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Winter weekends call for steak and Guinness stew

Serve this stew with fluffy noodles or tip it into a baking dish and top with puff pastry or mashed potatoes. You really can't go wrong.
This is the perfect dish if you need to feed a crowd on the quick.
This is the perfect dish if you need to feed a crowd on the quick.David Malosh
By Sam Sifton

Here is a hearty, stout-infused, and cheese-thickened stew that is excellent for serving to large crowds, essentially a British steak and kidney pie without the kidneys and piecrust. The gravy stretches nicely over buttered noodles, so three pounds of meat goes a long way. You could tip it into a baking dish and top with puff pastry or mashed potatoes if you're bound for a potluck; you could definitely make a batch and put it in the freezer against the knowledge that some day you're going to need it to feed a crowd on the quick. It delivers big, big flavor whenever it's served. Served with buttered noodles or mashed potatoes — something starchy and rich.

Ingredients

  • 4 tablespoons (¹/₂ stick) unsalted butter
  • 2 large red onions, peeled and diced
  • 4 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
  • 2 carrots, peeled and chopped
  • 2 celery stalks, trimmed and chopped
  • 10 button mushrooms, trimmed and sliced
  • 3 pounds brisket (preferably second cut) or stew meat, chopped into bite-size pieces
  • Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • 1 fresh rosemary sprig
  • 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
  • Two, 12-ounce cans stout
  • 8 ounces grated cheddar cheese

Preparation

  1. Heat the oven to 375°F. In a large, oven-safe pan fitted with a lid, heat 2 tablespoons of the butter over medium-low heat. When the butter melts and begins to foam, add the onions and garlic and cook, stirring frequently, until soft, about 10 minutes.
  2. Add the carrots, celery, mushrooms, and the remaining 2 tablespoons butter and cook over medium heat, stirring frequently, until the mushrooms are dark in color and the moisture released by them has evaporated, about 15 minutes.
  3. Season the beef pieces all over with salt and pepper. Add the beef and rosemary to the pan, then sprinkle the flour over them and cook over high heat, stirring often, for about 5 minutes.
  4. Add enough Guinness just to cover the beef. Cover the pan and put it in the oven for 1 1/2 hours. Remove from the oven and stir. Return to the oven and cook for 1 hour more. If the sauce remains thin, set the pot over medium-low heat, remove the lid, and reduce the liquid. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Fold in the cheese and stir to combine.

Reprinted from See You on Sunday. Copyright © 2019 by Sam Sifton. Photographs © 2019 by David Malosh. Published by Random House, an imprint of Penguin Random House, LLC.

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