Beer Is A Great Addition To Stew, But There's A Catch

When the weather starts to get colder nothing hits the spot quite like a rich, hearty bowl of stew. It's warm, filling, and full of slow-cooked ingredients bursting with flavor. Best of all, most stews are easy to make — cooking time is what deepens the flavor.

One of the best ingredients you can use to enhance the flavor of stew is beer. Look no further than the famed Beef and Guinness stew for proof of that. But beer is an ingredient that's easy to misuse. To get some expert advice on using beer in a stew recipe, Daily Meal spoke exclusively to Hammed, chef, recipe developer, and author of the blog The Prince Eats.

Hammed told us, "if incorporating beer in your stew, be sure to research beer pairings which complement the feature ingredient in the recipe." He continued with an example, saying "you wouldn't want to use a beer with fruity notes for a hearty beef stew. The flavor contrast is just too polarizing." So what does the right beer do for your stew?

As for how beer helps stew, Hammed told us, "incorporating beer into stew is a great way to add color and depth of flavor." This is partly because alcohol acts as a flavor and aroma enhancer. But adding beer goes further than just color and depth. Hammed also told us that "the sugars in some beers can help to caramelize proteins and veggies, giving brown hues which are characteristic of hearty, fall, and winter stews."

An excellent recipe to take full advantage of this caramelization is a cross between beef stew and french onion soup. Instead of deglazing the pot with some kind of wine, use a nice amber lager for increased depth of flavor, and to help the onions caramelize that much more. Most winter stews made with beef, lamb, or other red meats pair best with stouts, porters, and other dark beers. Lighter stews, such as some made with chicken or fish, pair best with similarly light beers. Chicken stews go well with lagers and blondes, for example, while seafood stews can be great with pilsners and sour, citrusy beers. Tomato-based Creole fish stew, on the other hand, can take advantage of the malty flavor of a red ale for a little extra sweetness.