We need to talk about this Slow Cooker Guinness Beef Stew. Basically, I'll be making this all year long, whether or not it's St. Patrick's day. Beef stew is one of my all time favorite dishes and by switching up just a couple things you have a brand new, rich in flavor, Ireland worthy recipe!
This Slow Cooker Guinness Beef Stew is quite a bit on the heavier side. Beef stew usually is but this one in particular is hearty. Eat this and you won't be hungry for days. The Guinness Extra Stout gives the stew just a hint of tartness while bringing out the richness of the beef broth and makes you feel extra awesome because there's world famous beer cooked into your food :-P.
Traditionally, Guinness Beef Stew is made to be very thick, with a gravy-like sauce and served on top of potatoes that are cooked separately (and are frequently mashed). As much as I love mashed potatoes (see my Shepard's Pie from last week) I opted for an easier route: straight up stew. Throw everything in the slowcooker (including potatoes), simmer, and serve. Done and done.
This Slowcooker Guinness Beef Stew can easily be made in a dutch oven or large stock pot (cooked similarly to a regular hearty beef stew), I just found this way to be the easiest for a busy schedule. I had to work on the Saturday I made this so before I left that morning, I quickly browned the meat on the stove, threw all the ingredients into the slow cooker, set it for 4 hours and bounced out. Came home hours later to a WONDERFUL smelling house with a St. Patrick's Day inspired meal ready to eat!
Also, if you're not convinced to try this out already, you can totally put your own twist on this dish. I threw parsnips in there because they looked amazing at the store and have a bit of a sweeter flavor than your go-to carrots and potatoes. You could even try diced turnips or celery root for a similar flavor. Or you could go the traditional route and leave the potatoes out to be cooked separately. The possibilities are endless! But most importantly, add a generous amount of Guinness, grab a pint glass, and celebrate the luck of the Irish!
Slow Cooker Guinness Beef Stew
- Total Time: 4 hours 20 mins
- Yield: 4-6 1x
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 ½ lb lean beef stew meat
- 1 teaspoon coarse salt
- 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 2 tablespoons flour
- 4 large yukon golden potatoes, largely diced
- 2 large carrots, peeled and diced into 1 inch pieces
- 2 large parsnips, peeled and diced into 1 inch pieces
- ½ large yellow onion, chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- 4 cups beef broth
- 11.2 fluid ounce bottle Guinness Extra Stout
- Coarse salt and ground black pepper to taste
Instructions
- In a large pan, heat olive oil over medium high heat. Turn slow cooker on*.
- In a large bowl, toss beef together with salt, pepper, and flour to coat. Add to the pan and cook until all sides of the chunks are browned (about 8 minutes).
- While beef is browning, add potatoes, carrots, parsnips, onion, garlic and tomato paste to the slow cooker. Stir to coat.
- Add browned beef, beef broth, and Guinness to the slow cooker and stir to combine.
- Cook for 3-4 hours on high, 8-10 hours on low. Add salt and pepper to taste and serve with a pint of Guinness.
Notes
I use a 5 quart slow cooker. Make sure to check the size of yours and adjust any slow cooker recipe accordingly!
- Prep Time: 10 mins
- Cook Time: 4 hours 10 mins
Dan says
More love of the Irish. I dig it. This looks super hearty and makes me hungry even with the appetite-reducing cold I have. Big chunks of stew meat, healthy portions of carrots and potatoes, I can't wait to try this dish.
Lucy @ Globe Scoffers says
This dish looks so yummy I want it right now. What a hearty and comforting recipe. Thanks for sharing. ????
Morgan says
How long and at what temperature would you recommend cooking it in a large pot instead of slow cooker? Thank you for this recipe!
Aberdeen says
You're welcome! I would first bring the stew to a boil over medium-high heat and then lower it to a simmer, covering the pot with a lid, and cook for about an hour, until the beef is tender enough to pull apart with a fork.
Morgan says
Perfect, thank you so much!
Steven Kirkpatrick says
I would use a large pot in a preheated oven for 4hrs on 100°C. The settings on a slow cooker are usually 95°C on low or 100°C on high. So use the same temps and timings. Hope this helps.
J.L. Gazelle says
thank you SOOOOOO much for this recipe- i've made it twice now and it rocks.
Aberdeen says
You're so welcome! Happy you're enjoying it 🙂
Tanya says
Just made this and had it for dinner tonight, it was amazing! I added an extra tablespoon of tomato paste and peas an hour before cook time was up...also a half teaspoon of cornstarch and it was perfect for me. The guinness adds a note of bitterness but in a rich flavorful way.
kristen says
this is my favorite stew recipe. I make it all the time for week day meals. tried it with a different type of stout recently and it was still just as tasty.
Crystal says
Would I be able to do this with a whole roast as well or only beef stew cubes?
Aberdeen says
I havn't tried that myself, but I do have a slow cooker pot roast recipe that you could certainly add a little Guinness to if you'd like to try it out! Here is the link: https://www.aberdeenskitchen.com/2016/02/slow-cooker-pot-roast/
Rebecca D. says
We cook this every year when it first gets "cold" and throughout the winter. I do an extra tbsp of paste and I use two bottles of Guinness: one with the broth and the other boiled with the meat for extra flavor. It's in the crock pot right now!
Aberdeen says
Yum! Sounds delicious
John Reed says
Looks great, but the consistency is more soupy than stewy (is that a word?) Toward the end I added another TBSP of paste, some peas, and also made a basic roux (1/4 cup butter X 1/4 cup AP flour) the soup thickened and made it more of what I experienced in Ireland. Great base recipe!
Jordan says
In the instructions it says "add celery" but celery isn't listed in ingredients....have I missed something?
Aberdeen says
Fixed! Thanks for pointing that out 🙂
Sam C. says
I still don't see the celery in the list of ingredients. How much do you prepare and add?
Aberdeen says
I actually didn't use any in this recipe. I had previously updated the recipe steps to remove the addition of celery ????????.
Raina says
I am going to be making this with mashed potatoes for a large crowd (16 people) so I need to double it. What do you think would be best- 2 crock pots or just one? If one, do you think cooking it for 9-10 hours on low is enough or should I increase the time? Can't wait to make this.
Alissa says
This stew definitely didn't thicken up. I'm going to use some of the other commenters suggestions to turn it from a soup into stew.
Christine Turner says
Hi!
Making a bunch of freezer make and take meals for a new Mom and they love this stew. Was wondering if I could make ahead and freeze this or just throw it in a freezer bag and just leave instructions, can this be done in a crockpot Any Irish recipes that you have to make/freeze and take or crockpot.
Christine Turner says
Ok my bad it is a crock pot meal sorry
Molly says
This was the best stew! The meat so rich and tender.
David says
This was wonderful. Followed the recipe to the letter and turned out great. Thank you for posting
Shem says
Can I use tomato sauce instead of tomato paste?
Aberdeen says
Hi Shem, good question! Tomato sauce is actually quite different from tomato paste. I wouldn’t substitute it in this case. If you don’t have any tomato paste on hand go ahead and skip it instead of adding sauce. The paste has a deep, almost meaty flavor that enhances the meat when browning it but it isn’t necessary to the dish itself.
Morgan says
Hi Aberdeen! Love the looks of this recipe, I'm going to try it out tomorrow night. 🙂
What is the herb you're using as garnish? Seems like parsley or even thyme would work great with these flavors. Please let me know what you think would complement best!
Thank you,
Morgan
Aberdeen says
Hi Morgan! I just used plain old parsley for the garnish but a little fresh thyme would work great as well ????????.
Brett says
This was so delicious!! I made Irish soda bread to go with it and it was a big hit! Making again this week. Thanks for the wonderful recipe:)
Aberdeen says
You're welcome! Irish soda bread as a side to this stew sounds perfect 👌🏻.
KColeman says
Could I just dump it all my crockpot and go?
Aberdeen says
You can definitely try! I always brown the beef first for better flavor so it might be a little more plain if you throw it in the crock pot without browning.
Dynamic Dixbie in Dixie says
Hey, I can do this! Looks absolutely delicious -- I love stew and I love Guinness. What a combination. Thank you very much for this recipe.
Adam says
I must have missed something , the recipe sounded great and I followed the instructions . Thinking four cups of broth plus the beer may have been to much liquid for the crock pot because it’s been in the crock pot in low for 10 hours and looks like soup. An hour ago I added a cornstarch slurry and more tomatoe paste and turned it to high . It will taste fine but next time I may not use as much liquid.
Aberdeen says
I'm so sorry! The liquid only ends up being about 5 cups so I'm not sure what happened, I'll look into the recipe for you and see if I can figure it out. Thanks for giving it a try!
Ira says
Really stupid question...when you add the Guinness its not the entire bottle, correct? You only put in one cup of Guinness plus foam, correct? I can’t imagine you put in the entire 11.2 ounce bottle!!! Thanks for bearing with me!
Aberdeen says
No such thing as a stupid question! I went over the recipe and it's more than a little confusing (whoops). Yes, you do actually add the whole can! I've updated the recipe to help it make a little more sense.
Ira says
Thank you!
Ira says
Tried this recipe twice and it came out great both times! I too was a little concerned that it might come out soupy, so I added a little extra tomato paste. I also cooked on high for the first two hours, then low for six hours (my crockpot is a 4 quart I believe, so it was filled almost to the top). It also keeps really well for leftovers.
Janel Barthe says
We are alcohol free in our household, so wondering if there is anything that might be substituted for the Guiness stout?
Meredith S. says
I'm making this as we speak - we are also alcohol free, so I'm using Guinness' N/A version. Hoping it tastes just as good!
Jade says
Make this tonight and it was really soupy which wasn’t my concern. Main concern was there was no richmness in flavor. Pretty flavorless. Had to add a ton more salt and pepper to taste anything at all.
Aberdeen says
Hi Jade, I'm so sorry this didn't turn out for you! What kind of beef broth did you use?
Ralph S says
Great stew on a cold snowy night. The veggies and meat were tender and flavorful. Definitely will be making this again.
Aberdeen says
Thank you so much!
Lindsey says
I just made this recipe this past weekend and it's DELICIOUS. I'd never had parsnips before, but I really enjoyed them. I'm making it again this weekend. I did add about a tablespoon of Worcestershire sauce to mine because I love the flavor it adds to beef stew, but it was also delicious without it.
Susan Seifert says
I can't find Guinness Stout beer in the stores. What can I use as a substitute?
Samual says
In lamans rerms can you explain how much guiness you put in please beacuse 22 2/5s makes no sense lol thanks
David says
A great tasty recipe - thank you so much. As an alternative ale, you can try Kilkenny or, for a slightly less bitter undertone, Mackeson Stout.
As an extra treat, add suet dumplings for the last 40 minutes of cooking time and maybe some shredded Savoy cabbagefor the last 15 minutes.
Jennifer says
We made it for the frist time today and it turned out really well. I've been looking for a good crockpot guiness stew, and this delivered.
Sarah says
Hi! I want to make this for St Patrick's Day this year and was thinking of exchanging lamb for beef. Can you recommend any alternative directions I should follow or ingredients I should use? Thank you!
Craig Hutto says
I used corned beef brisket for the beef stew and otherwise followed this recipe (rare for me) using a crock pot.
It did not produce a very thick, gravy-like sauce But the flavor was so delicious and the meat so tender that I have to grade it 5 stars regardless.
I simply added more tomato paste and a bit of semolina ro thicken. Along with draining water off the lid when stirring, this dish only became thicker and more delicious over the course of 3 days.
Thanks for sharing!
Natasha says
First time I cooked a Irish stew, it was nice but beer was a bit too strong for my family, Can I used a lighter beer for next time?
james says
It is a great slow cooker guinness beef stew recipe.
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Lori says
I’m not sure what happened with this but I made this and it never thickened up at all. I tried fishing the meat and veggies out of the soup and plated those anyway.. but they were flavorless.