St. Patrick’s Day Bangers & Mash with Stout Onion Gravy

I had my first swig of Guinness this weekend. Can you believe it? I’ve spent 32 years on this planet with a very Irish name and never had a drop of Guinness.

The verdict? It’s some, ahem, potent beer. It’s not really my cup of tea. I like my beers light, refreshing, and almost like soda.

Guinness is very strong, dark, and leaves a hefty aftertaste in your mouth. I can see why people like the stuff, it just isn’t for me.

That doesn’t mean I won’t cook with it, though. I’m a huge fan of cooking with alcohols (don’t tell me mom) and beer is one of the best things you can cook with in my opinion.

Armed with Guinness, I set out to make a classic Irish/Brit dish for the St. Patrick’s Day holiday. Bangers and mash is one of the few good meals to come out of those islands, and it can’t really be messed up. Get you a good quality sausage, whip up some mashed potatoes, and then drown everything in brown gravy. Sounds incredible, right?

Add some onions and Guinness to the gravy and you’ve got yourself and even more incredible meal.

I found these “authentic Irish bangers” at Costco and they turned out tasting pretty well. They were like a bratwurst, but not as powerful in flavor. The sausages worked well with my potent stout-onion gravy.

Don’t pour out that Guinness if you don’t like it—make a gravy instead. That should be my life’s new motto.

Enjoy!

St. Patrick's Day Bangers & Mash with Stout Onion Gravy

• Servings: 4-6
• Time: 45 mins
• Difficulty: Easy
• Print

A classic Irish dish made better with a flavorful stout-onion gravy.

Ingredients

• 1 pound of sausage
• 1 TBS. olive oil
• 1 cup stout beer (Guinness)
• 4-5 Russet potatoes, peeled
• 2 TBS. butter
• salt & pepper
• 1 tsp. garlic powder
• 1/2 cup – 3/4 cup milk

For the stout onion gravy:

• 2 TBS. butter
• 1 large yellow onion, sliced very thin
• 2 TBS. flour
• 1 cup stout beer
• 1 cup beef broth
• salt & pepper

Directions

1. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add sausages and brown on both sides, about 3-4 minutes. Pour in beer. Reduce heat to a simmer. Cover and cook for 15-20 minutes or until sausage is cooked through.
2. Boil potatoes until tender. Drain off water. Using an electric mixer, mash with butter, salt, pepper, garlic powder and milk. Add more milk to make a creamier consistency.
3. To make the gravy: melt butter in a large, deep skillet. Add onions and cook on medium-low heat for 20-25 minutes or until tender and caramelized. Stir in flour and cook, stirring constantly, for 1 minute.
4. Stir in stout and beef broth. Cook, stirring, until gravy is thick, about 5-6 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.
5. Serve sausages on top of mashed potatoes. Pour gravy on top and serve.