Weekend Slow Cooker Irish Stew

I would say this particular recipe would be most suitable for the weekend because it requires a little bit more work than just tossing it in the slow cooker. I came up with this after looking at a number of different recipes, and I think it turned out pretty good. The Guinness and Jameson give it a very rich flavor, and the combination of spice and flavor create an aromatic experience that fills the whole house. If you make this with lamb, be sure to call your butcher ahead of time, as it is not something that our local butcher carries on a regular basis. We ended up purchasing a 5.5 pounder and froze half of it. I really liked working with lamb for the first time, the color and texture were amazing and the flavor was out of this world. One of the things I debated was slow cooking this all day with quick cooking tapioca to create more of a gravy or adding in a roux at the end; I opted for the roux, and thought that the thickness of the "gravy" was a little thin, but I kind of liked it that way. My cousin Amanda made some "champ" and Irish soda bread...the stew was great served over the champ. Hopefully she'll post links to those two recipes on here!

Don't forget to use those slow cooker bags! It seriously saves time in clean up! As ususal when I make up recipes I just dump stuff in, I'll give you my best guess for measurements.

Ingredients:

• 1.5-2 pounds bonlessl lamb- trimmed of fat and cut into bite sized pieces
• olive oil
• 1 1/2 cups carrot chopped
• 3 ribs celery - with celery leaves if possible!
• 2 med. yellow onions quartered
• 6 cloves garlic -minced
• 1.5 pounds new potatoes quartered
• 1 shot Jameson whiskey
• 1 bottle Guinness
• 3 cups beef broth
• 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste
• 1 tablespoon (+) thyme
• 2 bay leaves
• kosher salt and fresh ground pepper to taste
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 2 tablespoons flour

Directions:

• Liberally salt and pepper the lamb and sprinkle with thyme
• In a large heavy skillet heat olive oil and brown the lamb on all sides
• place all vegetables, bay leaves, and garlic in the bottom of the slow cooker, lightly sprinkle with salt and pepper and thyme
• When lamb is finished browning, remove from skillet and add to slow cooker. Drain fat from skillet and return to heat.
• Add Jameson to the skillet and use it to lift any lamb bits off the bottom of the pan, add Guinness, beef broth, Worcestershire, tomato paste, sugar, tomato paste, thyme, and salt/pepper to taste - bring to a boil
• Pour the beer, whiskey and broth mixture over the lamb and vegetables in the slow cooker and stir to combine
• Slow cook on low for 8-9 hours (or longer)
• About 30 minutes before serving, begin making the roux
• melt about 2 tablespoons butter in a small skillet and add 2 tablespoons flour - stir with wooden spoon until medium brown in color
• Stir the roux into the slow cooker and allow to cook for at least 10 more minutes
• Serve in bowls or over mashed potatoes (or Amanda's champ!)