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.
St. Patrick’s Day is the perfect occasion to indulge in some hearty Irish cooking. One of my favorites is this lamb stew, which is similar to my popular beef stew and Hungarian goulash recipes but with a distinctly Irish twist. It features tender, seared lamb that’s slowly cooked in a broth enriched with Guinness, giving it a unique, malty depth. Vegetables are added at just the right moment, ensuring they remain vibrant and tender-crisp. Paired with my Cheddar soda bread, this lamb stew makes a hearty and comforting meal that’s perfect for celebrating St. Patrick’s Day or for warming up any 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: This cut of lamb is rich in flavor and becomes fork-tender when cooked slowly over low heat.
- Onions and Garlic: These aromatics add depth and a foundation of flavor, creating a savory backdrop for the stew.
- Tomato Paste: Concentrated tomato paste adds umami, richness, and a slight acidity that enhances the overall taste and color of the stew.
- Flour: Used to thicken the stew, giving it a hearty and satisfying texture.
- Guinness: Adds a unique, malty depth and a hint of bitterness that complements the lamb beautifully.
- Beef Broth: Provides the liquid base for the stew, contributing to its richness and depth of flavor.
- Bay Leaf and Fresh Rosemary: These herbs infuse the stew with aromatic and earthy notes.
- Carrots and Baby Yukon Potatoes: These vegetables add sweetness, texture, and nutritional value, making the stew more filling and balanced.
- Peas: Added towards the end of cooking, peas provide a pop of color, sweetness, and freshness to contrast the rich and savory flavors of the stew.
- Jump to the printable recipe for precise measurements
Step-by-Step 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. The add the tomato paste.
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, 1to 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.
Cover and continue simmering until the vegetables are cooked and the meat is very tender, 30 to 40 minutes. 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.
Frequently Asked Questions
Definitely! Lamb stew can be made up to 3 days ahead of time and reheated gently on the stovetop. Just be sure to add the peas right before serving so they stay fresh. The broth may thicken in the fridge, so thin it with a bit of water or beef broth when reheating, if necessary.
Yes, the stew can be frozen for up to 3 months. However, leave out the potatoes, if possible, as they do not freeze well. When ready to serve, you can cook some potatoes separately and then either mix them into the stew or serve them alongside it.
Lamb shoulder is the best choice. Avoid using leg of lamb since it’s better suited for roasting or grilling and doesn’t become tender in stew. Ask your butcher to remove as much excess fat as possible, or trim it yourself at home. I
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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: This stew can be made up to 3 days ahead of time and stored in a covered container in the refrigerator. Wait to add the peas until right before serving so they maintain their freshness and vibrant green color. Reheat the stew gently on the stovetop. The stew may thicken in the fridge, so add a bit of water or broth if necessary when reheating.
- Freezer-Friendly Instructions: The stew can be frozen for up to 3 months. However, leave out the potatoes, if possible, as they do not freeze well. When ready to serve, you can cook some potatoes separately and then either mix them into the stew or serve them alongside it.
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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Can I make this recipe in a slow cooker? If yes, how many hours and at what level, high or low?
Hi, this can be done in a slow cooker — You’ll still need to go through all the initial steps like searing the meat on the stovetop, so not sure it’s worth it. If you choose to use a slow cooker, I’m not sure how long it will take (as I don’t have a slow cooker), but Martha Stewart’s website has an article that provides some guidance. I’d just go to marthastweart.com and search for “How to Convert Your Favorite Recipes for the Slow Cooker.” Hope that helps and that you enjoy the stew!
6 to 8 hours on low. Brown meat and veges before adding to slow cooker and deglaze. Reduce the water added by 50 percent 🙂
What can I substitute for the beer? Just more beef broth?
Yep 🙂
I am hoping to make this for a special St. Patrick’s Day dinner on Sunday, however, I am unable to find a lamb shoulder roast anywhere in my state (NH). A reputable butcher in the area has lamb leg, and he said it’s essentially the same thing, just a bit leaner. A should roast comes from the front leg, and a lamb leg comes from the back. Can I substitute lamb leg, and how can I ensure it doesn’t come out dry? We’re hosting my daughter-in-law’s British mum for dinner, and she’s half Irish. I have to get this right! 🙂
Hi Deb, You can use the lamb leg without any other modifications. The meat won’t be quite as tender but the stew will still be good. Hope everyone enjoys!
I’d like to try this recipe. My family would like me to make Guinness stew, but nobody likes lamb. Could I make the recipe with beef? (I’m trying for an Irish style stew with Guinness rather than the French version with wine.). Thanks for your help.
Sure, it would be fine to use beef here. Hope everyone enjoys it!
Hi, Jenn,
I’m not a billionaire, so I am wondering if I can use ground lamb instead?
Thanks!
Rebecca
Hi Rebecca, I’ve noticed that lamb is very expensive right now. Unfortunately, ground lamb won’t work here though — sorry!
Hi
Am going to try this for first time this weekend .I love the beef one so am looking forward to this .
Can I cook this in either oven or the slow cooker .my preference would be slow cooker .would I need to reduce the liquid .
Thanks so much in advance
Brenda
Hi Brenda, This could be done in a slow cooker — You’ll still need to go through all the initial steps like searing the meat on the stovetop, so not sure it’s worth it. If you choose to use a slow cooker, here are some tips that may help you to adapt the recipe (and I believe the tips mention reducing the liquid). After going through all the initial steps, you could also put this in a 325-degree oven for the same amount of time that the stew simmers on the stove. Hope you enjoy!
I love this recipe!!!! I am gluten-free, so a straight swap for rice flour works perfectly to thicken this. I follow the exact same steps, and it is indistinguishable from its flour-thickened counterpart. I would not use a cornstarch slurry as it would look like dog food, you need it to be opaque like gravy. I also use more broth in place of Guinness when I don’t have GF beer.
Hello, can I substitute beef broth for lamb bone broth / lamb stock?
Sure!
How long does this recipe take from start to finish if I cube the lamb shoulder myself?
PS I love ALL of your recipes, and made two Blueberry Coffee Cakes yesterday for visiting friends and family, but made one with fresh strawberries-and they were both amazing!! Thanks for the great job you do, and for sharing your gifts and talents with all of us so generously online!
So glad you like the recipes! 🙂
I’d guesstimate you should allot 3 to 3.5 hours for the stew. Hope you enjoy it!
Hopefully this turns out ok. I had to sub out beef for lamb because I couldn’t find lamb anywhere in time, but it sure smells good thus far!
Just to note, I had this recipe/website up on my tablet and never before I have been so incredibly frustrated trying to follow along with a recipe, as pop-up ads would fill my screen about as quickly as I could clear them. Seriously, every single time I looked at the screen I had to adjust the window and remove ads just to see what I was trying to read. I realize you make money off this website and I don’t begrudge anyone trying to make a living, but when there are so many pop up ads that you can’t rightly follow the recipe you’ve gone WAY overboard.
Hi Sudz, So sorry for the frustration. Tablets can cause issues when looking at websites, especially if they are turned horizontally.
I have the same issues with my iPhone or iPad. I only have these problems with your site, not other recipe sites. Have you actually tried to read and use a recipe lately?So frustrated because I love your website.
I tried to comment on a couple of recipes lately but no luck.
Hi Phyllis, I’m sorry about the challenges you’re having! If you’d like, you can install an adblocker on whatever browser you use. I tried it and it really works! You still see some unobtrusive ads, but it’s a much better experience. It will also eliminate annoying ads on all websites you visit — not just mine. The only downside is that it blocks the videos too, and unfortunately, there is no way around that.
Another option is to view the recipe as if you were going to print it. That will remove all the ads. So, you’d go through the process of preparing to print a recipe and just view it that way. Hope those options help!
I have mac book there are ads on the right side , but no pop ups – love so many of your recipes !!
I take a screenshot of the recipe ingredients/directions which removes the frustration!