Recipe: Slow Cooker Irish Beef Stew

I’m not sure if this stew could be termed an actual Irish stew, which I believe involves lamb rather than beef, but I made it on St. Patrick’s Day, and that’s close enough for me. Stew of any kind is one of my favorite meals — it’s just hearty and filling, the epitome of comfort food. Throw in a loaf of bread of some type (sourdough for us lucky San Franciscans, something else for those less fortunate) and that’s comfort, baby!

This is a really simple recipe that involves some prep work, which is okay, because once you’re done the crock pot does the rest … for the next eight hours! I like my stew on the thickish side, so about an hour before it’s done I’ll mix flour with hot liquid from the stew, pour it in and turn the heat up to high. I throw peas on top after serving because that’s just the kind of guy I am!

I usually like to carp on the nutritional value of the recipes I post, but in the case of comfort food like this, who really cares? Sometimes you just let some things slide, and just enjoy.

Anyway, here’s how to make my kinda, sorta Irish stew.

Ingredients: 
– 1.5 lbs. stewing beef
– 2 lg. carrots
– 2 lg. celery stalks
– 10-12 small red potatoes
– I medium onion
– 1 can condensed beef broth
– 1/4 cup flour
– 1 teaspoon paprika
– 1/3 cup soy sauce
– 1 can tomato sauce (8 oz.)
– 1 cup red wine (optional)
– Salt and pepper

The Process:
This recipe entails a lot of chopping of the veggies, which I usually do the night before, because I like to get this started early the next day for maximum slow cooking time — once I let it cook for 12 hours! I also marinate the beef overnight in soy sauce, red wine, rice vinegar, and garlic. But once all that’s done, just toss it all into the slow cooker, and let ‘er rip, on low for 8 hours or on high for 5 hours.

Potatoes first …

Carrots and celery next.

Add Beef …

Then add soy sauce, paprika, flour salt and pepper …

… which I mix together to form a paste …

… and pour over the mixture.

Add onions …

Mix together beef broth and tomato sauce (wine, too, if you like) …

Add it to the mixture …

Cover that bad boy up and let it cook for a really long time!