Granite Brewery's Beer & Beef Stew
Submitted by suzq
Beer and beef stew from Granite Brewery with cubed beef, root vegetables, Dijon mustard, and a dark chocolate-brown roux. A pub-style stew thickened with a proper French roux.
YIELD
6 servingsPREP
30 minCOOK
60 minREADY
90 minScaled down from a recipe that originally fed 100, this pub-style beef stew gets its depth from a full bottle of beer, tomato paste, Dijon mustard, and a dark roux cooked to a rich chocolatey brown.
The roux is where this stew separates itself from the pack. Oil and flour cooked slowly and stirred constantly until they turn a deep brown. This isn’t a blonde roux for gravy. You’re looking for the color of milk chocolate, which takes patience and constant attention. That dark roux adds a nutty, toasty flavor that’s impossible to get from simply dumping flour into the pot.
Cubed potatoes, carrots, turnips, Spanish onions, and mushrooms cook first in the broth with beer, vinegar, and brown sugar until tender. The beef goes in last and simmers only 5 minutes, which tells you it’s been pre-browned and already cooked through. Don’t add it too early or it’ll turn to mush.
The red wine vinegar and Dijon mustard add a sharp, tangy backbone that keeps all that richness from feeling heavy.
Kitchen Tips
- Use a dark ale or stout for the deepest flavor. Light lagers work but add less character.
- Stir the roux constantly. Walk away for 30 seconds and it burns, and burnt roux means starting over.
- Add cold water to the roux gradually while stirring. Hot water causes it to seize and clump.
- This stew tastes better the next day after the flavors have had time to meld overnight in the fridge.
Variations
- Guinness version: Use a full bottle of Guinness stout for an even darker, more bitter stew.
- Root vegetable heavy: Add parsnips and rutabaga alongside the turnips for a more complex vegetable base.
- Slow cooker method: Brown the beef, make the roux, then combine everything in a slow cooker on low for 6-8 hours.
Ingredients
Directions
This recipe was reduced from the original which was intended for about 100 people, and called for 15 pounds of potatoes, 5 gallons of water and other ingredients in the same grandiose proportions.
The above combination may be varied at will; just remember to use beer instead of water to improve the flavours.
Combine the Cubed Veggies with the Miscellaneous stuff and cook until the veggies are done.
Add the beef and cook another 5 minutes at low simmer.
Finally, add the Roux, stir well and cook over medium heat about 15 minutes.
To make the Roux, which is a thickening agent used around the world and named by the French, you heat the oil on medium heat and add the flour.
Stirring constantly, slowly brown the mixture without burning until it turns a nice chocolatey brown.
Slowly add in the cold water, stirring constantly until the consistency is smooth.
When required, add to the stew and blend in well with the thinner liquid.
The 15 minutes at medium heat causes the flour to absorb a lot of the liquid and thicken the stew.
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