This easy beef stew recipe is a classic slow-cooked dish with chunks of beef, carrots, celery, and potatoes simmered to create a rich sauce. It's warming, hearty, and full of flavor.
When it's chilly outside all I want to eat is something warm and comforting. I made this one afternoon and my husband came up from his office and said “WHAT are you cooking? It smells amazing!” This easy beef stew recipe is my version adapted from one of Ireland's oldest pubs. It slow cooks and fills your home up with smells that will make you beg for it to be done. Beef Stew is the easily one of the best comfort foods around and it's perfect to serve to family and friends. I've always wanted to make a homemade Irish stew and worked on it until I can positively say this is the best beef stew recipe I've ever eaten.
This easy beef stew is loaded with carrots, potatoes, mushrooms, and celery so it's a total meal in a bowl.
I served it with crusty french bread to dip in the rich broth and it was amazing. One of the things I love most about this Irish stew recipe is that it allows you to use inexpensive cuts of beef since you simmer it so long. The meat becomes fall-apart tender. If you don't like one of the veggies in it just leave it out and reduce the water in the last step.
I like to use kitchen shortcuts in my recipes, so this inexpensive stew allows me to spend a few extra pennies to save me time so it's worth it. Instead of buying carrots and slicing them I buy a bag or pre-sliced carrots in the produce section of the grocery store and you can even use pre-sliced mushrooms instead of cutting whole ones into quarters.
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 2 pounds cubed stewing beef
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp pepper
- 4 cups water
- 2 large onions coarsely chopped
- 1 teaspoon chopped or minced garlic
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 3 teaspoons cubes, or packets beef bouillon
- 3 Yukon Gold Potatoes scrubbed and cut into 1" pieces
- 2 cups sliced carrots
- 1 cup sliced celery
- 1 container button or baby Bella mushrooms cut in quarters
- 3 sprigs thyme
- 1 bottle Guinness stout beer
- 2-3 cups water
- Heat oil over medium-high heat in a heavy pot.
- Season meat with salt and pepper and brown in batches on all sides.
- Return all the meat to the pot and add about 4 cups of water to just cover the meat.
- Simmer for two hours until the meat is tender, do not boil.
- Skim off any foam.
- Add tomato paste, beef bouillon onions, garlic, potatoes, carrots, celery, mushrooms thyme and Guinness.
- Add 2-3 cups water just to cover vegetables and simmer for one hour.
- Season with additional salt and pepper to taste.
If you liked this easy beef stew recipe you might want to try these favorite soups too!
Recipe for Minestrone Soup with Sausage
Slow Cooker Vegetable Soup
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