Cheers: 14 Easy Recipes Instantly Made Better With Beer

Irish Beef Beer Stew

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Irish Beef Beer Stew
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The Best Boozy Recipes

Sometimes cracking a cold one to enjoy while you cook dinner is the way to go. But have you ever considered reserving some of your beer for the meal you’re cooking? There are tons of recipes that you can add beer to to enhance the flavor. Check out some of our favorites below and let us know yours in the comments.


Related: Cheap Beers That Are a Source of Hometown Pride

Mexican pulled chicken
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Chicken Marsala
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Crispy Beer Chicken with a Creamy Beer Mushroom Gravy

Not only is this crispy chicken marinated in beer, it’s served with a mushroom gravy that’s also made with beer for a dish that’s extra boozy and full of flavor.


Recipe: Cafe Delites


Related: 50 Cheap and Easy Chicken Recipes

Meatballs
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Drunken Meatballs

Meatballs are always a good go-to potluck or tailgate dish and this recipe takes things up a notch with a sauce that’s made from a combination of beer and lemon juice.


Recipe: Damn, Spicy!

Irish Beef Stew
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Baked Artichoke and Asiago Cheese Dip with Crispy Pita Chips
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Guinness Beer Cheese Dip

With a sharp, bold taste, this beer cheese dip is all things rich and creamy. Made with Guinness, the flavor is particularly robust and this recipe also includes instructions on how to make salty soft pretzel bites.


Recipe: Reluctant Entertainer

Mac N Cheese Cellentani
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Beer Mac and Cheese

Beer and cheese just work together, and when it comes to mac and cheese, you can use just about any beer for the cheese sauce whether you like a pale ale, a light IPA, or a stout. The beer balances out the sharp flavor of the white cheddar and the green onion brings the perfect amount of bite to the dish. 


Recipe: Life As a Strawberry 

Homemade cupcake with oatmeal, apples and crunchy cereals oatmeal on a metal tray on a dark background
Angelika Mostova/istockphoto

Apple Cinnamon Beer Bread

If you’re an apple cinnamon person, this one is a must-try. With apple pie spice, brown sugar, and cinnamon, the flavor of this bread really packs a punch and it's only heightened by the addition of Redd's Apple Ale. 


Recipe: The Frugal Navy Wife

Beer Battered Onion Rings
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Beer Battered Onion Rings

Whether you want to enjoy them as a side dish or an appetizer, onion rings are always tasty, and using a beer batter to fry them makes them even better.


Recipe: Just a Taste

Sloppy Joe
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Bacon, Beer, and Cheese Sloppy Joes

Bacon, beer, and cheese are some of the most universally loved ingredients around. So why not combine them with beef and throw them on a bun for some seriously next-level sloppy Joes? 


Recipe: Dinner Then Dessert

Beer Can Chicken
Beer Can Chicken by Lee Coursey (CC BY)

Beer Can Chicken

When it comes to beer and cooking, beer can chicken has to be one of the most popular recipes, and it’s one of the easiest, too! Just crack open a cold one, rub down a whole chicken with your favorite spice mixture, set the chicken cavity on top of the can, and throw it on the grill for a juicy, flavor-packed dinner.


Recipe: Gimme Some Grilling 

Fish and chips
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Crispy Beer Batter Fish

Does it get more classic than beer-battered fish? Adding beer to the batter before dredging and frying the fish helps create a crispy, golden-brown coating that has a subtle yet scrumptious flavor that enhances the fish.


Recipe: I Wash You Dry

Canned pickles in just opened glass mason jar. Non-perishable food
OlenaMykhaylova/istockphoto

Spicy Beer Pickles

If you have a garden and you need to find a use for your cucumbers or you’re just a  do-it-yourself guru who enjoys making your own pickles, listen up. This spicy, boozy take on pickles will give your next batch just the right bite. The combination of IPA beer, fresh dill, crushed red pepper, and apple cider vinegar harnesses a myriad of flavors.


Recipe: Recipe Girl


Pumpkin Bread
Delaney Van/istockphoto

Pumpkin Beer Bread

Pumpkin fanatics everywhere will love this recipe for pumpkin beer bread. Although any beer will work for this tasty bread, you can try using a pumpkin ale to really embrace the flavor.


Recipe: Gimme Some Oven


close up of golden colored juicy roasted spare ribs
Rien Janssen/istockphoto

Beer-B-Q Ribs for Two

Why have barbecue ribs when you can have beer-b-q? Not only does the rub for these ribs include robust flavors like sweet paprika, chili powder, and cayenne pepper, the sauce is out-of-this-world when it comes to the flavor palette. Combining stout beer with dark brown sugar, Worcestershire sauce, honey, and a few other pantry staples creates a unique and rich barbecue sauce that will have you drooling.


Recipe: Food Network