This Pub-Style Guinness Beef Pie recipe is truly something to celebrate. How about St. Patricks Day! Or any day of the year, for that matter.
We love ordering these at our favorite Irish pub, but I have to say…I think this version is even better.
HOW TO MAKE GUINEESS BEEF PIE
We promise this dish isn’t difficult to make. You don’t need the luck of the Irish to make it, you just need a little time.
The meat mixture filling can be made several days in advance and is actually even better after it sits for a day or so. Even the dough for the crust can be made in advance!
Watch us show you how to make Guinness Beef Pie!
The ingredients in this Guinness Beef Pie are just the essence of comfort food. Starting with a nice brisket, which is a perfect cut of meat to braise.
Combined with the smoked bacon, sautéed mushrooms, carrots, herbs, and of course, Guinness, you’ve got the lineup for a stunning and delicious dish.
GUINNESS BEEF PIE IS STEEPED IN HISTORY
The combination of porcini and white button mushrooms and thick pieces of smoked bacon just kick our senses into high gear.
It is such a beautiful marriage of mushrooms and bacon to have in this incredible dish. The flavors here and the texture are really unmatched.
But we’re just getting started.
Now, I’ve got to tell you…if you are going to make this Guinness Beef Pie, and by all means, you really must, I implore you to make the Perfect Pie Crust. (click link for easy-to-follow recipe)
It is really not that difficult, and it can easily be made up to 2 days ahead, as well as the filling for this dish!
Just take your time, make these amazing components, and then bring them all together when you are ready to serve up something truly spectacular.
CAN BE PREPARED IN STAGES
When the stew is simmering on the stovetop and then in the stove, you’ll begin to imagine what this amazing dish will taste like on that first bite.
It will take you to the beautiful lush green hills of Ireland and back home. This dish is the stuff that legends are made of.
This dish is layered in tradition and incredible taste. You can also easily double the recipe and serve a St. Patrick’s Day crowd!
And now, we’re really getting close.
In goes the incredible stew, ready to be topped off with another layer of the Perfect Pie Crust.
And then it’s baked to perfection.
Maybe it’s time to crack open a Guinness and celebrate what you’re creating here.
GUINNESS PIE IS A ST. PADDY’S TRADITION
Now, it’s time to count your lucky Irish four-clovers because you are about to make one of the most impressive and delicious dishes of your life!
Trust us when we tell you, when you present this dish to your loved ones, they will absolutely gasp in impressed astonishment. And don’t worry about all about making this incredible Pub-Style Guinness and Beef Pie…you’ve got the luck of the Irish on your side.
Ready to make the best St. Paddy Day meal in the world? Go for it!
And when you do, be sure to take a picture, post it on Instagram, and tag @howtofeedaloon and hashtag #howtofeedaloon!
Pub-Style Guinness Beef Pie
Equipment
- Dutch oven, or oven-ready dish/pot.
- 10 oz. ramekins, or a pie dish
Ingredients
- Perfect pie dough (link to recipe below) you will have enough for two pie crusts, top and bottom
- 2 oz porcini mushrooms dried
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 3 lb brisket cut into bite-size chunks
- 2 onions chopped
- 3 large carrots chopped
- 1 tbsp brown sugar light or dar
- 4 tbsp all-purpose flour
- 1 11.2 oz bottle Guinness
- 2 beef bouillon cubes
- 1½ cup beef stock
- 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
- 1 sprig thyme fresh
- 1 bay leaf fresh
- 2 sprigs parsley fresh
- 4 strips bacon smoked, thick-cut
- 8 oz mushrooms sliced or halved
- 2 tbsp butter for greasing the pan, or cooking spray
- 1 egg yolk plus 1 tbsp water (make an egg wash in a small bowl)
- Coarse sea salt for topping
Instructions
MAKE AHEAD
- Perfect Pie Dough (click for easy recipe)
PREPARE THE BEEF PIES
- Heat 2 cups of water in the microwave until steaming. Place the porcini dried mushrooms in a bowl and add the hot water. Stir to submerge all mushrooms. Let sit for 15 to 20 minutes.
- Strain the porcini mushrooms and liquid through a sieve into another medium bowl. Place the mushrooms on a cutting board and roughly chop them. Save the strained liquid.
- Preheat oven to 325°F.
- Season the meat with salt and pepper.
- Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large heatproof pot (preferably a Dutch oven) over medium-high heat and sear the meat until browned all over. You'll probably need to do this in batches. Set aside.
- At this point, if excess liquid (fat) has accumulated in the pot, discard most of it.
- Over medium heat, in the same pot, add the onions and carrots, adding a little more oil, then sauté until starting to get soft, about 8 minutes.
- Add in the sugar and flour, stirring to coat and make a roux, about 4 minutes.
- Add the meat, and any collected juices, back into the pot and mix with a wooden spoon.
- Warm the stock (either in the microwave or on the stove). Crumble the bouillon cubes into and whisk until dissolved.
- Add in the Guinness, stock, balsamic, porcini mushrooms, and the porcini soaking liquid.
- Tie together the thyme, parsley and bay leaf and nestle into the pot.
- Add 1 tsp salt and ½ tsp black pepper.
- Cover with lid and place in preheated oven for 3 hours.
- While the stew is cooking, cook the bacon in a large skillet over medium heat, until crisp. Drain on a paper-towel-lined plate. Roughly chop and set aside.
- Add the mushrooms and cook until they have released their liquid and starting to turn golden. Set aside.
- Once the stew is finished, stir in the bacon/mushroom mixture.
- Increase oven temperature to 425°F. Liberally grease your ramekins or pie dish/pan with softened butter or cooking spray.
- Roll out the first pie dough to about ¼" to ⅛" thickness. If using ramekins, cut 4 circles out that are about 2 to 3 inches wider in diameter than the top of each ramekin. If using a pie dish/pan, cut a circle out that is about 2 inches wider in diameter than the top of the pie dish/plate.
- Line the ramekins (or pie dish/pan) with the cut dough with overhang. Use scissors (or knife) to trim away the excess dough. The dough should just reach the top of the dish.
- Par bake the dough in the oven, using pie weights, or lining the bottom of the dough with parchment paper and adding dried beans. Bake for about 12 minutes and then remove from oven and remove weights or beans/parchment paper.
- Lower oven temperature back t 325°F.
- Add the beef to the dish using a slotted spoon so not too much sauce goes into the pie.
- Fill until the meat mixture is slightly higher than the rim of the dish. You may have extra stew...that's okay, it freezes beautifully and is also delicious by itself.
- Roll out the remaining dough to the same thickness and cut a circle just big enough to cover the ramekins or dish/pan.
- Brush the edges of par-baked pastry with the egg wash, then cover with the dough top(s).
- Crimp the edges of the dough to seal them together, then re-roll your trimmings to make a decoration (i.e., tree leaves), if you prefer.
- Use a sharp knife to make two large slits in the top dough, then add the decorations (if using), and then brush the top generously with the egg wash.
- Sprinkle the coarse sea salt and black pepper over the top. Place on a baking sheet and bake for 40 to 50 minutes, until golden.
- Remove from the oven and place on a baking rack for 10 to 20 minutes. Serve and enjoy!
Video
Notes
Nutrition
POST UPDATE: This recipe was originally published in March 2018 but was updated with improved tweaks to the recipe, tips, photography, and a fabulous new video in March 2020!
I’ve made many versions of beef and Guinness pie, and this recipe is my favorite! It’s so tender and richly flavored, it’s become one of my go-to recipes for dinner parties. Unbelievably delicious!
Hi Cyndy! We LOVE that you make the Guinness beef pie and are loving it so much! It is GREAT for dinner parties (and pretty impressive!). Thank you so much for sharing! We appreciate that so much! Please stay in touch! Best, Kris & Wesley
Hello. If I was to use a frozen ready made pie shell, approx. how many would you say a recipe would fill? Do you think one recipe would fill two 9″ pie shells? Any rough guesstimates are appreciated. Thank you.
Hi David! So sorry for the delayed response. You’ll probably want to double the recipe for the filling if you’re going with two 9-inch shells. Hope this helps! Let us know how it all turns out! Best, Kris & Wesley
Everything turned out amazing. This recipe is SO flavourful. Wound up getting two well-filled 9” pies out of a doubled recipe. Could’ve even gotten 3 if I reduced the filling amount in each. Thank you for the info.
Hi David! That is wonderful!! We are so happy it all turned out great! Sounds like you prepared them perfectly! Thank you for letting us know!
Best recipe for Guiness beef stew so far. I kept mine in the Dutch oven and served it over mashed potatoes. My guests loved it, no leftovers for us unfortunately, so I made another batch the next day.
Hi Kim! That is music to our ears! And so so thrilled you loved it so much you made a second batch! Woo hoo! Thank you for sharing and for the GREAT review! That means the world to us! xoxox Kris & Wesley
Can I assemble the pies earlier in the day, and bake when we are ready for dinner? How long can the uncooked pie sit out before baking? Will it dry out?
Hi Trisha, you can assemble them earlier in the day. Simply wrap each one in foil or plastic wrap and then keep in the fridge. Take about about an hour before serving, remove the foil or plastic, and bake as directed in the recipe. Hope this helps and hope everything turns out great! Please keep us posted!!! Best, Kris & Wesley
Loving having a go at this but to ask can the beef pie mix be made in a slow cooker instead?thankyou x
Hi Jan! You know, we’ve never done the filling in the slow cooker, but it should work just fine! Let us know if you try it and how it all turns out! YUM!!!
Spectacular. Got rave reviews from our guests. I made one large pub pie by using a spring form pan. It worked very well.
Jennifer
Hi Jennifer! We are so so thrilled you made the beef pie and we LOVE that you did it as a big pub pie using your springform pan…BRILLIANT!!!! Thank you so much for sharing! Please stay in touch! All the best, Kris & Wesley
I just made this and it was divine. We all loved it. My question is, can you make them without prebaking the crust and put them in the freezer? I have left overs and crust but not sure if can can just put the crust and meat filling in wihtout pre baking the crust.
Thanks,
Bev
Hi Bev!! We are so so happy you all loved the beef pie! They are something else, right? Yay! Regarding leftovers (yep, that filling makes a lot!)…you should be okay by not par-baking the crust. Freeze immediately, and you’ll be okay. Either fully defrost before baking, or add another 30 to 45 minutes if baking frozen (you’ll probably need to cover the top with foil to prevent over-browning). However, you can also pre par-bake before filling and then freezing and be in good shape, too. Hope this helps!! Best, Kris & Wesley
Kris,
Thanks for the update. It was the best!! I might try not pre baking the crust and see what happens.
Thanks,
Bev
Awesome! Let us know how it turns out next time you bake them!
By far the best Guiness Beef Pie recipe I’ve ever tried. I made this recipe with venison (lucky enough to have access to pecan-feed-deer on grandpa’s farm.) The video was so fun and clear enough for anyone to follow. The dried mushrooms are a spectacular addition. Thanks so much for sharing! Ya’ll are fabulous.
Hi Elizabeth! So sorry for the delayed response! We are so so happy you had such great success with the Guinness beef pie! It really is something else, isn’t it! We appreciate you letting us know and for the super kind words. That means the world to us! Stay in touch! Best, Kris & Wesley