Raise A Pint to Chicken Guinness Stew with Creamy Cauliflower Mash

These days, with grocery prices still doing major damage to the wallet, it’s no surprise that chicken is — and has long been — the most popular meat consumed in the United States.
That makes “Chicken Guinness Stew” especially appealing.
After all, not only are chicken thighs and drumsticks cheaper than beef stew meat, but they cook up faster and are lower in fat.
That’s a win-win-win.
This riff on the classic Irish stew is from “Delicious Tonight” (Countryman Press, 2024), of which I received a review copy.

It was written by Nagi Maehashi, creator of the popular blog, RecipeTin Eats, who was born in Japan and raised in Australia. Her philanthropic not-for-profit, RecipeTin Meals, donates more than 130,000 meals annually to those in need in her community.
It’s a collection of 150 recipes for easy dinners that are budget-friendly, nourishing, and satisfying. Each comes with a handy QR code to scan for a how-do video of each dish. They include “Spicy Korean Kimchi Noodles,” “Sweet & Sour Crispy Pork Chops,” “French Onion Brie Mushroom Pie,” and “Easy Deep-Dish Custard Tart.”

For the stew, feel free to use a combination of chicken thighs and drumsticks, or all thighs as I did.
Saute button mushrooms and yellow onion in butter with garlic and thyme, then pour in the Guinness. Reduce, then stir in a little flour, along with beef broth, before adding back the chicken. Simmer until done.

Maehashi suggests serving the stew with mashed potatoes. I decided to make her “Creamy Cauliflower Mash” instead. Fortified with sour cream and grated Parmesan, it is just as creamy and homey tasting, but with an added nuttiness. It also has fewer carbohydrates, if you’re counting carbs. Believe me, you won’t miss the potatoes here.
The only change I made to the recipe below is to reduce the amount of beef broth by half a cup. I found that the resulting braising liquid, even when reduced according to the directions, was on the thin side. I think doing away with some of the beef broth would give it more body.
The chicken cooks up moist and tender with that wonderful roasty, malty, almost coffee-like taste of the beer.
You might think a beer that’s nearly black in color would be heavier and more potent than others. But surprisingly, it actually has slightly less alcohol by volume than a Bud Light. Since alcohol percentage accounts for most of the calories in an alcoholic beverage, Guinness — which gets its rich taste and dark color from the deep roasting of the barley — is lower in calories than other beers with a higher ABV.
So, feel free to crack open another bottle of Guinness to go with your “Chicken Guinness Stew.”

Chicken Guinness Stew
(Serves 4 to 5)
For the chicken:
4 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs (or more drumsticks)
4 chicken drumsticks (or more thighs)
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
For Guinness Stew:
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 yellow onion, halved, then cut into 1/2-inch thick wedges
12 ounces button mushrooms, halved
2 garlic cloves, finely minced
3 thyme sprigs
1 1/2 cups Guinness stout
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 1/2 cups low-sodium beef broth
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
To serve:
Creamy Cauliflower Mash (see recipe below) or your favorite mashed potatoes
Fresh thyme sprigs (optional)
Season chicken: Sprinkle the chicken all over with the salt and pepper.
Brown chicken: Melt the butter in a large, deep heavy-based pan or large pot over medium-high heat until foaming. Place the chicken in the pan. For the thighs, cook the skin side for 5 to 8 minutes or until golden, then turn over and cook the flesh side for 1 minute. Transfer to a plate. For the drumsticks, do your best to brown them as needed — it’s a bit hard because of the shape.
Saute mushrooms: The butter in the pan is now browned, which means extra tasty sauce! Add the onion and cook for 1 minute. Add the mushrooms and cook for 5 minutes, until light golden. Stir in the garlic and thyme for the last 30 seconds.
Make sauce: Add the Guinness, turn the heat up to high, and simmer rapidly until the sauce reduces by two-thirds, about 3 minutes. Add the flour and stir for 1 minutes, then add the beef broth, salt, and pepper. Stir until there are no flour lumps, then return the chicken to the sauce, pushing it down between the mushrooms so it is submerged as much as possible.
Simmer: Bring the sauce to a simmer, then reduce the heat to medium. Simmer gently for 30 minutes, stirring around the chicken every now and then so the bottom of the pan doesn’t burn, until the sauce thickens into a gravy. The internal temperature of the chicken should be 160°F or slightly higher.
Serve: Place the cauliflower mash or mashed potatoes in bowls. Place a thigh and drumstick on top, then smother with the sauce. Sprinkle with thyme sprigs (if using), then dig in!
Notes: Through this recipe can be made with boneless, skinless chicken thighs or breast, because they cook more quickly and are not as juicy, the sauce will not be quite as flavorful. However, to use these, simmer the sauce without the chicken for 10 minutes. Add the chicken and simmer on medium-low for 7 to 10 minutes or until the internal temperature reaches 160°F for thighs and 153°F for breast.
Guinness beer is a dark Irish stout that adds depth of flavor and complexity into the gravy, as well as giving it a deep, rich, dark brown color. Substitute with another stout or dark beer, or dry red wine.
The pan needs to be quite deep or you may have trouble containing all the sauce! Use a cast-iron pot that is 2 1/2 quarts and 12 inches wide or larger. A large pot also will work. If your pan is not big enough to fit all the chicken in a single layer, do this step in two batches.
Leftovers: Fridge for 3 days; freezer for 3 months.
Creamy Cauliflower Mash
(Serves 4 to 5 as a side)
2 pounds cauliflower florets (from 2 medium heads)
2 garlic cloves, peeled
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/4 cup (1 ounce) finely grated parmesan
1/4 cup sour cream
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
1 to 3 tablespoons reserved water from cooking the cauliflower
Serving garnishes (optional):
2 teaspoons melted butter
Pinch of finely chopped parsley
Boil the cauliflower and garlic in a large pot of water for 10 minutes until very soft. Reserve 1 cup of cooking water, then drain.
Blitz the cauliflower and garlic in a food processor (or use an immersion blender) with the remaining ingredients until smooth. Adjust the thickness with the reserved cooking water — sometimes I like it a little thicker, like mashed potatoes, other times I want it to be a puree.
Transfer to a bowl and make swirls on the surface to capture the melted butter. Drizzle with butter and sprinkle with parsley.
Serve as a side with anything you’d usually serve mashed potatoes with.
Adapted from “Delicious Tonight” by Nagi Maehashi

Another Nagi Maehashi Recipe to Enjoy: Slow-Cooked Beef Ribs in Korean BBQ Sauce