Monday, March 16, 2015

Guinness Braised Beef with Mashed Root Vegetables

Posted by Tina / 1 comment » / *Recipes, Beef, Main Courses

So March 17th has arrived once again!

ST. PADDY’S DAY IS TOMORROW!!!

I have to admit it snuck up on me a little bit this year but I couldn’t let the opportunity slip bye to give you guys an ode to my Irish heritage!

Braised beef is kind of my jam these days. It’s SO. STINKING. GOOD. I typically go the Italian tomato paste and red wine route… but I thought, why not beer? And to keep with the Irish theme… How about some GUINNESS???

Guinness gives it this hint of bitterness that just gives the dish a little extra somethin’ somethin’! It’s delicious. But if you are fearful of the ol’ Guinness, you could easily swap it out for a basic Irish Lager like Harp. It would be equally delish.

I mean look at that gorgeous melt in your mouth tender meat!

Hello lover…

I decided to serve this over a simple root veggie mash made of carrots, parsnips, and turnips (super Irish!).  You could also go the mashed potato route or even try your hand at some polenta if you want to get a little daring! Super versatile!

The thing I love most about braising beef is all the hard work is done in advance (and by “hard” I mean that it’s a little time consuming chopping veggies and searing the meat but nothing actually difficult… so DON’T BE INTIMIDATED!). Then all you have to do is pop the lid on the pot, stick it in the oven, and let the oven do it’s magic! It’s a great dinner party meal. You can have your kitchen all cleaned up before your guests arrive and then pull out the pot and plate up! Win!

Need more St. Patrick’s Day ideas? See my recipe round up from last year HERE.

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Guinness Braised Beef with Mashed Root Vegetables

Yield: 6 servings

Prep Time: 30 minutes

Cook Time: 3 hours (30 minutes active, 2 1/2 in the oven)

Total Time: 3 hours 30 minutes

I like to have all my veggies chopped and liquids premeasured and ready to roll before I start so the dish comes together in a snap! The hardest part is WAITING. 😉

Ingredients:

For the Guinness Braised Beef:
2.5-3 pounds boneless chuck roast, cut into 1.5" cubes
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon fresh cracked black pepper
2 tablespoons flour
1 tablespoon olive oil
3 tablespoons butter, divided
1 medium onion, diced (about 2 cups)
2 celery stalks, diced (about 1 cup)
3 medium carrots, peeled and diced (about 1 cup)
8 ounces sliced mushrooms
2 medium cloves garlic, grated
1/2" bundle of fresh thyme (about 12 stems tied together with bakers twine)
2 bay leaves
1 pint (16 ounces) of Guinness (or any lager if you don't care for the bitterness in Guinness)
3 cups of beef stock or broth

For the Mashed Root Vegetables:
4 medium carrots, peeled and coarse chopped into uniform sized pieces
2 medium turnips, peeled and coarse chopped into uniform sized pieces
3 medium parsnips, peeled and coarse chopped into uniform sized pieces
1 tablespoon butter
3 rounded tablespoons sour cream
pinch of salt (more to taste)
pinch of black pepper

Directions:

For the Guinness Braised Beef:
Preheat oven to 350ºF. Add cubed chuck roast to a large bowl and sprinkle with salt and black pepper and flour. Toss to evenly coat the beef.

Add oil and 2 tablespoons of the butter to a large dutch oven. Heat over medium-high heat until nice and hot.

Using tongs, gently add half of the beef to the hot oil (you do this in 2 batches as to not overcrowd the pan and steam the meat instead of getting the nice brown crust that you want!). Sear on all 4 sides until a nice deep brown, about 1-2 minutes per side. Remove to a plate and repeat process with remaining beef (NOTE: You may even need to do this in 3 batches, depending on the size of your dutch oven).

Once you have browned and removed all the beef from the dutch oven, add an additional tablespoon of butter (do not drain anything from the pot!). Add the onions, celery, carrots and mushrooms and sauté, stirring constantly, until beginning to soften (4-5 minutes). Season with a pinch of salt and pepper. Next add the garlic and sauté for an additional minute. Move pot off of heat and gently pour the beer in. Using a wooden spoon, scrape the browned bits off of the bottom of pan. Return pot to heat and bring to a simmer. Allow to simmer for 5-10 minutes to reduce the beer down a bit. Add the thyme bundle and bay leaves and gently nestle the beef into the pan using tongs. Top with 3 cups of beef stock to cover the meat with liquid.

Put lid on dutch oven and bake in preheated oven for 2 1/2-3 hours (check halfway through cooking and add additional broth or water if needed... you want the beef to remain mostly covered in braising liquid). Remove from oven and meat should be nice and tender (should shred easily with a fork). Serve over Mashed Root vegetables.

For the Mashed Root Vegetables:
Add vegetables to a pot and cover with water. Bring to a boil over medium high heat and boil until fork tender (when you can easily pierce them with a fork), about 10-14 minutes. Drain and add to a mixing bowl with butter and sour cream and beat with a hand mixer until smooth. Season with salt and pepper to taste! Serve hot.

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