Ropa Vieja

I’m lucky enough to have grown up eating authentic Cuban food made by my Abuela and mother. One of my absolute favorite dishes is Ropa Vieja, which is considered to be one of the national dishes of Cuba. I also think it is a dish that represents what Cuban cuisine is all about: bold flavors, versatility, and maximizing usage of ingredients. Ropa vieja is a dish made of shredded beef. However, the process of boiling the beef to make the meat tender enough to shred also produces a flavorful beef broth that can be used to make a soup. Therefore, this recipe is quite economical as you get two meals in one! There are several ways to make ropa vieja. I’m showing one method with this recipe, but I’ll show other ways of making ropa vieja in the future. I love ropa vieja because the meat is super tender and extremely flavorful, so have fun trying this recipe and enjoy!

Ropa Vieja Recipe

INGREDIENTS:

• 2-3 pounds of beef shank (can use flank or chuck steak)
• ¹/₃ red pepper, finely chopped
• ¼ red pepper, finely sliced
• 1-2 medium onion(s), chopped
• 2 ½ teaspoons of salt
• 1 ½ tablespoons of garlic powder
• 2 tablespoons of onion powder
• 1 tablespoons of cumin
• 1 packet of sazón con asafran or ½ tablespoon saffron
• 2 cups of beef stock (made using the beef shank; see written/video instructions for details)
• ½ cup of tomato sauce
• ¼ cup of cooking wine
• 1 lemon, juiced
• 2 tablespoons of olive oil
• About a ½ cup of vegetable or corn oil

TOOLS NEEDED:

• A large soup pot
• A large pot
• Forks, knife, cutting board, large spoon, and measuring utensils
• A food processor (optional)

VIDEO DEMONSTRATION / INSTRUCTIONS

BRIEF DIRECTIONS (See the video demonstration for detailed instructions):

1. Take a large pot, fill halfway with water (about 10 to 12 cups) and place the beef shank in the pot (OPTIONAL: You can also add a sprinkle of salt and garlic powder, and one onion sliced if you want. However, don’t overseason as the broth will be used for the ropa vieja, and the seasoning quantities provided for the ingredients are for making the ropa vieja and not for seasoning the beef broth. It’s best to leave the beef broth as natural as possible so that you can use any leftover broth to make a soup or another recipe). Let the pot come to a boil on high heat. Once boiling, let boil for 7 minutes, then reduce the heat to medium, and let cook for 2 and 1/2 hours, or until the beef is fork tender (Note: the fork should easily poke through the meat).
2. Remove the beef from the pot to separate it from the broth. Then take the beef, separate the meat from the bones and cartilage, and shred the meat using 2 forks (See video demonstration for a visual). Reserve the broth for later use.
3. Collect the rest of your ingredients, finely chop the onions and two-thirds of the red pepper in a food processor or using a knife, and finely slice the remaining piece of red pepper into 1-inch pieces about an 8^th inch thick. In another pot, sauté the onions on high heat for a minute in 2 tablespoons of olive oil, then add the red peppers and sauté until the onions are translucent. Next, add the shredded beef, mix with the onions and peppers, and sauté for 1 minute. Then add the cooking wine to deglaze the pan and mix
4. Next, reduce the heat to medium; add the beef stock, tomato sauce, garlic powder, salt, onion powder, saffron, and cumin to the meat, and let cook for 20 to 25 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the fluid is almost gone and the sauce has thickened. Remove the meat from the pot, clean and thoroughly dry the pot, then add enough vegetable oil to cover the bottom of the pot (the oil should be at least a ¼ inch deep).
5. Now heat the oil on high heat and use a piece of meat to check if the oil is hot enough. If you see bubbles, the oil is ready. Take spoonfuls of the meat and lay it across the bottom of the pot and let cook for 1 to 2 minutes. Next, reduce the heat to medium-high, turn over the meat, and let cook for 1 to 2 minutes. Then turn the meat over, stir the meat, spread it across the bottom of the pan again, and let cook for 1 to 2 minutes. Do this until the meat is well browned. Now add the lemon juice and mix it in to evenly distribute the juice on all of the meat. Then the meat is done and can be served (Note: you can serve the meat without frying and browning the meat, just add the lemon in at the end of the cooking process. Also, you can take the browning process as far as you like. I like to get a nice distribution of browned meat and unbrowned meat without overdoing it because you don’t want it to end up dry and burned!).