Slow Cooker Guinness Irish Beef Stew

Name: Slow Cooker Guinness Irish Beef Stew
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 6 h
Total time: 6 h 20 min
Yield: 8
Cuisine: Irish
Ingredients: 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil; 2.5 lb flank steak; salt & pepper; 4 cloves garlic, minced; 2 small yellow onions, coarsely chopped; 4 slices thick cut bacon; 2 tablespoons all purpose flour; 14.9 oz can Guinness Draught Ale; 1/4 cup tomato paste; 4 medium carrots, peeled and chopped 1/2" thick; 1 pint small button mushrooms; 3 large yellow potatoes, chopped into 1' pieces; 2-3 cups beef broth; optional-1/4 cup butter and 1/4 cup flour to thicken stew

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Guinness Irish Beef Stew is made easy with a slow cooker-tender fall apart meat with hearty vegetables and a thick, gravy-like stew.

A yellow bowl full of Guinness Irish Beef Stew with two Guinness cans in the background

Remember last week when I shared that delicious Guinness Beer Bread and I told you I served it with another amazing Guinness recipe? Well today I get to let you in on the rest of that meal-a hearty, warm your belly Slow Cooker Guinness Irish Beef Stew!

This stew is the ultimate in comfort food-it's really gotten me through the cold, damp UK winter this year! We're living in the southwest of England and it seems to hover just above freezing with an almost daily drizzle.

It's that wet cold that seems to chill you all the way to the bone. (My husband is from Michigan and handles it a lot better than me-my southern self tends to wrap up in a fuzzy blanket and try to avoid being outside!)

Why I love this recipe

So, on cold chilly days when you want to get warmed up from the inside out-this is the meal for you. I love that it's full of veggies, can be prepped quickly and cooks perfectly tender all day in the crockpot. It also reheats very well for leftovers and freezes well too!

(If you love Irish recipes, be sure to check out my traditional Corned Beef and Cabbage recipe too!)

Ingredients

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2.5 lb flank steak
salt & pepper
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 small yellow onions, coarsely chopped
4 slices thick cut bacon
2 tablespoons all purpose flour
14.9 oz can Guinness Draught Ale

¼ cup tomato paste
4 medium carrots, peeled and chopped ½" thick
1 pint small button mushrooms
3 large yellow potatoes, chopped into 1' pieces
2-3 cups beef broth
optional-¼ cup butter and ¼ cup flour to thicken stew

If you don't have Guinness on hand, this traditional Slow Cooker Beef Stew is a great alternative. I also have a fast and super easy Instant Pot Beef Stew recipe as well!

Step by step

Cut the flank steak into large 1" pieces. Heat the olive oil over medium high heat in a large skillet.
Add meat to the skillet in batches, being careful not to over crowd. Season with salt and pepper as you brown the meat on all sides. As the meat is cooked place into the slow cooker.
When all steak is cooked add bacon to pan and cook until well done. Add bacon to slow cooker over steak.
Add onion and garlic to the skillet and cook until soft. Add flour to the pan, then pour the Guinness and tomato paste into skillet and scrape the bottom to deglaze the pan. Stir thoroughly to dissolve the flour and make sure there are no lumps. Remove from heat.
Add carrots and mushrooms to slow cooker. Pour Guinness mixture over the meat and vegetables. Add beef broth to just cover the meat and veggies. Cook on high heat at least 6 hours or low heat 8 hours.

If you would like the stew to be thicker you can make a roux-melt ¼ cup butter in a small saucepan and add in ¼ cup all purpose flour, whisking constantly. Once the mixture begins to darken remove from heat and add about a cup of liquid from the stew into the saucepan. Whisk until smooth and then add to slow cooker. Stir and allow to cook 5-10 minutes more before serving. Garnish with dried parsley if desired.

Tips for best results

Don't cut the steak into pieces smaller than one inch, we need big chunks of meat to stand up to cooking for so long
Do not skip the deglazing step, this is essential for getting all that delicious flavor

FAQs

Do I need to peel the potatoes?

That is a personal preference, I don't peel mine but feel free to if you like

Can I leave out garlic/mushrooms/carrots/etc?

If you don't like one of the vegetables, leave it out. I do not recommend leaving out the garlic however. The end result does not have an obvious garlic taste but the garlic goes a long way in developing the flavor of the stew.

Can I make this with lamb?

Yes, lamb is the traditional Irish meat used in this stew. You can use either beef or lamb in this recipe.

Can this be made on the stovetop?

Yes, simply simmer on low for 3-4 hours.

Can I make this in the Instant Pot?

Yes, use the Sauté mode for all of the prep work and cook on Stew mode, then allow pressure to release naturally.

What other cuts of meat can I use?

If you don't have flank steak choose an inexpensive, tougher meat such as chuck or round. The higher connective tissue in these meats melts into the meat during the cooking process and lends its flavor to the stew. Learn more about choosing the best stew meat here.

Serving Suggestions

I like to have bread and butter with my beef stew, any of these easy recipes would compliment this stew perfectly:

If you try this recipe, please comment and rate it below, I love hearing from you!