Guiness Beef Stew

Students going to class in the evening can have some serious problems getting food at a reasonable hour, especially if they want it to taste like it took longer than 20 minutes to make. We had a class from 4-5 the other day, so I decided we should make stew. I can do all the browning, and get the boil set, leave it at a simmer and come back in 2 hours and it will be done, so we can eat at 6 for a change. We settled on a beef stew, since the stew meat at the store looked pretty good and because beef pairs pretty darn well with the national drink of Ireland:

Guiness Stout! I've been dying to cook with this for some time, but being under 21 in the states, acquiring alcohol to cook with can be problematic. Get ready for quite a few food posts with wine and beer in them. So without any further ado, I give you the Guiness Beef stew (haha rhyme):

Ingredients
.6 kg beef stew meat
2 carrots
2 russet potatoes
2 stalks celery
1 medium white onion
1 leek
1 14oz can tomatoes
2 cloves garlic
1.5 pints guiness stout
salt, pepper, chili flakes and olive oil
2 tbs flour
rosemary
thyme

Instructions
Chop all of your vegetables. Carrots, celery and potatoes should be all about the same size (about medium size chunks, you could use whole baby carrots). I did the onion half in semi circles, and half medium dice. Trim the dark green parts of the leek, cut the stalk in half lengthwise and then chop each half crosswise(?) into about 1/3 inch thick little semi circles. Mince the garlic.

Heat a couple of glugs (best measurement ever) of olive oil over medium heat. Add your beef, searing it until its browned on all sides. Remove from pan. In the same pan, toss in your vegetables. Saute until the onions and leeks are translucent, the potatoes are slightly translucent, and the carrots and celery have some give to them. Season with all you've got! Add the flour and beef, and stir to combine. Cook for about a minute and a half. Add the tomatoes and all the Guiness (!). Stir it up and it looks like this: Bring this up to a boil, cut it to a simmer, and cook for about 2-3 hours. I think this one went about 2.5. Taste it and season it again. After you let 4 guys have at it for a while, it looks like this:

It was really really delicious. Rich and filling, all of the vegetables were cooked well, and the beef was nice and tender. You can taste some of the maltiness, as well as the chocolate and coffee notes from the Guiness as well. You could probably do this real well in a crock pot or a slow cooker. Serve it with a nice piece of crusty bread, and another pint of that Guiness. You did buy some extra just for you didn't you?