Tag: Guinness

Categories
Mains Recipes

Slow Cooked Beef in Guinness

They say drinking a pint of Guinness is a little like attempting to solve a crossword: it always feels good to get One Down 🙂

Forever keen to promote our wellbeing here on A Different Kitchen, I’ve chosen to capture that taste in edible form this St. Patrick’s Day weekend.

This is an old family recipe that never fails: chunks of braising steak tenderised through slow cooking for up to 4 hours with some seasonal veg, in an entire bottle of the black stuff. With a tight-fitting lid, all that taste and goodness is sealed in, making for a gravy that is rich, dark, with a slightly bitter tang and the distinctive taste of Guinness.

Ready to give your wellbeing a dropkick? Cook on.

Servings

Enough here for at least 6 servings.

Timings

30 mins to prepare, then 4 hours in the slow cooker.

You Will Need:

  • 700g braising steak
  • 2 – 3 tbsp plain flour
  • sea salt and black pepper
  • 1 tbsp oil
  • 1 tbsp butter
  • 2 carrots
  • 1 parsnip
  • 1 onion
  • 3 celery sticks
  • 8 – 9 chestnut mushrooms
  • 500 ml beef stock
  • 500 ml Guinness
  • a handful of fresh or dried herbs
  • 1 tbsp tomato passata
  • 1 tbsp Dijon mustard
  • 1 tbsp light brown sugar
  • 2 tsp cornflour
  • 2 tsp cold tap water

Method

  1. Switch on the electric slow cooker at the high setting.
  2. Chop the beef into chunks if not already done. Sprinkle the flour across the base of a shallow dish, and twist in some sea salt and black pepper. Roll the beef chunks in the seasoned flour until covered on all sides.
  3. Heat the oil and butter in a large frying pan. Place the chunks of beef in the pan and let fry on the underside. After a few minutes, turn them over and fry again, until the chunks are lightly browned and sealed on all sides. Transfer to the slow cooker bowl.
  4. Chop the onion, carrots, celery and parsnip into chunks and tip into the warm frying pan. Halve the mushrooms (or quarter if large) and add in also. Let the veg come to a sizzle and turn over a few times with a spatula until lightly browned and starting to soften. Scrape into the slow cooker bowl on top of the beef.
  5. Add the stock, Guinness, passata, mustard and sugar to the warm pan and gradually bring to the boil, stirring all the time. Tear in the herbs and, when just starting to bubble, add in to the slow cooker bowl.
  6. Get your spatula into the slow cooker bowl and mix up all the contents. Put the lid on and leave on the high setting for around 30 mins. Then turn it down to the medium setting for another 3 and a half hours.
  7. When the cooking is done, mix up a roux in a ramekin, using the cornflour and tap water, until the cornflour is totally dissolved. Pour in to the slow cooker bowl and stir. The beefy, Guinness gravy will start to thicken. Repeat this stage as necessary until the gravy reaches your preferred consistency – you may need to do it 2 or 3 times.
  8. Serve with roast potatoes or boiled rice.

Customise It!

If you don’t have access to an electric slow cooker, you can still cook this in a casserole dish in the oven – start it off at 180C and turn it down to 140C at stage 6 above.

For the herbs, I had fresh thyme, sage and rosemary, but dried mixed herbs will do the job.

For St. Patrick’s Day I am choosing a favourite Irish track for the ADK Playlist. There are so many that I could choose from: The Undertones, Stiff Little Fingers, U2, The Corrs, Ash, Sinead O’Connor to name a few. I’ve settled on this one – The Divine Comedy, aka Neil Hannon from Enniskillen in County Fermanagh, with Love What You Do.

Categories
Mains Recipes

Guinness and Honey-Glazed Roast Pork

With all my Irish Potato Bread now eaten, I’m moving on to the next round of Irish-influenced good food and great music, in celebration of St. Patrick’s Day Weekend.

This dish is a great way to incorporate A Drop of the Black Stuff in a dark, sweet glaze and sauce to enjoy with roast pork. As you can see from my main photo, I served this with creamy potato mash over a bed of shredded savoy cabbage. The garnish of scallions (spring onions) adds another taste, and contributes to the shamrock green colour palette.

It both looks and tastes great. What’s more, once you’ve opened the bottle of Guinness for the glaze, the rest can be poured into a glass as a well-earned appetiser for the hard working cook. So what’s not to like?

Servings

My carving of the pork loin produced 11 slices, so at 2 slices per person this will comfortably feed 4 -5.

Timings

15 mins to make the glaze. The pork takes an initial 20 mins in the oven at 180C, then a further 50 mins to slow cook at a lower setting of 150C.

You Will Need

  • 1kg good quality pork loin, skinless and boneless (I bought mine from a local independent butcher)
  • 200ml Guinness
  • 50ml runny honey
  • 120g light brown sugar
  • seasalt and black pepper

Method

  1. Combine the Guinness, honey and sugar in a saucepan and bring to the boil. Then turn down to a simmer and allow to reduce by about half. Remove the saucepan to a cool place. Don’t be too concerned if it still looks too liquidy for a glaze – as it starts to cool it will thicken.
  2. Turn on the oven at 180C.
  3. Lay the pork loin on a chopping board, fat side up. With a sharp knife, score lines in the layer of fat at 1cm intervals. Grind over some seasalt and black pepper, then rub it in to the fat layer with your fingers.
  4. Place the pork on a roasting dish and put in the oven when it has reached temperature. Leave for 20mins.
  5. Remove the pork from the oven and turn the temperature down to 150C. Brush the pork all over with most of the Guinness and honey glaze, and put it back in the oven for a further 50 mins.
  6. Take the dish from the oven at 10 – 15 min intervals and baste with the liquid gathering in the bottom of the roasting dish. These will be a mixture of the Guinness and honey glaze and the juices from the pork as it cooks.
  7. Remove the cooked pork after 50 mins and let it rest on a chopping board for 5 mins, then carve into slices. See my photos below.
  8. Tip the juices from the roasting dish into the saucepan along with the remaining Guinness and honey glaze. Stir to combine as you warm it through, then pour into a jug.
  9. Serve slices of the pork with your choice of veg, and drizzle over the Guinness and honey sauce (see my main photo at the top of this post). My veg is boiled potatoes mashed with butter, steamed shredded savoy cabbage, and a garnish of chopped scallions.

Customise It!

You have scope to vary the veg accompaniments, though I would keep to a potatoes and greens theme for a St Patrick’s celebration. Add the chopped scallions directly into the mash, to make champ. You could also replace the cabbage with kale or cavolo nero.

No prizes for guessing the suggested choice of drink to enjoy with your meal!

My St. Patrick’s Playlist has been prominent in the ADK kitchen this weekend, and here is another track. This one is something of a timeless classic from Belfast’s own Van the Man: Jackie Wilson Said (I’m in Heaven When You Smile).