Beef and Guinness Stew

A good friend of mine just came back from accompanying her husband on a week-long business trip to London, Paris and Dublin.  Getting her to give me details on the trip was like pulling teeth, until I inquired about the best meal they had.  Hands down, she said, it was the Beef and Guinness stew they had one night at a Dublin Pub.  Really?  You just came back from Paris and your favorite food was in Ireland?  What is the world coming to?

I associate lamb with Ireland, but it turns out this is a perfectly authentic variety of stew to encounter in the Emerald Isle and since she got me thinking about it I decided I had to try to make it.  I happened to have a decent amount of local grown, grass-fed beef stew meat taking up room in my freezer until I could decide what it would become.  Thank you to the Chicago Tribune who published this recipe from the oldest pub in Ireland for St. Patrick's Day this year.  My version is a slight adaptation of the recipe they published, but since my Casey roots hail from Cork I figure I'm entitled to make any twists I want.

Beef and Guinness Stew
(adapted from the recipe cooked at The Brazen Head (est. 1198) - Ireland's oldest Pub)

Prep: 30 minutes
Cook: 3 hours
Servings: 4 hearty

2 tablespoons grape seed oil (or vegetable oil)
2 pounds lean stewing beef, cubed
salt
freshly ground black pepper
1 quart homemade chicken stock or low-sodium store bought
2 large onions, sliced into slivers
2 lage cloves garlic, crushed
2 cups carrots, cut in chunks
(optional: 1 cup celery, cut in chunks)
1/2 pound crimini mushrooms, halved
2 teaspoon Better Than Boullion Low Sodium Beef
2 tablespoons tomato paste
2 anchovies in olive oil
2 sprigs fresh thyme
1 bay leaf
1 bottle Guinness stout (approximately 1 1/4 cups)

1. Pre-heat oven to 300 degrees. Heat oil over medium-high heat in a heavy pot; season meat liberally with salt and pepper. Brown meat, in batches, on all sides.

2. Pour stock into pot and bring to boil, scraping and stirring.  Return all meat to pot. Cover pot with parchment paper first then place lid on top.  Put pot in oven. Simmer gently until meat is tender, 1-2 hours; do not boil. Skim off any foam.

3. Add onions garlic, tomato paste and beef boullion; heat to a boil. Add carrots, (celery if using), mushrooms, thyme, bay leaf and Guinness. Return to oven and simmer one hour. Season with salt and pepper to taste. (The stew may be thickened with a flour-oil roux if desired).

It would be traditional to serve this rich, meaty stew with potatoes, but we like to have it with buttered orzo and a sprinkle of fresh parsley.