The luck of the Irish, with the speed of the Instant Pot.
Sometimes I think what’s called “the luck of the Irish” isn’t really luck at all. It’s just good planning.
Irish stew is the perfect example of this. It’s a filling, flavorful dish that warms you up on a cold night. And it uses cheap ingredients like potatoes and carrots to stretch out one chunk of meat into a meal that can feed a big Irish family. Lucky? No, just well thought out.
Unfortunately, not all of us are this great at planning. We can’t always think far enough ahead to realize that, gee, a nice Irish stew would really hit the spot for dinner tonight, and set up a batch of Crockpot Irish Stew in the morning.
For us, there’s the Instant Pot. It can turn a hunk of stew beef and some veggies into a thick, satisfying Irish stew in under an hour. Brown the beef and onions right in the pot, add your sauce ingredients and let it stew for 30 minutes, and finally toss in the carrots and potatoes for a quick 4 minutes at high pressure. And just like that, you have a satisfying stew that needs only a loaf of hearty bread to make a complete meal. Now isn’t that lucky?
What kind of meat is stew meat?
Stew meat typically means the tougher, leaner cuts of beef, such as shoulder, chuck, round roast, and rump roast. These cuts actually work better in a stew than a tender cut like steak, because the collagen in the meat breaks down and makes it tender. If you use a nice well-marbled steak in your stew, the fat in it just melts out, and the meat turns tough and chewy. So don’t waste your money. Oh, and you can use these same cuts of lamb, venison, or even goat, as well as beef.
The recipe calls for Guinness, which I don’t normally drink. Is there any way to buy just one bottle instead of a six-pack? Or can I substitute a different kind of beer?
I mean, Guinness is obviously the best, because it’s a real Irish beer. Some liquor stores will let you buy a single bottle of it, or you can pay a little more to get one at the pub. But if you just plain can’t find it, you can use another brand of stout. This is a really dark, hearty, flavorful beer that complements the hearty flavors of beef and onions. And if you can’t find any brand of stout, try a porter or brown ale.
I don’t drink at all. Can I make the stew without the beer?
There are lots of different ways to make Irish stew — some with beer and some without. I like it with, but if it’s not your thing, leaving it out is no problem. What with the meat, beef stock, veggies, herbs, and Worcestershire, it definitely won’t lack for flavor.
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TOOLS USED TO MAKE THIS INSTANT POT IRISH STEW:
Instant Pot: This 6qt Instant Pot pressure cooker is always my go to!
Ingredients you will need:
olive oil
stew meat
sweet onion
cloves garlic
Guinness beer
beef stock
tomato paste
Worcestershire sauce
salt and pepper
celery
fresh thyme
bay leaves
carrots
russet potatoes
cornstarch
water
How to Make Instant Pot Irish Stew
- Turn the Instant Pot to saute and add olive oil. Season the beef with salt and pepper and add to the Instant Pot. Brown beef on all sides and remove to a plate.
- Add the diced onion to the Instant Pot and cook until it just starts to caramelize. Add the garlic for the last 30 seconds of cooking. When the onions have started to caramelize add the beer to deglaze the pot. Use a wooden spoon to scrape any browned bits from the bottom of the pot. Let the beer and onion mixture cook for 2-3 minutes.
- Add the browned beef, beef, beef stock, tomato paste, Worcestershire, salt, pepper, celery, thyme, and bay leaves to the Instant Pot.
- Set the pot to the Stew setting and cook for 30 minutes. When the time is up do a quick release of the pressure.
- Remove the bay leaves and thyme. Add the carrots and potatoes and cook on high pressure for 4 minutes. Do a quick release when the time is up.
- If you would like a thicker stew mix together corn starch and water and stir it into the stew. The stew will thicken upon standing.
- Serve warm with a hearty bread and garnished with fresh thyme.
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Instant Pot Irish Stew
Ingredients
- 1 Tablespoon olive oil
- 1.5 pounds stew meat
- 1 sweet onion diced
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1 bottle Guinness beer
- 2 cups beef stock
- 2.5 Tablespoons tomato paste
- 1 Tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper
- 3 ribs celery sliced
- 4 sprigs fresh thyme
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 pound carrots peeled and roughly chopped
- 2 russet potatoes about 1.5 pounds peeled and chopped
- 1 Tablespoons cornstarch
- 1 Tablespoon water
Instructions
- Turn the Instant Pot to saute and add olive oil. Season the beef with salt and pepper and add to the Instant Pot. Brown beef on all sides and remove to a plate.
- Add the diced onion to the Instant Pot and cook until it just starts to caramelize. Add the garlic for the last 30 seconds of cooking. When the onions have started to caramelize add the beer to deglaze the pot. Use a wooden spoon to scrape any browned bits from the bottom of the pot. Let the beer and onion mixture cook for 2-3 minutes.
- Add the browned beef, beef stock, tomato paste, Worcestershire, salt, pepper, celery, thyme, and bay leaves to the Instant Pot.
- Set the pot to the Stew setting and cook for 30 minutes. When the time is up do a quick release of the pressure.
- Remove the bay leaves and thyme. Add the carrots and potatoes and cook on high pressure for 4 minutes. Do a quick release when the time is up.
- If you would like a thicker stew mix together corn starch and water and stir it into the stew. The stew will thicken upon standing.
- Serve warm with a hearty bread and garnished with fresh thyme
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Nutrition Information:
Nutrition Disclaimer
Family Fresh Meals is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is only an estimate. We recommend running the ingredients through an online nutritional calculator if you need to verify any information.
Other Irish Recipes you Will Love!
- Instant Pot Corned Beef and Cabbage
- Crockpot Corned Beef and Cabbage
- Reuben Dip
- Reuben Braid
- Guinness Cupcakes
- Sheppards Pie
- Cheesy Guinness Beef Sliders
- Reuben Sliders
Shalyn Murphy says
Delicious! This recipe was a winner for my family. I used a splash of balsamic vinegar to deglaze the onions because we don’t have beer. I was skeptical that the stew meat would be tender and tasty in 30 minutes, but it was. Thanks!
Janet K. says
I’m planning on making this on the weekend. A bottle of Guiness is how many cups?
Corey says
About 11 oz
Wally says
Have you added mushrooms? Would you add them at the end with the other items (potatoes and carrots)?
Corey says
I haven’t, but sound like a yummy idea. I would add them in at the end since they don’t take much time to cook.
Jennifer says
My family loved this SO MUCH!!!
Rob says
In the first stewing under pressure, is that intended to also be high pressure, same as the second stewing part?
Corey says
The if you don’t have the “stew” setting on your instant pot, then yes, use high pressure.
Nita says
I have not yet made this recipe, but I intend to! I do have a suggestion for those of us that are on a low carb diet, I found that I can use a daikon radish instead of the potatoes, cut in shape you like, they act like potatoes when cooked and take on the flavor of the stew.. I do use carrots but not a lot as they have carbs, I might try cauliflower, squash or green beans.
Also, in convenience stores you can buy the Guinness beer in bottles in most areas.
Just some thoughts and ideas for your great stew recipe.
Terri Hunt says
I make my Irish man Irish Stew each year. This year I had replaced my crock pot with an instant pot. This is the best Irish Stew I have ever made. Will definitely make this again and teach it to my grandchildren.
Corey says
I am so happy you loved the recipe Terri!
Phil B says
Made this in my 3 quart mini IP. It just fit! Turned out great, we loved it. Couldn’t find fresh thyme, so used a couple teaspoons of flakes, Aldi had a version of Irish stout, so used that. Kept out part of the large onion until I added the other veg, we like some large chunks of onion. Thanks!
Mark Rosewell says
This recipe is becoming a go to on those cold Pennsylvania nights!! So rich and savory, and perfect with crusty bread. Everyone in the family loves it. Thank you!
Keri Herlong says
This is the best Irish stew I have ever made! I have high cholesterol so I thought I would sub the beef with turkey tenderloin, and it was a great sub! I also added the celery with the potatoes and carrots. I felt like cooking the celery the entire time would have made it disappear. Adding it with the potatoes and carrots kept it with just a hint of crisp. This will be a regular!