Photo by
Dotdash Meredith Food Studios

https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/234534/beef-and-guinness-stew/

Ingredients

  • 4 slices bacon, cut into small pieces
  • 2 ½ pounds boneless beef chuck, cut into 2-inch pieces
  • 1 ½ teaspoons salt, divided, or more to taste
  • freshly ground black pepper to taste
  • 2 onions, coarsely chopped
  • 4 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 (14.9 ounce) can dark beer (such as Guinness)
  • ¼ cup tomato paste
  • 3 carrots, cut into 1-inch pieces
  • 2 ribs celery, cut into 1-inch pieces
  • 4 sprigs fresh thyme
  • 1 teaspoon white sugar
  • ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, or to taste
  • 2 ½ cups chicken stock, or as needed to cover
  • 4 cups mashed potatoes (Optional)

Directions

  • Step One: Gather all ingredients.
  • Step Two: Cook and stir bacon in a heavy skillet over medium-high heat until bacon is browned and crisp, 3 to 4 minutes. Turn off the heat and transfer bacon into a large stew pot, reserving bacon fat in the skillet.
  • Step Three: Season beef chuck cubes generously with 1 teaspoon salt and black pepper to taste. Turn heat to high under the skillet and sear beef pieces in the hot fat on both sides until browned, about 5 minutes. Place beef in the stew pot with bacon, leaving fat in the skillet.
  • Step Four: Turn heat down to medium; cook and stir onions in the retained fat in the skillet until lightly browned, 5 to 8 minutes; season with a large pinch of salt.
  • Step Five: Cook garlic with onions until soft, about 1 minute. Pour beer into the skillet and stir with a wooden spoon, scraping up and dissolving any browned bits of food into the liquid.
  • Step Six: Pour cooking liquid from the skillet into the stew pot. Stir in tomato paste, carrots, celery, thyme sprigs, sugar, 1/2 teaspoon black pepper, and enough chicken broth to cover. d egg mixture reaches 165 degrees F (74 degrees C), 5 to 7 minutes.
  • Step Seven: Bring stew to a gentle simmer, stirring to combine; reduce heat to low and cover pot.
  • Step Eight: Simmer stew until beef is fork-tender, about 2 hours.
  • Step Nine: Stir stew occasionally and skim fat or foam if desired.
  • Step Ten: Remove cover and raise heat to medium-high. Bring stew to a low boil and cook until stew has slightly thickened, 15 to 20 minutes. Remove and discard thyme sprigs and adjust salt and pepper to taste.
  • Step Eleven: Arrange mashed potatoes in a ring in a serving bowl; ladle stew into the center of the potatoes.