Irish Stew. An old fashioned favourite with a new twist to make it even more flavourful! This is comfort food at it’s very best.

Irish Stew.

This great fall dish is made up of 3 elements that come together to make one of the most delicious beef stews I have ever made. Yes, you can make it with traditional lamb or mutton too. It’s made by separating the cooking into three district parts.

I start with a great homemade beef stock which we almost always have on hand now. You can learn how to economically make beef or chicken stock in the oven here. 

Normally I would make stock on a different day than a soup or stew. We freeze it in Ziploc bags that lay flat on a cookie sheet as they freeze.

This allows the bags to be stacked in the freezer when frozen. It’s a great way to minimize the space required in the freezer.

How to make beef stock in the oven.

Developing flavour in Irish Stew.

The next step in making this Irish Stew is to brown the beef or lamb well before braising it to tender perfection in Irish Ale. This step really fully develops the flavour of the beef. Please note that you can easily substitute lamb in this recipe, if that is your preference.

Finally, other than potatoes and seasoning, I add farm fresh, roasted root vegetables to complete this delicious stew. Roasting the vegetables separately brings out all of their natural sweetness. Yet another layer of flavour going into the pot.

Irish Stew.

Finally, it all comes together for the final stage of cooking until the potatoes are fork tender. Then it’s just a matter of serving to those who have been smelling this wonderful stew all afternoon.

Don’t forget the Yorkshire Pudding Popovers to go with the Irish Stew as pictured or try some of our Whole Wheat Irish Soda Bread instead.

Whole Wheat Irish Soda Bread

This is a great, slow cooked, comfort food meal  and a great weekend recipe for the cold days ahead. Of course, this Irish Stew is also ideal for St Patrick’s Day! Éirinn go Brách!

Like this Irish Stew recipe?

You’ll find hundreds of other great ideas in our Slow Cooked Sundays Category and even more in our Beef Recipes Category.

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Yield: 16 servings

Irish Stew

Prep Time: 45 minutes

Cook Time: 4 hours

Total Time: 4 hours 45 minutes

Irish Stew. An old fashioned favourite with a new twist to make it even more flavourful! This is comfort food at it's very best.

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Ingredients

FOR THE BRAISED BEEF

• 4 pounds beef roast (I use chuck/blade roast but lamb is also very good in this recipe)
• 1/4 cup all purpose flour
• 4 tbsp canola oil
• 2 pints Irish Ale (Smithwick's is a good choice.)
• 4 cloves minced garlic
• 2 onions, diced
• 1 tsp ground thyme
• 1 tbsp fresh chopped rosemary
• 3 tbsp Dijon mustard
• 1 bay leaf

FOR THE ROASTED VEGETABLES

• 2 pounds parsnip, cut in chunks
• 2 pound turnip, cut in chucks
• 6 celery stalks, diced
• 2 pounds carrots, cut in chunks
• 2 cloves minced garlic
• 4 tbsp olive oil

YOU WILL ALSO NEED

• 2 litres of beef stock (my recipe here)
• 3 pounds yellow potatoes, washed and unpeeled, cut in chunks
• 2 tbsp chopped fresh rosemary
• 1 tsp fresh grated nutmeg

Instructions

TO PREPARE THE BRAISED BEEF

1. Cut the roast into large chunks about 1 ½ inches in size.
2. Salt and pepper the raw meat to season.
3. Toss the beef chunks in regular flour to coat.
4. In a large heavy bottomed skillet heat the canola oil.
5. Brown the beef chunks on all sides, working in small batches so as not to crowd your pan.
6. When all the beef is browned, transfer it to a large covered roasting pan along with the Irish Ale, garlic, onions, thyme, rosemary, dijon mustard and bay leaf.
7. Stir all the ingredients in the roaster then cover well with aluminum foil and the roaster cover.
8. Cook slowly in a 300 degree oven for about 1 ½ to 2 hours.

TO PREPARE THE ROASTED VEGETABLES

1. Toss together the parsnip, turnip, carrots, celery, garlic and olive oil.
2. Add salt and pepper to season
3. Roast in a shallow baking pan for about 40 minutes.

TO FINISH THE STEW

1. Add the beef stock to the braised beef along with the roasted vegetables , the yellow potatoes, rosemary and nutmeg.
2. Return to the oven for about half an hour to 45 minutes or until the potatoes are nearly fork tender.
3. Add 1 ½ cups fresh or frozen peas and cook for an additional 15 minutes.
4. Serve with freshly baked bread, biscuits or Yorkshire pudding.

Notes

Please note that this recipe is written for a crowd of up to 16 people. The recipe is easily halved if you are serving fewer people. Plan for leftovers though. This stew is very good a day or two afterward as well. I normally add another splash or two of stock to the pot when I am reheating it.

Nutrition Information

Yield

16

Serving Size

1 serving
Amount Per Serving Calories 684Total Fat 33gSaturated Fat 11gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 19gCholesterol 157mgSodium 474mgCarbohydrates 44gFiber 8gSugar 9gProtein 48g

The nutritional information provided is automatically calculated by third party software and is meant as a guideline only. Exact accuracy is not guaranteed. For recipes where all ingredients may not be used entirely, such as those with coatings on meats, or with sauces or dressings for example, calorie & nutritional values per serving will likely be somewhat lower than indicated.