Beef stew with dumplings is a British winter classic. This recipe brings together slow-cooked beef and melt-in-the-mouth root vegetables bubbling away in a velvety Guinness sauce topped with buoyant buttermilk dumplings. This steamy cauldron of simmering stew is a one-pot win that’s as laidback and cosy as a tartan blanket.
So, you think you don’t like stew? For those who prefer an assault of flavours, let me introduce you to solyanka. A stew like none you’ve tasted before, this Russian version is sweet with beef, smoked meats, potatoes and mushrooms as well as sour with pickles, capers, lemon and a lashing of sour cream. Changed your mind?
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I’m no stranger to cold a climate. Native to Russia, then spending my twenties and thirties in snowy Minnesota and chilly Vancouver, now having settled on the shores of the British Isles, I’ve learned that food is fuel.
The kind that both fills your belly and warms you from the inside out. And stew is the ultimate dish in that sense.
What’s more it’s comprised of inexpensive and accessible ingredients. So, it’s no surprise that I have collated a treasure trove of stew recipes on the blog!
Classic beef stew
Versions of stew are found in every corner of the globe, from Japanese hot pot to Pakistani nihari, from Louisiana gumbo to Hungarian goulash. Then there’s more familiar recipes like French beef bourguignon and Italian chicken cacciatore. But the defining features are:
- Everything is cooked in one pot.
- They are cooked at a low temperature over a long time (partly to break down tougher meat and to soften chunky vegetables, as well as allowing the flavours to develop).
- They are saucy, but thickened with either flour, cornstarch, breadcrumbs or grains, for a thick, fluid gravy.
Of course, the UK has its own offering. The favoured meat tends to be beef and a cheaper cut like brisket, beef shin or stewing steak.
The vegetables will most likely be onions, garlic, potatoes, carrots and swede. Solid roots are chosen as flavour absorbers that won’t turn to mush.
Then, for a truly special stew, the liquid will be made with a rich, dark beer. I’ve used an-easy-to-source Guinness, but any stout, porter or ale will bring a rich tang to the beefy mix.
And finally, if you are lucky, the stew will be topped off with delicious dumplings. These rustic-looking cobbles serve to soak up sauce and provide an additional blanket of comfort to this classic midwinter dish.
Homemade dumpling recipe
Traditionally, dumplings in Britain were made with suet, a type of animal fat. It’s characteristically used in all those super stodgy, but infinitely irresistible steamed puddings that the UK is so well-known for, i.e. jam roly-poly and spotted dick (yes, that’s a thing). But in recent years it has fallen out of favour and I’m not keen on using it myself!
Rather than the typical British method and ingredients, I’m employing an American technique and using buttermilk. Buttermilk dumplings are prominent in Southern cooking (USA) and not very British at all, but in my opinion the results are unrivalled. The dumplings are far lighter and fluffier.
Buttermilk is a cultured ingredient, like kefir or natural yoghurt, that is slightly fizzy and airy. It’s these qualities that will bring out the bubbles in your batter and produce the best dumplings, rather than a floury stone of sorts. Sorry, UK!
This dumpling dough may require more ingredients, and its wet consistency will seem unusual if you’re used to making dumplings with just flour and water but trust the process – and get your ice cream scoop at the ready!
Recipe tips and notes
- There are lots of reasonably priced beef options. I’ve used stewing beef, but you could use beef shin or beef chuck that you cut into chunks yourself.
- Go for waxy potatoes as they will hold their shape better than the floury variety. Baby potatoes or red-skinned will do.
- Root vegetables are the BEST vegetables for stew. They naturally soak up all the flavours and can withstand the long cooking time. I’ve gone for thick cut carrot and butternut squash, but sweet parsnips or swede (rutabaga) are also up to the job.
- Browning the beef will bring caramelly depths and a rich char. Don’t skip this fundamental step!
- Another step not to be skipped over is taking time to sweat the onions. To release their sweetness into the cooking oil they need a good 10-minute sauté. Look for when they turn translucent. Don’t cook them to high or they’ll burn and bitter.
- And… deglaze the pan. This means adding liquid, in this case beef stock and then Guinness, to the hot pan and scraping the bottom of the pot with a wooden spoon to shift all the burnt on bits. These burnt bits are all flavour and they make a vital contribution to the dish.
- If you’re not a fan of Guinness, any black beer or ale, or red wine will substitute. However, if alcohol is not something you use, alcohol-free Guinness is available and tastes just as good.
- This beef stew recipe is easily adapted to suit a gluten-free diet. Rather than using flour to thicken the sauce, go for cornstarch instead.
- While traditional British dumplings use suet (animal fat), my dumpling dough uses buttermilk, egg and baking soda to yield a lighter weight and fluffier offering.
Serving suggestions
Beef stew with dumplings ticks all the nutritional boxes; vegetables, meaty protein, 2 times satisfying carbs (potatoes and dumplings), what more could you ask for?
Assuming you’ve been down a mine or ploughing the fields as in the old English days of yore, you might ask for colcannon mash, or brown butter mash, or a potato farl to soak up the stewy sauce. Or if carrots and squash aren’t quite fulfilling your daily plant quota, you might ask for crispy Brussels sprouts or roasted cabbage wedges.
Storage and leftovers
Guinness beef stew has got your back whether you want it today, mid-week, or next month. This brilliantly beefy dish can be stored in the fridge for up to 4 days, or in the freezer for up to 3 months. If you’re making this to get ahead, just save the dumpling prep for the day you’re planning to serve.
Thaw frozen stew overnight in the fridge and reheat in the oven with the dumplings on top, as per the recipe instructions.
More stews to try
Beef Stew with Dumplings
Equipment
- This is an affiliate link.Le Creuset Enamelled Cast Iron Dutch Oven
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp This is an affiliate link.olive oil
- 1 tsp salt and pepper
- 1 kg / 2 lbs stewing beef diced
- 1 medium onion
- 3-4 sprigs thyme or 1 tsp dried thyme
- 2 cloves garlic
- 2 tbsp flour
- 500ml / 2 cups water or beef stock, divided
- 440ml / 1 can Guinness or other stout (can use non-alchoholic beer)
- 1-2 This is an affiliate link.bay leaves
- 2 medium carrots cut into large chunks
- ½ small butternut squash cut into large chunks
- ½kg / 1 lb baby potatoes or 4 large waxy such as red potatoes
For the dumplings
- 125ml / ½ cup buttermilk or kefir
- 1 egg
- 1 tbsp This is an affiliate link.olive oil
- 120g / 1 cup all purpose flour
- ¼ tsp baking powder
- ¼ tsp garlic pwder
- ¼ tsp onion powder
- ¼ tsp salt
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 160℃/300℉
- Heat the olive oil in a large Dutch oven/cast iron casserole pot and brown the beef chunks seasoned with salt and pepper over medium heat until golden. Do this in batches to avoid overcrowding.
- Move the browned beef to one side of the pot and lower the heat, then add chopped onions and thyme, cook over low heat for 8-10 minutes until tender. Then add minced garlic and cook briefly for 30 seconds.
- Add the flour and stir the beef, so it’s coated, then add the water or beef stock if using and scrape the bottom of the pot with a spatula to release the brown bits at the bottom. Add the Guinness, one or two bay leaves, turn the heat up and bring to a boil. Then cover with a lid and put in the preheated oven for 1 hour.
- After one hour take out of the oven and add carrots, butternut squash, cut into large chunks and potatoes to the pot, stir and add 250ml/1 cup of water, cover with a lid and continue cooking the stew in the oven for 1 more hour.
- Prepare the dumplings by mixing the buttermilk, egg, oil, flour, baking soda, garlic powder, onion powder, and salt with a wire whisk in a medium bowl. The batter will be sticky and have the consistency of a waffle batter.
- Take the stew out of the oven and scoop the batter directly on top of the stew. You can use two spoons for easy release or an ice cream scoop. Cover with a lid and put in the oven for 10 minutes, then take the lid off and cook for 10 minutes longer until the dumplings are golden.
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