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A hearty, rich slow cooker beef stew with bacon, Guinness, carrots, and Yukon Gold potatoes cooked in a stout-flavored gravy until the beef is fall-apart tender, with stovetop and Instant Pot methods also included.

Ingredients

Scale
  • 1 teaspoon vegetable oil
  • 4 slices thick-cut bacon, diced
  • 3 pounds boneless chuck roast, cut into 1-inch pieces
  • Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
  • 2 large onions, sliced
  • 3 cloves garlic, minced
  • 2 tablespoons tomato paste
  • 2 tablespoons flour
  • 2 ½ cups Guinness beer
  • 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
  • 1 tablespoon brown sugar
  • 2 ½ cups beef broth
  • 2 sprigs thyme
  • 1 pound carrots, peeled and cut into 1-inch chunks
  • 1 ½ pounds Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces
  • ½ cup chopped parsley

Instructions

  1. Over medium-high heat, heat the oil in a large Dutch oven or pot. Add the diced bacon and cook until cooked through, about 4 to 5 minutes. Remove it with a slotted spoon and reserve.
  2. Season the beef generously with salt and pepper. Working in batches so the pot is not overcrowded, brown the beef on all sides, about 1 to 2 minutes per side. Reserve it with the bacon.
  3. Turn the heat down to medium. Add a little more oil if necessary, then sauté the onions until beginning to brown, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant.
  4. Stir in the flour and tomato paste and cook for a minute or two, until the paste turns a dark red color. Pour in the Guinness, using a wooden spoon to scrape all the browned bits from the bottom of the pot.
  5. Stir in the beef broth, brown sugar, Worcestershire sauce, and a pinch of salt and pepper. Add the beef and bacon back into the pot, plus the thyme sprigs. Bring to a boil.
  6. Once boiling, cover and lower the heat to a simmer. Cook for 1 hour.
  7. Add the carrots and potatoes. Cover and continue cooking until the beef is falling-apart tender and the vegetables are cooked, about 1 more hour.
  8. If the stew is not thickened to the desired consistency, bring it to a boil over medium-high heat and cook uncovered until thickened, or slowly add a slurry made from equal parts flour and cold water, beer, or broth. Bring the stew to a boil to activate the starch.
  9. Discard the thyme sprigs and taste for seasoning, adjusting salt and pepper if necessary. Stir in the chopped parsley and serve.
  10. For the slow cooker method, complete the bacon, beef, onion, garlic, flour, tomato paste, and Guinness steps on the stove, then transfer everything to the slow cooker. Add the beef broth, Worcestershire sauce, brown sugar, thyme, and seasoning. Cook for 2 hours on high or 4 hours on low, then add the carrots and potatoes and cook for another 2 hours on high or 4 hours on low. Stir in parsley, adjust seasoning, and serve.
  11. For the Instant Pot method, use sauté mode for the bacon, beef, onions, garlic, flour, tomato paste, and Guinness. Add the broth, Worcestershire sauce, brown sugar, thyme, and seasoning. Cook on high pressure for 30 minutes and let the pressure release naturally. Add the vegetables, cook on high pressure for 4 minutes, release pressure naturally, then use sauté mode to simmer until thickened. Stir in parsley and adjust seasoning.

Notes

The source recipe card lists 10 minutes of prep and 2 hours 25 minutes of stovetop cook time., The slow cooker method uses two stages: 2 hours on high or 4 hours on low before adding the vegetables, then another 2 hours on high or 4 hours on low., The source does not specify a total time or serving-size amount beyond 8 servings.

Nutrition

Find it online: https://spoonandhearth.com/slow-cooker-guinness-beef-stew-recipe/