Two delicious Irish classics together for St. Patrick's Day or a cozy weekend dinner. Guinness Pot Roast is an easy slow cooker meal, and pairs perfectly with mashed potato and cabbage Colcannon.
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While looking over lists of traditional Irish dishes as well as American-Irish dishes, many of the recipes looked to me like they would be really good if put together.
Like these two: pot roast slow-cooked in Guinness extra-stout beer plus a side of Irish colcannon.
I was right—they're really, really good together! Like a comfort food symphony.
This chuck roast recipe is more American-Irish, since traditional Irish recipes rely more on lamb, mutton, and pork than on beef.
What is colcannon?
Colcannon is a traditional Irish dish going back almost three centuries, and the name means "white-headed cabbage" in Gaelic. It consists of mashed potatoes combined with chopped cabbage or kale.
Some Colcannon recipes also call for leeks, green onions, and meats. In its simplest form, colcannon is just mashed potatoes with cabbage. It's delicious comfort food.
Colcannon is often confused with another mashed potato dish called champ. Cabbage or kale are used to make colcannon, but champ is made with sliced green onions. Older champ recipes may include nettles instead of onions.
Fun fact: Though Americans may associate colcannon with St. Patrick's Day, in Ireland, it's actually a dish traditionally made for Halloween.
The tradition includes hiding charms in the colcannon: coins for children or a ring to predict marriage for the single woman who finds it.
What does Guinness taste like?
Guinness describes their black-as-midnight extra stout beer as having a balance of bitter and sweet elements, as well as notes of roasted coffee and a hint of fruit.
Though some Guinness aficionados claim the stout is best enjoyed warm (one reason why some people are reluctant to try it,) Guinness' own website says that bottles should be chilled before serving.
Braising a pot roast in Guinness gives the beef a deep flavor and contributes to the tenderness of the finished roast. The gravy made from the braising liquid has the same bitter and sweet notes as the stout.
Save a bottle of that Guinness to make another savory and delicious recipe: Guinness Bread with Cheddar and Onion!
Why you'll love this recipe
The recipe makes a Guinness-braised beef chuck roast by simmering the ingredients together in a Crock Pot. It's hearty like a beef stew, but without the veggies and with plenty of Guinness stout beer. It's full of robust flavor.
The colcannon mashed potatoes come together in the last hour of cooking time for the pot roast. Instead of boiling, the potatoes and cabbage are oven-roasted for extra flavor.
Pot roast and Guinness gravy are spooned over buttery mounds of colcannon, to make a hearty meal that all will love. Serve it with slices of Irish Brown Bread to sop up the gravy.
It's my take on an Irish roast dinner, perfect to make for St. Patrick's Day or a weekend supper.
🔪 How to make this Irish Guinness Pot Roast Recipe With Colcannon
Ingredients for Irish pot roast:
- Cubed chuck beef: It's often packaged as stew beef
- Oil: I use extra virgin olive oil
- Guinness Extra Stout Beer: You'll need two bottles for the recipe, then the rest are for you
- Onion: I use a yellow onion here
- Beef Stock: The beef will be braised in this liquid
- Garlic: Minced garlic helps flavor the meat
- Thyme: I use dried thyme, or double the amount for fresh thyme
- Brown Sugar: Adds just a touch of sweetness plus caramel notes
- Salt: To flavor the meat and sauce
- Black Pepper: For the sauce as well
- Potatoes: I use Yukon Gold potatoes here
- Green Cabbage: This is a key ingredient of colcannon
- Butter: Use good-quality unsalted butter
- Half-and-Half: This makes the mashed potatoes creamy
- Scallions: They get chopped and added to the mash
Step 1: Prepare the meat
Add beef chuck roast or pre-cut stew beef, onions, stock, and seasonings to a Crock Pot. Pour in the Guinness beer. Cook everything on low for about 8 hours.
Step 2: Roast the potatoes and cabbage
Slice up the cabbage and potatoes and arrange them on a baking sheet, tossed with olive oil, salt, and pepper. Roast everything for about 40 minutes until the potatoes are soft.
Step 3: Make the colcannon
Mash the roasted potatoes with butter and milk to a smooth consistency. Mix the roasted cabbage throughout the mashed potatoes.
Step 3: Serve it up
Place a mound of colcannon on a dinner plate, topped with some chopped scallion. Spoon the pot roast and Guinness gravy over the colcannon and enjoy!
FAQs
A starchy potato is the best choice because they break down once cooked for smooth mashed potatoes. I use Russet potatoes—yellow potatoes or an all-purpose type like Yukon gold will work, too.
Choose tough cuts of beef for pot roast: they hold up the best to long, slow cooking and braising, becoming flavorful and tender. I use a boneless chuck roast for this recipe, and you can also use round roasts. Stew beef, which is a chuck roast cut into cubes, can also be used.
Irish Brown Bread goes with any meal but is especially tasty with this one because you can use it to sop up the meat drippings on your plate.
Start the meal with a course of creamy and spicy Parsnip Soup.
Finish the evening with a mug of Irish coffee, or a warming cup of Maple Gin Hot Toddy.
This recipe works beautifully in an Instant Pot! You just need to adjust the amount of liquid and add it to the pot with the beef and seasonings. The cook time for Guinness Pot Roast in an Instant Pot is about 50-60 minutes, and you can prepare the colcannon while it cooks. See the recipe card for the Instant Pot option.
Top Tip
Roast the potatoes just until they're fork-tender and still moist. If roasted too long they will be too dry.
Whenever I make this hearty meal of mash and Guinness beef, we eat it up fast—frighteningly fast actually, because it is so savory and satisfying. No good would come from hiding charms in the colcannon when we're this hungry!
Find the recipe for Slow Cooker Guinness Pot Roast With Colcannon below. Here are more Irish recipes to try, too:
💬 What do you think of this recipe? Leave a comment below.
📖 Recipe
Slow Cooker Guinness Pot Roast with Colcannon
Ingredients
Ingredients:
For the Pot Roast:
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 2-3 pound boneless chuck roast
- 1 medium yellow onion
- 23 ounces Guinness Extra Stout Beer (2 11.5-ounce bottles)
- ½ cup beef stock
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 teaspoons dried thyme
- 1 tablespoon packed brown sugar
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
For the Colcannon:
- ½ head green cabbage (about 10 ounces once shredded)
- 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 3 pounds yellow potatoes
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 4 tablespoons butter, unsalted, cut into small pieces
- ½-1 cup half and half
For the Gravy:
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 4 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 2 scallions, tops and ends removed, chopped
Instructions
Prepare the pot roast:
- Have ready a slow cooker. Place 1 tablespoon of the olive oil into the bottom of the slow cooker and spread to coat the bottom. Place the chuck roast in the pan.
- Peel the onion, slice it into chunks, and then separate the pieces. Scatter the onion pieces around the chuck roast in the slow cooker pan.
- Pour the Guinness beer and the stock over the beef.
- Sprinkle in the minced garlic, thyme, brown sugar, the 2 teaspoons of salt and the 1 teaspoon of black pepper.
- Cover the slow cooker and set the heat to low. Cook the pot roast for about 8 hours until the beef is very tender. A few times during the cooking, scoop cooking liquid over the top of the roast.
45 minutes before the beef is done, prepare the veggies:
- Preheat the oven to 400° F. Line a large baking sheet with foil or with parchment paper.
- Slice the green cabbage into strips and place them on half of the baking sheet.
- Pour some of the olive oil over the cabbage; use your fingers to stir and coat the cabbage with oil. (Or you can combine them in a bowl with a spoon, if you'd rather.)
- Scrub and peel the potatoes, and cut them into chunks about 1½ inches big.
- Place the cut potatoes on the other half of the baking sheet. Pour the rest of the olive oil over the potatoes and use your fingers to stir and coat them in oil. Sprinkle the 1 teaspoon of salt and the ½ teaspoon black pepper over the potatoes and cabbage.
Roast and mash:
- Place the baking sheet in the oven to roast the potatoes and cabbage until they're tender: about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove the pan from the oven when the potatoes are tender and the cabbage is wilted and lightly browned.
- Transfer the potatoes to a large mixing bowl. Add the butter and ½ cup of half and half to the warm potatoes.
- Mash the potatoes until they are relatively smooth—add more half-and-half if the potatoes seem dry.
- Add the roasted cabbage into the potatoes. Mix the cabbage throughout the mashed potatoes.
Make the gravy:
- When the roast is finished, remove it and the onions from the slow cooker to a cutting board. Transfer the cooking liquid to a medium saucepan set over medium-high heat.
- Mash the 4 tablespoons of butter and of flour together in a small bowl using a fork or your fingers.
- Once the liquid comes to a boil, whisk in the flour-butter paste. Reduce the heat to medium; whisk the gravy constantly as it simmers until it has thickened, 3-4 minutes.
Serve:
- Use a sharp knife to slice the pot roast into thin slices.
- Put a serving of colcannon, about 1½ cups, into the center of each dinner plate. Sprinkle a few pieces of chopped scallion over the colcannon.
- Add slices of pot roast and sliced onions to each plate, then ladle gravy over the meat and colcannon. Serve your Guinness pot roast with colcannon immediately.
To make the Guinness Pot Roast in an Instant Pot:
- Put the oil, chuck roast, and sliced onions into the Instant pot. Reduce the Guinness Stout to ½ cup and the beef stock to ¼ cup. Add in the garlic, spices, and brown sugar.
- Secure the lid, and program the pot to cook for 50-60 minutes. Release the steam. The beef should be fall apart tender, and ready to serve.
Notes
Tips:
- Roast the potatoes just until they're fork-tender and still moist. If roasted too long they will be too dry.
- This recipe works beautifully in an Instant Pot. Adjust the amount of liquid and add it to the pot with the beef and seasonings. The cook time an Instant Pot is about 50-60 minutes, and you can prepare the colcannon while it cooks. See the recipe card for the Instant Pot option.
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