Day 131: Carne Guisada

I realized this afternoon, that I forgot to do a make-up post last night, so I made sure to remember to do it today.  This isn't one of the dishes I made when my computer was down.  I actually made this for dinner tonight.  It was too good not to post right away.  I got this recipe from Omar Alvarez.  He made this for the "taste of dutch" at the IDOS Spring Convention.  I got to cook next to him, so I got to watch him make it.  He said this recipe is one of the oldest Tex-Mex recipes.  It is made for weddings, parties and special occasions.  My 7 year old daughter brought some of this home from a birthday party she went to for one of her friends who is Hispanic.  It was made with goat, and it was fantastic.  This recipe uses beef, and it can be served with tortillas, rice, or (per Omar's recommendation) mashed potatoes.

Carne Guisada
10" dutch oven

1 lb. beef cubes  (sirloin steak or even stew meat)
chopped onion
cumin, to taste
salt and pepper to taste
2 (8 oz) cans tomato sauce
garlic powder to taste
1 can Ro-Tel

Brown the meat in a small amount of oil, add the onions and spices, and let the onions cook down.  Add the tomato sauce and simmer over medium heat until the meat is tender (I cooked mine for 2 hours).   You can add flour or cornstarch to the sauce it you want it thicker.  I did all this over 15 coals, and I replenished about half the coals half way through cooking. You want enough coals to keep it at a simmer, not a hard boil, so watch it for the first few minutes.  Serves 3.

The Finished Product

Sorry, but the picture just doesn't do this one justice, it was fantastic!!

The Review

This is another recipe that would be in my top 10 for the year.  This was amazing.  The meat was so tender it melted in my mouth.  I was skeptical about having it over mashed potatoes, but I have to say, it worked.  I had it with tortillas at Spring Convention, but it was better with potatoes.  They don't seem like they would go together, but they really did.  Other than the long cooking time, the prep time is 10-15 minutes.  I was amazed at how long my coals lasted.  After an hour of cooking it was still just simmering away and I only had to replace half the coals.  This will make a regular appearance at our table.  This gets a capitol A!