Ingredients

• 2 lb stewing lamb or beef, cut into 1 inch cubes
• Salt and pepper
• Butter
• Cooking oil
• 1/4 cup flour
• 2 leeks or 1 large onion, diced
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 carrots
• 1 parsnips
• 2 turnips
• 1 large or two small potatoes + 1 extra potato
• 1 can Guinness
• Butter
• Salt and pepper
• 1 bay leaf
• a pinch of thyme
• 4 cups bone broth<
• Or 4 cups stock
• Irish soda bread<

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 325F.
• Toss the meat pieces in salt and pepper, then stir in the flour.
• Heat a large, heavy braising skillet on medium heat.
• Add cooking oil and butter to the pan and brown the meat on all sides. Brown in batches if necessary.
• Remove the meat and set it aside, and turn the heat down to medium-low.
• Cook the onion for a few minutes until soft, then add the garlic and stir for a minute or two.
• While that's cooking, chop the carrots, parsnips, turnips and potatoes into 3/4 inch cubes. Then add them to the pan with the bay leaf and thyme and stir them all together.
• Turn the heat up to medium-high and add two-thirds of the can of Guinness to deglaze the pan. (Drink the other one-third.) Cook for a few minutes to reduce the Guinness, then add the bone broth.
• Peel the one extra potato and grate it into the pan. This will thicken the stew.
• Bring to a boil, then cover and bake in the oven until vegetables are cooked, liquid is thickened and meat is tender, around 1.5 - 2 hours.
• Serve with Irish soda bread.

Irish Stew