Guinness Beef Stew

Name: Guinness Beef Stew
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 1 h 30 min
Total time: 2 h
Yield: Serves to serve 6
Ingredients: 2½ lb Stewing Steak or Braising Steak; 2 tablespoons olive oil; 2 cloves garlic; 2 medium onions; 4 tablespoons plain flour (all purpose flour); 1 pint beef stock; 1 pint Guinness Extra Stout; 3 large carrots; 2 bay leaves; ¼ teaspoon freshly ground pepper; 8 oz stoned prunes (pitted); salt and pepper; 2 tablespoons chopped parsley

Ready in 2 hrs

Recipe by Graham

Guinness Beef Stew is one of those strange culinary mixtures that works. The malty flavour of the Guinness adds depth to the meat and any possible bitterness is removed by the simple addition of stoned (pitted) prunes to the stew. Without the prunes, the Guinness would make the stew bitter. The prunes cook down and melt into the stew to counteract that bitterness. .

Buy the most tender stewing beef you can afford. This recipe only takes 1½ hours to cook so you need a tender stewing beef.

Preparation Time

30 Minutes

Cooking Time

1 Hour 30 Minutes

Ingredients for Guinness Beef Stew

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Currently displaying quantities in US Imperial Measurements

To serve 6:

2½ lb Stewing Steak or Braising Steak
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 cloves garlic
2 medium onions
4 tablespoons plain flour (all purpose flour)
1 pint beef stock
1 pint Guinness Extra Stout
3 large carrots
2 bay leaves
¼ teaspoon freshly ground pepper
8 oz stoned prunes (pitted)
salt and pepper
2 tablespoons chopped parsley

How to Cook Guinness Beef Stew

Chop the meat into 1" (2.5cm) cubes. Peel and chop the onions and peel and crush (mince) the garlic. Peel the carrots and cut into ½" (1cm) lengths cut on the diagonal. In a casserole (Dutch oven), on medium high heat, heat 1 tablespoon of the olive oil and sauté the onions for 3-4 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for another 30 seconds.
Remove them from the pot and set aside. Turn up the heat, add the remaining tablespoon of olive oil to the pan and very quickly sear the meat on all sides in several small batches. (Do NOT be tempted to put all the meat into the casserole at the same time... it just doesn't work! To brown the meat properly, you need to do several small batches). Return all the seared meat to the pan, reduce the heat and gradually stir in the flour until all the meat is well coated.
Add the beef stock and the Guinness and stir until the mixture comes to a simmer (remember to use Guinness Extra Stout only!). Add the onions, garlic, carrots, bay leaves and ground pepper to the pot. The beer/stock should cover all the ingredients. If it does not, you may need to add a bit more stock. Stir well then very gently simmer uncovered for 1 hour, stirring occasionally. Cooking the stew uncovered helps the gravy thicken. When cooking, there should only be tiny little bubbles with the occasional waft of steam coming from the stew.
After one hour, roughly chop the prunes and add them to the pot. Do not omit the prunes! If you don’t tell anyone, they won't even be aware that they are there! Continue cooking for a further ½ hour. The gravy will develop a glossy finish. Remove the bay leaves then season the stew to taste. Serve simply with boiled potatoes and garnish with chopped parsley.

GRAHAM'S HOT TIP:
Do not be tempted to replace the "Extra Stout" with "draught" or with those cans/bottles of Guinness with the widgets in them that make the foam. The taste will be all wrong!

GRAHAM'S WINE RECOMMENDATION:
Can you drink wine with a Guinness Pie?? Yep, sure you can. The Guinness just adds flavour and by the time it's cooked, there is zero alcohol content. A Zinfandel like Buehler Zinfandel is ideal for this recipe. The Zinfandel grape has been a cornerstone of the California viticulture scene for 150 years, creating medium to full bodied wines that go well with mushrooms and hearty dishes such as roast venison.