Something to Stew Over

Making a stew is like life itself: You gather together the resources you have available to you, toss them together, add in your own ideas, and let it simmer. But the 'make it or break it' part is the extra flavors you add. The seasonings of life are the moments of joy and laughter, the times you persevere, the giving and receiving of gifts and talents, the surprises that make you re-evaluate, all those special times that keep life bright and daring.
― Runa Pigden

Too often life is like a pot of stew that we made without a recipe. A lot of things got in there that shouldn’t have, a lot of things that should have didn’t, and everyone around the table would rather starve than eat it.
― Craig D. Lounsbrough

A wise man invented beer. A smart man drinks it. But a genius drinks Guinness.
— Guinness

I don’t know about you, but there’s nothing I like better on a cold winter’s day, than a big bowl of piping hot stew. As far as I’m concerned, it’s one of the perks of winter.

I usually make my stew in a slow cooker. I throw everything in the pot in the morning, and it can simmer away all day, filling the house with its delicious aroma.

Wednesdays the hubby goes bowling out of town, so he needs to eat early. One of the advantages of doing something in the slow cooker is we don’t have to eat at the same time – he can eat early and I can eat whenever I’m hungry.

And just an FYI, we don’t always have stew on Wednesdays, sometimes we have soup or a casserole or something else that saves me from having to make two meals, one right after another.

But back to the stew.

Every time I read a book set in Ireland and someone makes or eats Guinness stew, I think, “I really want to try that some time.” Well, last week was that time.

I checked several different recipes online before settling on one that was created for a slow cooker. I peeled and chopped the veggies. I dredged the beef in flour and sautéed it, then added tomato paste and beef broth to the pan (as per the instructions), stirring until it thickened. Then into the slow cooker it went, over top of the veggies. Last, I added a can of Guinness stout, stirring well.

Now all that was left was to wait.

Mid-afternoon the stew was starting to smell pretty good. Different, but good. And then I thought, why not make it a real Irish supper and do some soda bread to go with it?

The daughter and I used to make Irish soda bread a lot when she was a teenager. We even got fancy by adding various herbs to it. But do you think I could find the recipe we used? Of course not. No matter, I turned to my good friend Google.

The snow started coming down, making the perfect back drop, and the hubby didn’t go bowling after all so we got to eat together. The stew was beautiful to look at – rich and thick . . . And the soda bread had a nice, golden brown crust.

Now, first of all, you should know that I’m not a beer drinker. I tried a couple of times in my early years, but never liked the taste of it. Maybe there’s one of those fancy craft beers out there with my name on it, but I’m in no hurry to find out.

I filled my bowl with the fragrant stew that I’d anticipated trying for so long, and . . . it was the most disgusting thing I’ve ever tasted. Gross, gross, gross! The stew itself looked so beautiful, but it had this horrible after taste that I just couldn’t stomach.

And my soda bread? The crust was so hard to saw through I almost had the hubby get out a hack saw for me. Inside the hard outer shell it wasn’t so bad, but seriously, I would have done better to make a loaf of bread in the bread machine.

But believe it or not, I’m saving the recipe (for the stew) anyway. I really liked the way the meat was dredged in flour (spiced up flour) and the sauce thickened in the frying pan before being added to the rest of the stew. However, when I make it again I will not be adding Guinness or any other beer to it.

Instead, I’ll substitute more beef broth, or maybe a nice red wine. And maybe add some button mushrooms as well.

Maybe I’ll just create my own recipe for stew. :-)