Mexican Ropa Vieja Recipes

ROPA VIEJA (CUBAN BEEF)

Steps:

• Cut flank steak in half across the grain. Mix salt, black pepper, and cayenne. Season both sides generously with the salt mixture.
• Heat olive oil in a pot over high heat. Add steaks and cook until outsides are well browned, 4 to 5 minutes per side. Remove steaks to a plate.
• Reduce heat to medium. Add red onion, garlic, and more of the salt seasoning. Cook and stir until starting to soften, 3 to 5 minutes. Stir in cumin, paprika, oregano, cayenne pepper, cloves, and allspice. Cook and stir for 1 minute. Pour in white wine, scraping up the browned bits from the bottom of the pot. Stir in tomato sauce and chicken broth.
• Return beef and accumulated juices to the pot. Season with salt and add bay leaves. Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer until beef is almost fork-tender, not falling apart, about 2 hours.
• Remove pot from heat and let stew cool to room temperature, at least 45 minutes. Refrigerate, 8 hours to overnight, for best results.
• Remove beef to a plate and set stew over medium heat. Tear beef along the grain into 1/8- to 1/4-inch-wide shreds; place back in the stew. Add bell peppers, poblanos, smoked paprika, capers, olives, and sugar. Stir together and reduce heat to medium. Simmer until peppers are soft and meat is tender, 15 to 20 minutes. Turn off heat, remove bay leaves, and stir in cilantro.

ROPA VIEJA

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
• Pat the flank steak completely dry with a paper towel. Cut in half or thirds (across the grain) if needed to fit into your pot in a single layer. Season with 2 teaspoons salt.
• Heat the olive oil in a medium Dutch oven or a large ovenproof skillet over medium-high heat. Working in batches if necessary, add the steak in a single layer and cook until a deep brown crust develops, 5 to 8 minutes on each side. Remove to a plate and set aside.
• Add the onions and peppers to the same pot. Season with 1 teaspoon salt and a few cracks black pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables have softened, 4 to 5 minutes. Add the garlic, cumin and oregano; stir until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the tomato paste and cook, stirring, until it starts to develop color, about 1 minute. Add the vino seco to deglaze and cook, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom of the pot with a wooden spoon. Add the tomato sauce, beef stock and bay leaf. Stir to incorporate. Nestle the steak in the sauce, submerging it slightly. Be sure to add any accumulated juices from the plate.
• Cover and cook in the oven until the meat shreds easily with two forks, about 1 hour 30 minutes.
• Transfer the pot back to the stovetop. Remove the steak to a cutting board or medium bowl and shred into long thin pieces using two forks. Meanwhile, simmer the sauce over low heat until slightly reduced, about 3 minutes. Return the steak to the pot and stir to combine. Add the lime juice and olives, capers or pimientos, if using.
• Serve with white rice and black beans.

ROPA VIEJA

Steps:

• In a large pot, put the flank steak, garlic, yellow onions, 1 tablespoon of the oregano, salt, peppercorns, bay leaves and 2 ounces each of the red wine and Worcestershire. Add water to cover the ingredients by 2 inches. Bring to a boil, cut back to a simmer and cook for 3 hours, until the flank steak is falling apart.
• Remove the flank steak from the pot, cut into 3-inch sections and set aside. Strain the beef broth and reserve for a later step.
• Wipe out the pot and coat with the olive oil. Add the red onions, white onions, green peppers, red peppers and the remaining tablespoon oregano. Cook over high heat for 8 to 10 minutes, stirring every couple minutes.
• Add the flank steak back to the pot, along with the tomato sauce, red wine vinegar, reserved beef broth and the remaining red wine and Worcestershire. Bring to a boil, cut back to a simmer and cook for 30 minutes.
• Add the olives, peas and tomatoes to the pot. Let sit for 5 minutes before serving over coconut rice or white rice.

CUBAN ROPA VIEJA

Steps:

• Heat vegetable oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Brown the flank steak on each side, about 4 minutes per side.
• Transfer beef to a slow cooker. Pour in the beef broth and tomato sauce, then add the onion, bell pepper, garlic, tomato paste, cumin, cilantro, olive oil and vinegar. Stir until well blended. Cover, and cook on High for 4 hours, or on Low for up to 10 hours. When ready to serve, shred meat and serve with tortillas or rice.

MEXICAN ROPA VIEJA

Steps:

• Heat oil in a large flameproof casserole or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add onion, red pepper, green pepper and garlic; cook until onion is translucent and peppers are softened, for about 8 minutes.
• Stir in cumin and oregano; cook for about 1 minute. Add tomatoes and broth.
• Season steak with salt and pepper. Add steak to pot; cover and bring to simmering. Simmer about 2 hours or until meat is very tender, turning meat occasionally.
• Remove meat; let cool briefly. cut across the grain into 2-inch-thick slices. Using two forks, pull slices apart into shreds.
• Heat tomato sauce remaining in pot to rapid boiling. Continue to boil, stirring occasionally, until thick, about 10 to 15 minutes.
• Add green chiles and corn. Heat to boiling; cook 5 minutes.
• Add shredded beef, jalapeno, and cilantro. Heat to boiling. Serve with warmed tortillas.

ROPA VIEJA (MEXICO)

Steps:

• Place meat in a large pan and cover with beef stock and water. Add the carrot and half the garlic along with salt and pepper. Cover and bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low. Skim the surface then recover the pan and cook the meat gently for 2 hours, or until very tender (should shred easily with a fork).
• Remove the pan from the heat and let the meat cool in the liquid. When cool enough to handle, remove from the liquid and shred with your fingers and a fork.
• Heat the oil in a large, heavy skillet. Add the remaining garlic, the onions, and chilies and cook until tender and onions are soft and translucent. Remove from the skillet and set aside.
• Add the meat to the skillet and cook over medium-high heat until browned and crisp. Transfer to a serving dish. Top with the onion mixture and surround with the tomatoes, cilantro, green onion and lime wedges. Serve with warmed tortillas. Enjoy!