Instant Pot Irish Stew with White Cheddar Crust #EattheWorld #WinePW #OTBN

Since it is March, we are visiting Ireland in our Eat the World group.  Eat the World is a group led by my friend, Evelyne of CulturEatz,  where we will be visiting a different country each month and sharing recipes from them.  Last month we went to Cuba and I shared a Ropa Vieja that I made in the slow cooker.

This month my recipe is being made in an Instant pot.  I wonder what gadget I'll find to use for next month's Country?

I have shared several Irish stew recipes with you in the past.  This Irish stew was made in a slow cooker.  This one contains red ale and also started in a crockpot and then was turned into a pie, like the recipe I'm sharing today. 

There are many similarities in all of these recipes.  They all contain beer as the liquid.  They are all thick, hearty and delicious.  But there are some differences as well, which allows me to share them without feeling repetitious.  The crusts for the stew pies are completely different, using store bought pie crust for the first one and making a homemade Irish Cheddar crust for this version.  And then of course there is the difference in cooking methods for the stew itself.  

This is a very rustic pie.  No bottom crust and a thick, savory, rich top crust.  It reminds me of a dinner you might enjoy in Ireland when you come in from working the farm, tending the sheep.  Of course, the meat would probably be lamb or goat instead of beef.  Unfortunately, I didn't have any lamb or goat on hand for this stew.

The crust, while quite thick, melted in your mouth.  It was flaky and tender.  This is a delicious dinner with which to celebrate St. Patrick's Day.  Using the Instant Pot allowed me to have this dinner ready in less than 1 1/2 hours.  Of course, you can always make your stew in a slow cooker or on the stove top, just allow for more time.  

I found numerous recipes for the White Cheddar crust.  All of them a little bit different. I took a little from here and a little from there and created my own version.

St. Patrick's Day is not the only thing we celebrate in March.  The members of my Wine Pairing Weekend group also celebrate Open That Bottle Night.   OTBN is actually on February 24th, when David of Cooking Chat, encourages us to open a bottle of wine that we have been saving for a special occasion.  We then share our thoughts with the others on the second Saturday of March. You can see David's  invitation post here.

I decided to share a Michigan wine that I had bought for last month's Wine PW event when we celebrated Women in Wine.  That post was in preparation of March being Woman's History month.  I bought several bottles of wine while visiting a Michigan winery but was really excited about this bottle of Faye made with 100% Cab Franc.  

I wasn't only excited because this wine is deliciously smooth and well balanced but because it is a MICHIGAN red that is smooth and well balanced.  This is the first Michigan red that I have found that not only compares with a California red but is better than many California reds I have enjoyed.

That is very exciting to me.  Pair that with the fact that the wine maker is female in a predominantly male field and it is magical....just like the wine.   Speaking of magical, the pairing of this wine with this rich, delicious, hearty stew was perfect.

You will find links to more delicious Irish foods and OTBN choices following my recipe.  You are going to want to check them out....I can't wait to see what everyone is sharing.

Instant Pot Irish Stew with a White Cheddar Crust

1 1/4 c. flour

4 T. cold butter

3 oz. Irish White Cheddar cheese

1/4 c. beer

pinch of salt

1 lb. stewing beef

1 T. cooking oil

salt and pepper to taste

2 carrots, scraped and sliced

1 onion, diced

1 stalk celery, sliced

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 bay leaf

3 sprigs thyme

4 oz. sliced mushrooms

1/2 of a 12 oz. bottle of beer

2 T. cornstarch

1/4 c. water

Place the flour, butter and salt into the bowl of a food processor and pulse until pea size crumbles are formed.  Pour into a bowl and stir in the beer and cheese just until combine.  Form into a disc and refrigerate while you make the stew.

Set the Instant Pot to saute and add the oil.  Season the beef with salt and pepper. Once the display reads "hot" add the beef to the Instant Pot and saute until browned. Add the carrots, onion, celery and garlic. Saute for a few minutes until browned in spots and fragrant.  Cancel the saute feature and turn instant pot off.  Add the mushrooms, bay leaf, thyme and beer.  Seal the lid onto the instant pot, make sure the vent is closed and press the soup/stew setting.  

When instant pot is done cooking, allow the pressure to release naturally for 10 minutes before carefully using the quick release method.  Open the pot and press the saute button again.  

Make a slurry of the cornstarch and water.  Remove the stems from the thyme and the bay leaf from the pot.  Stir in the slurry.  Cook and stir until sauce thickens and turns glossy.  Pour stew into a pie pan.

Remove the dough from the refrigerator while there is still 15 minutes of cooking time remaining on the stew.  Once the stew is placed into the pie pan, roll out the dough and place it onto the stew, sealing the dough to the edges of the pie plate with your fingers.

Place the pie onto a baking sheet and bake in a preheated 400* oven for 20-30 minutes, until the crust is golden brown.  Print Recipe

More Irish Recipes

Check out all the wonderful Irish dishes prepared by fellow Eat the World members and share with #eattheworld. Click here to find out how to join:

• Evelyne: Irish Yellowman Candy 
• Amy: Cheesy Potato Soup with Irish Ale
• Nicoletta and Loreto: Irish Chocolate Stout Cake 
• Wendy:Instant Pot Irish Stew with White Cheddar Crust
• Camilla: Shamrock Salad-Topped Irish Boxty
• Tara:  Irish Baked Eggs with Spinach
• Karen:  Irish Potato Cakes
• Sarah:  Irish Parsnip Soup
• Margaret:Dublin Coddle (an Irish Stew)
• Bernice: Potato Cabbage and Rutabaga Colcannon

More Amazing Bottles of Wine

• Martin from ENOFYLZ Wine Blog will post “A Journey To Iberia And Beyond for Open That Bottle Night #WinePW”
• Lori from Dracaena Wines will share “Emotion, Not Money or Age for this #OTBN #WinePW"
• Wendy at A Day in the Life on the Farm is posting "Instant Pot Irish Stew with a White Cheddar Crust #EattheWorld #winePW #OTBN"
• Jane from Always Ravenous served “Chicken Breasts in a Tart Cherry Pinot Noir Sauce #winePW #OTBN“
• Camilla at Culinary Adventures with Camilla paired “Brisket over Butter-Braised Leeks + Hundred Suns’ Ciel du Cheval 2015“
• Nicole from Somm’s Table will share “The Big 10, Champagne, Burgundy, and #OTBN.“
• Gwendolyn at Wine Predator will blog about “Open that Bottle Night 2018: Ranchita Canyon Vertical Paired with Lasagna for #WinePW“
• David at  Cooking Chat will post “Roasted Lamb Chops with Blackberry Sauce for #OTBN #winePW“

Don't have a blog post about #OTBN to share? No problem! Join the conversation about #OTBN and special wine and food pairings by joining our live Twitter chat. Tune into the #winePW hashtag on Saturday, March 10, 11 am ET / 8 am PT to join the conversation. You can also check out past and future #winePW topics on the Wine Pairing Weekend page. For background on #OTBN, visit our Open That Bottle Night Invite post. For background on #OTBN, visit our Open That Bottle Night Invite post.