Day 37: Irish Stew

We had a good friend from church bless us with something like 30 pounds of beef. (Not really sure, but it seemed like that much!) My freezer is stocked!! 

Some of that beef was stew meat, which was perfect for this recipe! (Also the stroganoff I made a few nights ago!) 

The beef was the best cut I've ever seen! It didn't take a lot of effort to cut, which is really saying something since all my knives need sharpened pretty badly! And after it was cooked, it simply melted in your mouth! If she wants to keep blessing us with this stuff, who am I to complain?! From the bottom of our hearts (and stomachs), we thank you, LeAnn!

And, look at the first thing we did with it:

Part of this recipe involved Guinness beer. I know some people frown on the use of it, but since the alcohol cooks off, I don't see the harm in it. (If you do have an issue with it, you can substitute non-alcoholic beer or even just water with no big problem.)

Guinness is a very... let's say flavorful beer. Definitely not a weak drink! I admit I did try some when I went to Ireland a few years back, and I gotta say, it was awful! So, I was kind of worried the stew would retain too much of the beer strength so I added potatoes to help soak it up a bit with their starch. And, really, what is an Irish dish without the potatoes??

Worked like a charm! And the Guinness made the celery (a veggie low on my likes list) so tasty! Seriously, folks! This stew brought tears to my eyes, tears of joy! So, so good!! Every hearty bite melts in your mouth!

I am totally adding this recipe to my list of all-time favorites!

This also gave me an excuse to use the cast iron dutch oven that used to be my Dad's bean pot! I love that pot!

(I think I need an exclamation point intervention!)

Ingredients:

1 Tbsp vegetable oil

2 pounds beef (or lamb) stew meat (I cut mine into 1-inch chunks)

3 cups beef broth

1 1/2 cups (12 oz) Guinness beer (we used draught in a can)

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp black pepper

4 large carrots, peeled and cut into 1-inch chunks

4 large potatoes, peeled and cut into 1-inch chunks

3 celery stalks, sliced into 1/2-inch chunks

1 large onion, peeled and cut into 1-inch chunks

2 Tbsp all-purpose flour

1/3 cup water

Directions:

1. In a large soup pot, heat oil over high heat. Stir in stew meat and cook 8 to 10 minutes, or until the meat is browned.

2. Stir in the broth, beer, garlic, salt and pepper; bring to a boil, reduce heat to low, and simmer, covered, for 30 minutes.

3. Add carrots, celery, potatoes, and onion; mix well, then cook for 1 hour, or until meat is tender.

4. In a small bowl, mix flour and the water; stir into the stew and cook for an additional 2 to 3 minutes until the sauce is thickened.