Lamb Stew with Vegetables
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Cozy up with a bowl of Guinness-spiked lamb stew—each spoonful promises succulent meat, hearty broth, and pure comfort.
This lamb stew is a comforting classic, much like my popular beef stew and Hungarian goulash, but with a distinctly Irish twist. Tender, seared lamb is slow-cooked in a Guinness-spiked broth, giving the stew a rich, malty flavor, while carrots and potatoes make it wonderfully hearty. Pair it with my Cheddar soda bread, and you’ve got a hearty meal that’s perfect for warming up on a chilly day.
“Delicious! I doubled the recipe and made it for a crowd of friends all from Ireland the weekend before St Patrick’s Day…No leftovers, unfortunately!!”
What You’ll Need To Make Lamb Stew With Vegetables
- Lamb Shoulder: Rich in flavor, this cut and becomes fork-tender when cooked slowly over low heat.
- Onions and Garlic: The flavor base of the stew.
- Tomato Paste: Adds umami, richness, and a slight acidity.
- Flour: Thickens the stew.
- Guinness: Adds a unique, malty depth and a hint of bitterness.
- Beef Broth: The savory liquid base for the stew.
- Bay Leaf and Fresh Rosemary: Bring earthy flavor.
- Carrots and Baby Yukon Potatoes: Add heartiness to the stew.
- Peas: Bring a pop of color, sweetness, and freshness.
- Jump to the printable recipe for precise measurements
Step-by-Step Instructions
Pat the lamb dry and season with salt and pepper.
Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a large Dutch oven until shimmering. Brown the lamb in batches, adding more oil as needed, and letting it develop a crust before turning.
Transfer the browned meat to large bowl and set aside.
Add the onions, garlic and 2 tablespoons of water to the pot.
Cook until the onions are soft, then add the tomato paste and cook a few minutes more.
Add the lamb with its juices back to the pan and sprinkle with flour.
Stir until fully combined, then add the Guinness, broth, water, bay leaf, rosemary, and sugar. Bring to a boil.
Cover the pot with a lid, turn the heat down to low, and simmer for 1 hour and 20 minutes. Add the carrots and potatoes to the stew.
Cover and simmer until the vegetables are tender and the meat is very soft, 30 to 40 minutes. Stir in peas and simmer until warmed through. The stew can be made up to 3 days ahead of time or frozen for 3 months.
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Lamb Stew with Vegetables
Cozy up with a bowl of Guinness-spiked lamb stew—each spoonful promises succulent meat, hearty broth, and pure comfort.
Ingredients
- 3 pounds lamb shoulder, well-trimmed and cut into 1½-inch pieces
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 3 tablespoons vegetable or olive oil
- 2 medium yellow onions, cut into 1½-inch
- 6 cloves garlic, peeled and smashed
- 3 tablespoons tomato paste
- ¼ cup all-purpose flour
- 1 cup Guinness
- 3 cups beef broth
- 2 cups water, plus 2 tablespoons more for cooking onions and garlic
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 small sprig fresh rosemary
- 2 teaspoons sugar
- 4 large carrots, peeled and cut into 1-inch chunks on diagonal
- 1 pound small white boiling potatoes (baby yukons), cut in half
- 1 cup frozen green peas
Instructions
- Pat the lamb dry and season with salt and pepper. In a large Dutch oven or heavy pot, heat one tablespoon of oil over medium-high heat until hot and shimmering. Brown the lamb in three batches, adding one more tablespoon of oil for each batch. Do not crowd the pan and let the meat develop a brown crust before turning with tongs. It should take 5-8 minutes per batch. Transfer the browned meat to large bowl and set aside.
- Add the onions, garlic and 2 tablespoons of water to the pot. Cook until the onions are soft, stirring with a wooden spoon to scrape any brown bits from the bottom of pan, about 5 minutes.
- Stir in the tomato paste and cook a few minutes more.
- Add the lamb with its juices back to the pan and sprinkle with flour. Stir with a wooden spoon until the flour is completely mixed in, 1 to 2 minutes.
- Add the Guinness, beef broth, water, bay leaf, rosemary sprig and sugar. Stir with a wooden spoon to loosen any brown bits from the bottom of the pan and bring to a boil. Cover the pot with a lid, turn the heat down to low and simmer for one hour and twenty minutes.
- Add the carrots and potatoes to the stew, then cover and continue simmering until the vegetables are cooked and the meat is very tender, 30-40 minutes. (Be sure to stir a few times to prevent vegetables from sticking to bottom.)
- Remove the bay leaf and rosemary sprig, and then taste and adjust seasoning if necessary. If serving right away, add the frozen peas and cook until the peas are warmed through. Otherwise, let the stew cool, then cover and store in the refrigerator until ready to serve. Reheat gently on the stovetop and add the peas right before serving.
- Make-Ahead/Freezer-Friendly Instructions: Prepare the stew as directed, then cool it to room temperature before refrigerating. It can be stored in the fridge for up to 3 days. Reheat on the stovetop over medium-low heat until hot. If you want to freeze the stew, transfer it to an airtight container once it has cooled. It can be frozen for up to 3 months. To serve, thaw the stew overnight in the refrigerator and reheat on the stovetop.
Pair with
Nutrition Information
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- Per serving (6 servings)
- Calories: 789
- Fat: 52g
- Saturated fat: 20g
- Carbohydrates: 36g
- Sugar: 9g
- Fiber: 6g
- Protein: 42g
- Sodium: 1242mg
- Cholesterol: 150mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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I made this today for a company of 4. Served with garlic bread on the side. Absolutely delicious. Thank you for the recipe!
This recipe is such comfort food and has amazing flavor. I’ve made it twice. Half the meat the first time and now per recipe. My family loved it! So wholesome and satisfying, while tasting so fresh. This recipe is a keeper. Thank you!!
There’s so many types of guinness now. Which one do I use? Thank you for your time
Hi Deborah, I believe this is the one I used, but any of them should be okay. Hope you enjoy the stew!
Dear Jenn,
I would love to make this dish but I don’t eat lamb. Could I use beef chuck instead of lamb or would this basically be too close to your beef stew with carrots & potatoes recipe (which I love!!)? Thanks! LMRM
Hi Lorraine, it’s fine to use beef here. Hope you enjoy!
Thanks, Jenn, I’ll make it this weekend! LOVE your recipes!
Jenn: I made this fabulous recipe yesterday for Easter today. I can’t wait to heat this up, and the frozen baby peas will add such a nice, fresh pop. Great meal.
Yummy! Lamb became very tender. Maybe too much tomato flavor, I would use a little less tomato paste next time.
Fun to make for St. Patrick’s day with the cheddar soda bread recipe.
Made this today for St. Patrick’s Day and it was delicious – lovely rich dark colour and went well with Irish soda bread. We couldn’t get lamb shoulder so we used leg of lamb and it was fine. I did simmer it for only an hour instead of the hour and 20 minutes specified in the recipe. Will definitely make this again!
Delicious! I doubled the recipe and made it for a crowd of friends all from Ireland the weekend before St Patrick’s Day. Most of them asked me to send them the recipe and then texted the next day to remind me. No leftovers, unfortunately!!
Didn’t care for the tomato paste, too much like regular stew.
Agreed and traditional doesn’t have it. It does act as a thickener though so I added a little flour to the onion after they cooked before adding the liquid.
The lamb stew sounds delicious, but I am questioning about Guiness. Is that beer?
Thanks
Yes, that is a beer. Hope you enjoy the stew if you make it!
Just made this today and loved it. I omitted the beer and used stewed tomatoes instead and the flavor was delicious.
The stew turned out pretty bland. I would suggest doubling the amount of seasonings if you like more pronounced flavors.