Tag: comfort food

Tender lamb & vegetables braised with Guinness stout make this Irish inspired stew rich and comforting

One of our favorite comfort foods has to be stew

Hearty, warming and filling what’s not to like?

We are taking this stew to the next level and making an Irish inspired stew with lamb and Guinness Stout

We are using lamb shoulder chops which is usually a cheaper cut of lamb

That is because typically it is a tougher cut which makes it perfect for a stew

As it braises it will become very, very tender

Now you can have the butcher cut up lamb stew meat for you but we are going to process this ourselves

We are starting with 12 bone in lamb chops

Remove the meat from the bones and trim off any excess fat

Try to cut the meat into even sized cubes

This yielded around 2 1/2 pounds of lamb stew meat

Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a dutch oven over medium high heat

We are going to sear the lamb in batches, so add some into the pot and sprinkle with kosher salt and ground black pepper

Brown the stew meat on all sides then remove and set aside

Repeat until all the meat has been browned

It’s ok to have small brown bits of meat stuck to the bottom of the pot

That will just add in flavor later on

Comfort food, especially stews are so fantastic because you continuously add in layers of flavor

The first layer was the searing of the lamb

Now we are going to start on the next layer of flavor

We will need 3 slices of bacon, 1 onion and 3 garlic cloves

Peel and chop the onion and garlic

Cut the bacon into small pieces

Reduce the heat to medium low and add the bacon to the pot

Cook 6-8 minutes stirring occasionally, until the bacon is brown and rendered

Next add in the onion and garlic

Stir to combine

Cook 4-6 minutes stirring occasionally until the vegetables soften and onion starts to become translucent

Next, we will need 1/4 cup of flour, one 14.9 ounce can of Guinness Stout (I did say Irish stew), 6 cups of beef stock, 2 tablespoons of Gravy Master, 1 tablespoon of Worcestershire Sauce, 1 sprig of fresh rosemary and 1 sprig of fresh thyme

Click on our link to make Homemade Beef Stock

Sprinkle the vegetables with the flour and stir to combine

Deglaze the bottom of the pot with the Guinness and stir it up breaking up the browned bits on the bottom (this will help flavor the gravy)

Bring to a boil then reduce heat and simmer cook 5-6 minutes to cook the alcohol off

Next, add in the Gravy Master and Worcestershire Sauce and stir

Add in the beef stock and stir to combine

Put the meat back in with any pan juices that have collected

We tied the rosemary and thyme together with a piece of butcher string just to make it easier to remove the stems later on

Add the sprigs to the pot and cover

Bring to a boil then reduce heat and simmer for 45 minutes stirring occasionally

While that’s cooking lets get the next 2 ingredients ready

We will need 4 red potatoes and 4 carrots

Leave the skins on the potatoes

Peel the carrots and remove the ends

Give everyone a chop trying your best to keep the pieces as even as possible

After the 45 minutes are up add the potatoes and carrots to the pot and stir to combine

Cover and bring to a boil reduce to a simmer and cook 25 minutes or until the vegetables are tender

We might be breaking a bit of tradition here but I cannot have stew without mushrooms

We are using 10 ounces of Baby Bella mushrooms that have been wiped clean of any dirt

Give the mushrooms a slice

Add these to the stew

Now this time I know I’m breaking tradition

My wife and daughter just love pearl onions (or “Pearled” onions as my daughter used to call them)

So I’m adding in 1 cup of frozen pearl onions

Cover and bring to a boil then reduce heat to a simmer and cook 10 minutes

Remove the stems you tied together of the rosemary and thyme

Next we will need 2 tablespoons of fresh parsley that we will chop

This will add a bright freshness to the rich stew

Remove the stew from the heat

Taste and re-season the stew with kosher salt and ground black pepper as needed

Add in the fresh chopped parsley

Dig into a warming hearty bowl of Irish Stew!

Enjoy!!!

Tools used to make this recipe

ZELITE INFINITY Chef Knife 8 inch

ZELITE INFINITY Boning Knife 6 Inch

Architec Carving Board, Gripperwood

OXO Good Grips Flat Wire Whisk

Royal Classique 10 Piece Stainless Steel Measuring Cups and Spoons Set with Silicone Handles

Lodge Enameled Cast Iron Dutch Oven

Anchor Hocking 8 Cup Measuring Cup Glass Batter Bowl with Spout

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