This Slow Cooker Irish Stew is a hearty, comforting meal with tender meat, rich broth, and classic vegetables. Perfect for St. Patrick's Day, cold nights, meal prep, or a cozy family dinner!
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This easy crock pot Irish beef stew has a flavorful broth and chunky root vegetables making it the ultimate comfort food. The best part? It's thrown together with hearty vegetables and tender chunks of beef and left alone for hours to meld into a delicious stew!
The secret to a good beef stew is using beer! The beer in this recipe enhances the flavors and tenderizes the meat. Use what you have on hand but I will typically use a Guinness beer or a brown ale. If you enjoy this hearty stew, you'll love my British Style Steak and Onion Pie, featuring tender beef cooked with onions in a rich gravy and slow cooker beef and barley soup, another cozy slow cooker meal.
Ingredients
- Stew meat. Beef chuck, top round or beef stew meat.
- All-purpose flour. Flour is used to thicken the stew.
- Fragrant base vegetables. Yellow onion, carrots and celery stalks act as the base that pulls the entire stew together.
- Fresh herbs. Herbs like thyme, rosemary and bay leaves add a depth of flavor to the stew.
- Potatoes. Yellow, yukon or red potatoes. You want to use a potato that will hold its shape over the cooking process.
- Beer. Use beer to enhance the flavor of the stew. I typically use Guinness but any pale ale, amber ale, or light brown ale, porter or stout will work.
- Beef stock. I prefer to use a low-sodium stock so I can control the salt content.
See the recipe card below for the remaining ingredients and quantities.
Choosing the Right Cut of Meat
Authentic Irish stew is made with lamb but for this recipe, we are using beef. Tougher cuts of beef like chuck roast, brisket, or round roast are best. These cuts have a lot of connective tissue that breaks down during the long cooking process, resulting in a tender beef and flavorful stew.
Substitutions & Variations
- Switch up the meat. Use lamb, beef, or venison instead for this recipe!
- Make it gluten-free. Use gluten-free flour or cornstarch instead of flour.
- Skip the beer. You can skip this step and just add another cup of beef broth or use red wine instead.
Instructions
Step 1: Coat the meat chunks in flour, salt and black pepper in a large mixing bowl or plastic bag. In a Dutch oven or skillet, heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil on medium-high heat. Add the meat to the pan and saute until browned on all sides.
Step 2: Add the meat and all remaining ingredients to the slow cooker. Cover, set the slow cooker to low and cook for 6 hours.
Step 3: Make a slurry by combining cornstarch or flour with liquid from the stew. Whisk and add back to the slow cooker to thicken.
Step 4: Let the stew sit for 15-30 minutes. Serve and enjoy!
Recipe FAQs
Yes! Brown the meat in a large pot or Dutch oven first, remove it and set aside. Add the onion, carrots and celery to the pot and cook until slightly soft. Next, add in the garlic and cook for 1 minute. Add the remaining ingredients to the pot along with the meat. Cover and bring to a boil, then turn down the heat and simmer for 50-60 minutes until potatoes are tender.
If you find the stew is not thick enough to your liking after cooking, you can create a slurry. Mix 2 tablespoons of flour or cornstarch with ¼ cup of water or broth from the stew. Add the slurry back into the stew and cook for another 10 minutes to allow it to thicken.
Yes, Irish stew reheats well and often tastes even better the next day as the flavors have had time to meld together. Store leftovers in the refrigerator and reheat gently on the stove or in the microwave.
Sarah's Top Tips
- Cook low and slow. For deep flavor and tender meat, cook for at least 6-8 hours on low rather than high heat.
- Choose the right cut of meat. Use well-marbled cuts like beef chuck or lamb shoulder for the best texture. Lean meats tend to dry out.
- Brown the meat first. Searing the meat before adding it to the slow cooker locks in flavor and creates a rich, caramelized crust.
- Flour the meat for better browning. Lightly coating the meat in flour helps with browning, thickening the stew, and keeping the meat from falling apart.
- Thicken the stew by stirring in a small cornstarch slurry (1 tablespoon cornstarch + 1 tablespoon water/broth).
- Let the stew rest before serving. After turning off the slow cooker, let it sit for 15-30 minutes with the lid slightly ajar to thicken and develop flavor.
Serving
Slow cooker Irish stew is perfect to serve on St. Patrick's Day with a crusty loaf of bread or a traditional Irish soda bread. You can also enjoy this on a chilly night with a glass of red wine or a beer!
Since this stew is so rich it would go great with a fresh green leafy salad, zesty zucchini salad or served over creamy red-skinned mashed potatoes.
Storage & Reheating
Store any leftover stew in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3-4 days. Freeze in a freezer-safe container for 3-4 months. Defrost frozen stew overnight before reheating.
Reheat in single portions on the stovetop or the microwave covered for 2-3 minutes. Try my Roasted Tomato Soup or Easy Broccoli Soup for more freezer-friendly recipes.
More Soups & Stews
Did you make this recipe? Leave a ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ rating and a comment below-I'd love to hear how it turned out! THANK YOU!
Recipe
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Slow Cooker Irish Beef Stew
See the full post for extra tips and photos
Ingredients
- 1.5 pounds beef chuck, top round or beef stew meat, cut into bite-sized pieces
- ½ cup all-purpose flour
- Salt and pepper
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 yellow onion, diced
- 2 carrots, peeled and diced
- 2 celery stalks, diced
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 2 sprigs fresh thyme
- 1 sprig fresh rosemary
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1 bay leaf
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1 pound yellow potatoes, quartered
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 12 ounce can or bottle pale ale, amber ale, or light brown ale, porter or stout
- 2 cups beef broth
Slurry
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch or flour, (see instructions below)
- ¼ cup broth from the stew or water, (see instructions below)
Instructions
- Coat the meat chunks in flour, salt and black pepper in a large mixing bowl or plastic bag. In a Dutch oven or large pot, heat olive oil and heat on medium-high heat. Add the meat to the pan and saute until browned on all sides. (1.5 pounds beef chuck, top round or beef stew meat, ½ cup all-purpose flour, Salt and pepper, 2 tablespoons olive oil)
- Add the meat and all remaining stew ingredients to the slow cooker. Set the slow cooker to low and cook for 6 hours. (1 yellow onion, 2 carrots, 2 celery stalks, 2 garlic cloves, 1 teaspoon salt, ½ teaspoon black pepper, 2 sprigs fresh thyme, 1 sprig fresh rosemary, 1 teaspoon smoked paprika, 1 bay leaf, 2 tablespoons tomato paste, 1 pound yellow potatoes, 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce, 1 12 ounce can or bottle pale ale, amber ale, or light brown ale, porter or stout, 2 cups beef broth¼ cup broth from the stew or water)
- Make a slurry by combining flour or cornstarch with broth from the stew or water. Whisk and add to the slow cooker to thicken. (2 tablespoons cornstarch or flour, ¼ cup broth from the stew or water)
- Let the stew sit for 15-30 minutes. Serve and enjoy!
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Sarah's Tips
- Cook low and slow. 6-8 hours on low for tender meat and deep flavor.
- Use the right meat. Beef chuck or round roast works best; avoid lean cuts.
- Brown the meat. Searing adds rich flavor and improves texture.
- Lightly coating the meat in flour helps with browning, thickening the stew, and keeping the meat from falling apart.
- Thicken the stew by stirring in a small cornstarch slurry (1 tablespoon cornstarch + 1 tablespoon water/broth).
- Let the stew rest before serving. After turning off the slow cooker, let it sit for 15-30 minutes with the lid slightly ajar to thicken and develop flavor.
- Store any leftover stew in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3-4 days. Freeze in a freezer-safe container for 3-4 months. Defrost frozen stew overnight before reheating.
- Reheat in single portions on the stovetop or the microwave covered for 2-3 minutes.
KITCHEN TOOLS NEEDED
- 1 Large pot or Dutch oven
Jo says
I love and appreciate your clear and understood way of writing the recipe. The stew was out of this world. Family said it is a keeper. Thank you for sharing.
Sarah Hill says
This is so sweet, thank you!
Kevin says
Excellent directions . Easy to prep for and was great in a crock pot. Less garlic and more thyme. Tomato paste added a lot of depth and adding peas in last half hour kept the peas with more body.
Sarah Hill says
Love that you added peas, thanks so much for the kind words!
Debbie says
Looks good. Just wondering if the ale is necessary or can it be left out?
Sarah Hill says
Hi Debbie, you can leave the ale out and just replace it with more beef broth or you could use red wine in its place. Let me know if you have anymore questions!