Guinness Stew

I spent my a semester of my junior year in Ireland. It was a great big adventure of course with lots of poignant highs and confusing lows. Along the way I created amazing friendships, developed life skills, interacted with lots of culture, and of course gathered some DELICIOUS recipes. This Guinness Stew was from my host family and I am really happy to share it with you all today. Its easy...and you can make it a couple days before if you don't have time.

What you need:

-1/4 c olive oil

-1 1/4 lb. beef stew meat (we use venison) - salted

- Optional: I like to add 1/2 lb. bacon to the stew as well

-6 garlic cloves - minced

-6 c. beef stock

-1 Guinness beer

-1 c. hearty red wine

-2 tbls tomato paste

-1 tbls dried thyme

-1 tbls Worcestershire Sauce

-2 bay leaves

-2 tbls butter

-3 lb. potatoes - peeled and cut into cubes

-1 large onion

-2 cups cut carrots

-Salt and Pepper to taste

-parsley to garnish

Ok here goes:Heat the olive oil in your pot over medium-high heat and cook the beef pieces until brown on all sides. Do not crowd them - cook in batches if necessary. At this point throw in the bacon if you would like it. Then add garlic and saute for a few seconds.

Add the beef stock, Guinness, red wine, tomato paste, sugar, thyme, Worcestershire sauce and bay leaves. Bring mixture to boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer for about an hour.

While this is happening, take another pot and melt your butter in it. Add your vegetables (potatoes, onion, and carrots). Saute until golden brown, which is about 20 min. Set aside until the stew has simmered.

Once it has been an hour add the vegetables and simmer for another 40 minutes. Discard bay leaves and serve with the parsley... :)

This produced 6 hearty bowl fulls plus a couple bowls for leftovers. Enjoy!