Anne Morgan Delia Smith’s beef in Guinness is a slow stew of brisket, onions and pickled walnuts. You brown the beef, add a pint of Guinness, then cook it in a low oven for 3 hours. The sauce turns very dark and smooth, and the dish feeds 6 to 8 people.
Delia added this dish to her Complete Cookery Course in 1992. The first edition from 1983 does not have it, but it does have her steak braised in stout. She says she likes to use cubes of lean brisket for this casserole.
The pickled walnuts are the surprise. They go soft in the sauce and give it a sharp, tangy taste. She serves it with creamy mashed potato, which soaks up the sauce, and also with spiced red cabbage.
The brisket falls apart when you touch it with a fork. For a lighter sauce, try her beef stew with beer, which uses light ale and chuck steak.
Delia Smith’s Braised Beef in Guinness with Pickled Walnuts
Course: DinnerCuisine: BritishDifficulty: Easy6-8
servings25
minutes3
hours35
minutes490
kcalA dark brisket casserole with Guinness and pickled walnuts. It cooks slowly in the oven while you do something else.
Ingredients
- For the beef in Guinness:
1.3kg (3lb) brisket of beef, cut into 5cm (2in) cubes
2 tablespoons olive oil
225g (8oz) onions, quartered, then separated into layers
1 well-heaped tablespoon plain flour
570ml (1 pint) Guinness
1 sprig fresh thyme
1 bay leaf
1 large clove garlic, crushed
12 pickled walnuts (one 390g/14oz jar), halved
salt and freshly milled black pepper
Directions
- Oven: Heat the oven to 140°C, fan 120°C, gas mark 1. You need a large flameproof casserole with a lid.
- Beef: Heat the oil in the casserole. When it is hot, brown the beef a few pieces at a time, and lift each batch onto a plate.
- Onions: Add the onions to the casserole and cook them until they are brown at the edges.
- Flour: Turn the heat down. Put the beef back in with any juices from the plate, then stir in the flour with a wooden spoon.
- Guinness: Stir in the Guinness, then add the thyme, bay leaf, garlic and pickled walnuts. Season it with salt and pepper and bring it slowly up to a simmer.
- Cook: Put the lid on and cook it in the centre of the oven for 3 hours.
- Wait: Leave it alone and don’t try it early. She says the beer needs all that time to become a good sauce.
- Serve: Serve it with mashed potato and spiced red cabbage.
Notes
- Halve the pickled walnuts on a plate with a sharp knife, because they are soft and their dark juice stains boards. That's my own tip.
- It is even better made a day ahead. Cool it, chill it overnight, then reheat it gently until it bubbles, my own advice.
FAQs
Can I add port, as in her Christmas version?
Yes. In her Christmas book, she braises venison in Guinness and port with pickled walnuts, and she says it is just as good made with beef. It also serves 6 to 8.
You need 1.5kg beef in 2.5cm squares, 700ml Guinness or another stout, 150ml ruby port and a 400g jar of pickled walnuts, drained and halved. The night before, put the beef in a bowl with 1 bay leaf and 2 thyme sprigs. Pour the Guinness and port over it and leave it somewhere cool.
The next day, keep the liquid, dry the beef and brown it in 1½ tablespoons each of butter and olive oil. Fry 1 large chopped onion for about 8 minutes and 1 crushed garlic clove for 2 more, then put the beef back. Stir in 1 rounded tablespoon flour, the liquid and the walnuts, then give it 3 hours in the same low oven as the card.
How do I make her steak and onions in Guinness for 2?
Use her Frugal Food recipe, which is smaller and cheaper. You need 350 to 450g lean braising steak in 2 pieces, 2 large onions cut into rings, 150ml Guinness and a little beef dripping.
Fry the onion rings in the dripping until they brown at the edges, then brown the steak on both sides. Put half the onions in a shallow dish, lay the steak on top, add the rest of the onions and pour in the Guinness.
Cover it tightly with a lid or 2 layers of foil. Cook it near the top of the oven at 150°C, fan 130°C, gas mark 2, until the steak is tender, about 2½ to 3 hours. She serves it with creamed potatoes.
Can I use another stout instead of Guinness?
Yes, her Christmas recipe says Guinness or any other stout. Her notes on casseroles also list stout, with pale ale and brown ale, as a beer that makes a good sauce.
Her Complete Cookery Course has a simple stout dish too, for 2 to 3 people. You coat 450g braising steak, in 4 pieces, with seasoned flour and brown it.
Then you lay it on 2 browned, sliced onions, with 150ml stout and ½ teaspoon Worcestershire sauce. It needs the same oven heat as the card, for about 2½ hours.
Why does she use brisket?
Her recipe asks for cubes of lean brisket. In her notes on pot roasts, she also calls brisket her favourite cut, because it is cheap and has lots of flavour.
She warns that a rolled brisket from the butcher can hide fat and gristle inside. So cut off any thick fat and hard bits as you cube it, my own tip. If you can’t find brisket, chuck steak works well too, my own swap.
What are pickled walnuts?
They are young green walnuts, picked before the shell grows hard and pickled whole in vinegar. They turn soft and almost black, and most UK supermarkets sell them in jars near the pickled onions, my own note.
You need 12 for this recipe, which is about one 390g jar. Drain them before you halve them. If you can’t find any, the stew still works without them, my own view.
