Old Fashioned Irish Stew Recipes

OLD-FASHIONED BEEF STEW

Steps:

• Coat beef with flour, shaking off excess. In a large nonstick stock pot, heat oil over medium-high heat, add beef and saute until brown, approximately 6 minutes. Remove beef from stock pot and set aside.
• Add onions and mushrooms to stock pot and saute for 6 minutes. Add garlic and saute for 1 minute, continually stirring.
• Skim off fat any fat from the stock pot and return cooked beef to pot; stir in tomato paste and broth. Add enough water to just cover ingredients and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer until beef is tender, about 1 hour and 15 minutes.
• Skim off any foam that has accumulated on the surface of stew and add carrots, potatoes and green beans. Cover partially and simmer for 15 minutes.
• In a small mixing bowl, mix cornstarch and cold water. Stir mixture into stew. Increase heat and boil uncovered for 1 minute. Sprinkle with parsley and serve.

OLD-FASHIONED IRISH STEW

Steps:

• Mince lamb fat; cook in heavy Dutch oven over high heat until fat renders, stirring frequently, about 5 minutes.
• Strain drippings and return to Dutch oven; heat over medium high heat.
• Pat lamb dry with paper towels, add in batches (do not crowd) and cook until brown, about 5 minutes per side.
• Transfer to large bowl using slotted spoon.
• Add sliced and chopped onions,carrots and sliced potato to pan and cook until light brown, stirring frequently, about 5 minutes.
• Return lamb to pan, spooning vegetables on top; add stock.
• Reduce heat, cover and simmer gently 1 hour.
• Add quartered potatoes, pushing into liquid.
• Cover and simmer until potatoes and lamb are tender when pierced with fork, about 35 minutes.
• Drain liquid from pan into large heavy skillet; degrease cooking liquid.
• Boil until reduced by half, about 15 minutes; return to stew.
• Mix in 2 tablespoons parsley and season to taste with salt and pepper.
• Ladle stew onto heated platter, sprinkle with remaining parsley and serve.

TRADITIONAL IRISH STEW

Steps:

• Add the cabbage (if using), replace the lid, and cook for another hour. Check from time to time to make sure the stock hasn't reduced too much. If it has, add a little boiling water. The meat and vegetables should always be covered in liquid. If the sauce is too runny at the end, you can always cook the stew a little longer with the lid removed.

BEST IRISH STEW RECIPE FOR A RICH DEEPLY FLAVOURED TRADITIONAL IRISH BEEF STEW

Steps:

• Marinate the beef cubes in 30 ml Worcestershire sauce and 30 ml olive oil in zip-lock bags or a bowl for 1 hour, ensuring the beef is completely covered in the marinade.
• While the beef is marinating, in a flat-bottomed wok, skillet or frying pan over medium-high heat fry the lightly pounded garlic cloves in two tablespoons of olive oil until golden and fragrant, then transfer to your Dutch oven or heavy stew pot, then fry the bacon in the same oil and transfer to the stew pot.
• Top up the oil with another two tablespoons of olive oil, turn the heat to high, then fry the vegetables for a few minutes until blistered, one ingredient at a time, seasoning each with a pinch of sea salt and some freshly ground cracked black pepper, then transfer to the Dutch oven or stew pot.
• Tip the beef cubes and marinade into the same pan and sear over high heat until brown, then transfer to the pot, along with any remaining marinade.
• Add the red wine, beef stock, Worcestershire sauce, and herbs to the pot, stir to combine everything, and simmer on low heat, covered, for an hour or two until the beef is tender. The longer you can leave the stew to simmer the better; stir occasionally to ensure it's not sticking.
• When the beef is tender, with a large ladle transfer 3-4 scoops of the stew liquid to a small pot and over high heat bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer.
• In a small frying pan over medium heat, make the roux by melting the butter, then adding the flour, one tablespoon at a time, stirring until the flour is fully dissolved, and continuing to stir for a couple of minutes.
• Gradually transfer the roux to the small pot of boiled stew juices, whisking to combine well to create a thick full-flavoured gravy. Add this to the Dutch oven/stew pot and stir to incorporate.
• Taste the stew and adjust the seasoning to your palate, then garnish with fresh thyme or rosemary, sprinkle with chopped fresh celery leaves or flat-leaf parsley, and serve with mashed potatoes or dumplings.

OLD-FASHIONED LAMB STEW

Steps:

• In a large resealable plastic bag, combine flour, salt and pepper; add lamb, a few pieces at a time, and shake to coat. In a Dutch oven, brown the lamb in oil; drain. Add tomatoes, onion, parsley, rosemary and garlic powder. Cover and simmer for 2 hours. , Add carrots and potatoes; cover and cook 1 hour longer or until the meat is tender. Add peas and mushrooms; heat through. Thicken if desired.