Irish Beef Stew

Adapted from Epicurious

1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 1/4 pounds stew beef, cut into 1-inch pieces, put in a tupperware with flour, shook up, excess flour shaken off
8 large garlic cloves, minced
4 cups water with one large teaspoon of better than bouillon whisked through
2 cups red wine OR stout (this was a good way to use up wine I'd opened months ago and never finished...shhh!)
1 teaspoon sugar
1 tablespoon dried thyme
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce (I used Tamari)
2 bay leaves
2 T cornstarch
1 T flour

2 tablespoons (1/4 stick) butter
3 pounds russet potatoes, peeled, cut into 1/2-inch pieces (about 7 cups)
1 large onion, chopped
2 cups 1/2-inch pieces peeled carrots (I used most of a bag of baby carrots chopped into thirds)
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
1 bag Italian sub rolls from Wawa, absolutely nothing organic in it
unsalted butter, room temperature for the Wawa bread

Heat oil in heavy large pot over medium-high heat. Add beef and sauté until brown on all sides, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and sauté 1 minute. Add beef stock, tomato paste, sugar, thyme, Worcestershire sauce and bay leaves. Stir to combine. Bring mixture to boil. Reduce heat to medium-low, then cover and simmer 1 hour, stirring occasionally. Whisk in cornflour and flour about halfway through the 40 minute boil.

Meanwhile, melt butter in another large pot over medium heat. Add potatoes, onion and carrots. Sauté vegetables until golden, about 20 minutes. Add vegetables to beef stew. Simmer uncovered until vegetables and beef are very tender, about 40 minutes. Discard bay leaves. Tilt pan and spoon off fat (I skipped this). (Can be prepared up to 2 days ahead. Cool slightly. Refrigerate uncovered until cold, then cover and refrigerate. Bring to simmer before serving.) Transfer stew to serving bowl. Sprinkle with parsley and serve.

The bright green on the stew is magnificent. I couldn't believe I made this myself. I made the bf go buy the Wawa rolls to sop up the juice and I'm glad I did.