St. Patty’s Day is the one day of the year where everyone is Irish. Whether you are celebrating your heritage or out to enjoy the festivities, a hearty Irish meal is the perfect way to end the day or prepare for a night of drinking! And what better way to combine the two than with Guinness Stew?
Traditional Irish stew is made of mutton, potatoes, onions and water. Personally I cannot stand mutton; it has a specific taste that is too pungent for me and is as tough as old shoe leather. Lamb is much better in my opinion, but you have to be careful when getting it at the store, sometimes they try to pass off mutton as lamb. Lamb is much more tender and flavorful. But when it comes to stew, I am a sucker for beef.
We have a local Irish restaurant in my town. I once had their stew and was terribly disappointed to find that it did not have one ounce of potatoes in it. When you think of Irish food the first thing to come to mind is potatoes. It was the Great Potato Famine between 1845 and 1852 that drove mass amounts of Irish to find new homes elsewhere. The potato: once it had been introduced to Ireland it became a supplementary food for the gentry but became a staple for the poor. When the Blight came and killed off many potato crops, people started to go hungry and die. The potatoes changed the landscape of Ireland’s people and greatly affect their lives. You can’t think of Irish food today without looking for the potatoes. So my disappointment at not having any potatoes in my Irish Stew made me feel that I could do better.
This past Valentine’s day found Sweet Cheeks and me testing out a new (at least to us) Irish pub in the city, and I decided to give their Guinness Stew a try in hopes that it would be more Irish since the bartender himself was an honest to God Irishman with the accent and everything. So imagine my surprise when out comes a steaming dish of stew with a white squirt of something with scallions in it. I was hesitant at first but my first bite showed it for what it was: Irish mashed potatoes in a thick stew. I fell in love with the idea of mashed potatoes with scallions (called Champ or brúitín) placed in a hearty Irish stew. I vowed to learn how to make this dish and share it with my family. Now I am sharing it with all of you!
Babycakes
YOU WILL NEED:
1 c. diced onion
1 c. diced celery
1 c. diced carrots
2 lbs beef cubes (or lamb if you prefer, just make sure it isn’t mutton!)
1 can (6 oz) tomato paste
6 c. vegetable or beef bullion (I use Better Than Bullion mixed in hot water, less salt)
Parsley
Bay leaves
½ c. butter
½ c. flour
Garlic
Salt
Pepper
*Using a Guinness Extra Stout will make the stew taste strongly of the beer. If this is not to your tastes, just use a normal Guinness.
*If you buy beef tips in a package at the store, you are going to want to cut them into smaller, bite-size pieces. Not only does this mean less work while eating but it spreads the beef out a bit in the stew so you are getting meat in every bowl. You can also add more or less of any of these ingredients to your specific tastes. We had 5 people pretty much clean out the entire pot with the above measurements. Next time I would consider increasing everything by at least a half with that many mouths because people will go back for seconds!
PREPARATIONS:
I find it infinitely easier to go about making this stew if you have everything precut and ready to go. So first make sure you cut up all your veggies and meat. I highly recommend using the leeks if you can find them because they are very good. When cooked they taste like a milder, buttery version of onions dipped in a hint of garlic. I would love to experiment with them in a leek soup! How to cut a leek.
Fry the beef up in some butter and minced garlic in one pan until completely cooked. In another pan, start frying up the celery and onions in some butter as well. After the beef is cooked, transfer to a deep pot, juices and all. In the frying pan that the meat was in, start sautéing the carrots in just a little bit of butter so they do not burn. Add the leeks and cook until they are soft. Add to the beef.
Once the onions and celery turn clear, add the can of tomato paste and bring to a boil. Add the parsley and bay leaves (whole leaves are easier to find later and remove) and bring to a boil. This will become part of the sauce stock. Reduce heat and simmer for a few minutes while you prepare the rue.
In yet another frying pan (this stew creates a mountain of dishes!) start browning the ½ cup of butter for the rue. Once it starts to fizzle and the edges turn a brownish color, add the flour and mix with a whisk.
This is going to create a lumpy concoction. I added a cup of vegetable bullion to thin it out and create a creamier consistency. Add this and the tomato and veggie stock to the pot with the beef. Add the remaining vegetable bullion to the pot along with the carrots and leeks. This will be very thick but do not add too much water to thin it out. Season the stew to taste with salt and pepper. Bring the contents to a boil and then reduce to a simmer stirring occasionally so it does not stick to the bottom of the pot. Cook for about 45 minutes to an hour. This is a good point to start making your Champ.
Add a bottle of Guinness to the stew slowly and return to a boil.
By adding this at the end, it will thin out the stew to a creamy consistency without being watered down or runny. Allow to cook for about 15 more minutes. Spoon into a bowl hot and add some champ to the middle of it, crack open a Guinness to drink and voila! The perfect Irish meal!
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