisfying meal for the entire family. This stew is unrivaled in tenderness and flavor. It’s also perfect for weekly meal prep, as leftovers taste amazing.
In This Article
Why This Recipe Stands Out
One of our favorite cozy stew recipes, this Irish Guinness Beef Stew isn’t just for St. Patrick’s Day (although we are definitely making it this March). We love enjoying this all year round. Here’s why:
- Super Flavorful: This is one fabulously flavorful stew due to the help of some key ingredients like Guinness, fresh rosemary, and chuck roast.
- Meal Prep: The longer this stew sits, the more flavorful it gets – landing it on our list of amazing meal prep dinners.
- Healthy: This beef stew is packed with protein, carrots, celery, and potatoes making it a perfectly balanced meal.
- Customizable: This Irish stew can be made on the stovetop, in the slow cooker, or in the Instant Pot – your choice!
- Easy: This stew does take some time to cook, but it’s super easy to throw together. We love slow cooker meals like this that you can easily make in the morning and forget about till dinner.
What Is Guinness Beer?
Guinness beer is a very popular Irish beer made from roasted barley, water, hops, and ale yeast. This drink has a deep, dark color and a malty flavor with hints of chocolate and coffee. We love using Guinness beer in this stew, because it creates a really rich flavor that complements the heartiness of beef stew perfectly.
Key Recipe Ingredients
- Chuck Roast – We use an affordable 3-4 lbs. of boneless chuck beef. Chuck tends to be the most flavorful and tender cut in a long braise situation, as it’s marbled throughout.
- Aromatics – Garlic, onions, carrots, celery, bay leaves, and rosemary bring loads of flavor to this dish.
- Worcestershire – It may not be traditional in beef stew, but don’t skip it; it lends such great umami flavor to the stew.
- Guinness Beer – Irish dry stout is beautifully dark and thick. There is no beer-y taste or alcohol once it’s been cooked into stew, but it provides a richness in flavor.
- Baby Potatoes – We add these towards the end of cooking to prevent them from becoming overly soft. These bite size spuds are perfect, as they hold together well in stews.
Substitutions And Variations
When it comes to soups and stews, there are endless variations you can try, and this Irish Guinness Stew is no different. Here’s some of our favorite:
- The Meat: Both rump roast and beef arm roast make good substitutes for chuck roast. London broil works, too. You could also go the traditional route and make this stew with lamb.
- Vegetables: Feel free to add whatever veggies you like. We think mushrooms, cabbage, or even parsnips would go well in this stew.
- Bacon: Want to really bump up the flavor in this dish? Fry up some bacon and crumble it into the stew.
- Thickener: The low and slow process of cooking this beef stew really gives it a nice saucy consistency without the need for any thickeners. However, if you feel like it’s not thickening enough, feel free to use flour or a cornstarch slurry as desired.
Step-By-Step Recipe Instructions
- Cut beef chuck roast into cubes and season with Kosher salt and pepper.
- In a large, heavy pot, brown the cubes of meat in olive oil over high heat.
- In the same pot, add more olive oil and sauté the onion and garlic until translucent.
- Stir in beer, Worcestershire sauce, tomato paste, beef broth, carrots, celery, and browned beef.
- Sprinkle in the rosemary and bay leaves. Then, bring the mixture to a boil and let simmer for 2 hours.
- Stir in potatoes and let simmer another 45 minutes. Skim off excess fat and serve.
For full list of ingredients and instructions (slow-cooker and Instant Pot instructions), see recipe card below.
How To Prep Ahead
Take a look at these simple prep ahead strategies for Irish Guinness Beef Stew:
- Vegetables: Feel free to chop up all the veggies for this recipe several days in advance and store them in an airtight container in the fridge until ready to use.
- Meat: Another thing that can be chopped in advance is the chuck roast. We like to do this the night before and just store it in a Ziploc bag in the fridge.
- Slow-Cooker: If you’re doing the slow cooker method, you can actually completely fill it (except for the potatoes) the night before and keep it in the fridge. Then, just take it out and plug it in the next morning, and you’re all set!
- Stew: The whole beef stew can actually be made 1-2 days in advance making it great for meal prep.
What To Serve With Irish Guinness Beef Stew
Bread
- We love serving these Easy Homemade Dinner Rolls with any soup or stew recipe.
- These Honey Cornbread Muffins also make the perfect side to this beef stew.
Veggies
- If you’re looking for a fresh, crunchy side to balance out this warm, comforting dish, we definitely recommend this Kale Brussel Sprouts Salad with Honey Mustard Dressing.
- For some added greens we love throwing together this Perfect Air Fryer Broccoli.
Dessert
- Making this stew for St. Patrick’s Day? Finish it off with this Bailey’s Irish Cream Cake for a truly impressive evening.
- This rich, velvety Flourless Chocolate Torte would also go amazing with Irish Guinness Beef Stew.
Commonly Asked Questions
Store beef stew in an airtight container in the fridge for 1 to 2 days and in the freezer for up to 3 months.
Yes! The alcohol will be mostly cooked out of the stew making it perfectly fine for kids to enjoy.
Absolutely! If you go the slow cooker route, you’ll need to brown the beef pieces in a skillet prior to loading everything (including dissolved cornstarch) into your slow cooker. We typically go with 8-10 hours on low; add in the potatoes during the final 2 hours.
Yes! For the Instant Pot/pressure cooker, you can brown the beef and veggies using the same directions as the stovetop method on sauté mode in the Instant Pot itself. Then add the remaining ingredients, including dissolved cornstarch. Set to pressure cook on high for 35 minutes and let it do a natural release.
This Guinness beef stew will taste pretty much like a classic beef stew with a deeper, more robust flavor due to the Guinness. The Guinness will also help to tenderize the beef even more, making it super melt-in-your-mouth delicious.
Did you make this?
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Irish Guinness Beef Stew
Ingredients
- Olive oil for browning
- 3-4 pounds boneless chuck roast, trimmed
- 2 tsp kosher salt, plus more to taste
- ½ tsp freshly ground black pepper, plus more to taste
- 1 large onion, chopped
- 6 garlic cloves, chopped
- 1 ½ tsp Worcestershire sauce
- 12 oz Guinness Beer
- 4 TB tomato paste
- 4 cups beef broth, regular strength
- 4 cups sliced carrots, peeled and sliced into 1/2-inches
- 2 cups sliced celery, sliced into 1/2-inches
- 1 TB freshly chopped rosemary
- 2 whole bay leaves
- 1 pound whole bite-size baby potatoes, 1-inch diameter each
Instructions
- Use paper towels to thoroughly pat-dry the beef roast, removing any excess moisture. Cut into 1 to 1 1/2-inch thick cubes. Season with 2 tsp kosher salt (not table salt) and 1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper. Toss to coat all sides with seasoning.
- In a large heavy pot, heat 3 TB olive oil over high heat, until very hot. Brown the beef cubes in batches, taking care not to overcrowd the pieces. Brown all sides of beef cubes, turning them over as they brown; Continue to heat up more oil for browning as needed. Transfer all browned beef pieces to a separate bowl.
- Using same pot with browned bits still on the bottom, heat up more oil and stir in the onions and garlic. Stir 2-3 minutes until translucent and aromatic. Gently pour in the beer and Worcestershire sauce, stirring to combine. Add tomato paste, beef broth, carrots, celery, and return the browned beef to the pot. Stir gently to ensure all veggies and beef are submerged in broth. Sprinkle in the fresh rosemary and bay leaves.
- Bring mixture to a low boil, cover and allow to simmer 2 hours. After 2 hours, uncover and stir in the baby potatoes. Bring back to a low boil and allow to simmer another 45 minutes until the beef and potatoes are to your desired tenderness.
- Once done, taste and season with additional kosher salt and black pepper if desired. Remove bay leaves and let stew sit for 10 minutes to allow grease to rise to the top; skim off excess grease and serve warm.
Notes
- Entire stew can be made up to 1-2 days in advance. Leftover Irish Guinness Beef Stew is delicious, and is perfect for meal prep. Cover airtight and chill until ready to reheat.
- Slow Cooker: Brown the beef pieces in a heavy pot first. Then add them and all remaining ingredients except for potatoes into your slow cooker. Cook 8-10 hours on low; add in the potatoes during the final 2 hours. Season with salt and pepper.
- Instant Pot/pressure cooker: Brown the beef and veggies using same directions as the stovetop method on sauté mode in the Instant Pot itself. Then add the remaining ingredients, including dissolved cornstarch. Set to pressure cook on high for 35 minutes and let it do a natural release. Salt and pepper to taste.
Nutrition (per serving)
More To Cook And Eat
- Boeuf Bourguignon – This French beef stew is definitely not lacking in flavor. Bacon, Cognac, cremini mushrooms – it’s got it all!
- Best Lentil Soup – The best lentil soup is super healthy, hearty, and bursting with flavor in every bite! You won’t miss the meat with this one.
- Chicken Stew with Sweet Potatoes – This stew is full of all of the good stuff and none of the bad stuff- sweet potatoes, chicken thighs, coconut milk, and turmeric. It’s also gluten-free and dairy-free.
- Easy Crockpot Chili Recipe – We love this classic chili recipe that can be thrown in the slow cooker in the morning and ready by dinner.