And on St. Patrick's day, it's a pretty appropriate beverage... but have you ever thought about it as a meal? Thanks to the Internet, I found a recipe for Guinness Stew here, and decided to make it the other day! Want to sneak a peak at the finished product?
But let's back up- here's what I started with:
I added a tablespoon of oil to my trusy dutch oven (I'm quickly becoming addicted to this thing)...
Before adding the onions...
And garlic.
Once those were sufficiently sauteed, I put transfered them to a different bowl. Then I added another tablespoon of oil to the pan, and proceeded to sear the beef in small batches.
Once the beef was finished, I put it all back into the pan and added a bit of flour before stirring to coat all the meat.
With SFS' help, I added beef boullion...
And the Guinness- look at the foamy deliciosness!
Once the pot started to simmer...
I added in the pre-sauteed onions/garlic, carrots, and a couple bay leaves.
After simmering for an hour, I added the weirdest ingredient I've ever put into a soup: PRUNES! You see, the beer makes the stew a little bitter, so the prunes sweeten things just a bit... and by the time the stew is finished the prunes will have disintegrated into nothing!
While the stew simmered for the last half hour, I peeled potatoes, quartered them, and put them in a pot of water to boil. Once they were tender, I strained them and tossed them in a bit of parsley (mostly for color). And before you know it, dinner was done!
Talk about a scrumptious, hearty dinner completely appropriate for today's holiday! If you'd like to try the recipe yourself, here's the version I went with:Thanks for visiting my blog- I hope you have a wonderful St. Patrick's Day!!Guinness Stew
2 pounds of stew beef (cut into cubes)
2 tablespoons of olive oil
2 cloves of garlic (minced)
2 cups of onions - chopped
1/4 cup of flour
1 1/2 cups of beef broth
12 ounces of Guinness Beer
3 large carrots - sliced into coins
2 bay leaves
A pinch (or so) of black pepper
3/4 cup of prunes (pre-pitted and chopped into pieces)
6 potatoes
Directions: In a Dutch oven, on medium high heat, heat 1 Tablespoon of the oil and sautée the onions for 3-4 minutes. Add garlic and cook for another 30 seconds. Remove them from the pot and add the remaining 1 Tablespoon of oil to the pan. Quickly sear the meat on all sides in several small batches. Return all the seared meat to the pan. Reduce heat, stir in the flour until all the meat is coated. Add beef broth and the Guinness and stir until mixture comes to a simmer. Add onions, garlic, carrots, bay leaves, and ground pepper to the pot before stirring. Simmer gently for 1 hour, stirring occasionally. (Make sure to cook the stew uncovered so that the gravy will thicken.) Add the prunes to the pot. Continue cooking for 1/2 hour- the gravy will develop a glossy finish. While you're waiting, peel and cut the potatoes into quarters. Put in pot of water and boil until tender. Once finished, strain the potatoes from the water and sprinkle with parsley (for color). When the stew is finished, remove bay leaf and add salt and pepper to taste.
