Known as the national dish of Cuba, ropa vieja is a classic beef stew featuring shredded flank steak tossed in a flavorful sauce of tomato, onion, and pepper.
Ingredients
Instructions
Cut steak into 4 rectangular pieces. Pat dry with paper towels; season all over with 1 1/2 teaspoons salt.
In a large pot over medium-high heat, heat 2 tablespoons oil. Working in batches, cook steak until browned on both sides, 5 to 6 minutes. Transfer to a plate.
In same pot over medium heat, heat remaining 2 tablespoons oil. Cook bell peppers, onion, and 1 1/2 teaspoons salt, stirring occasionally, until slightly softened, 4 to 5 minutes. Add garlic, tomato paste, paprika, cumin, and oregano and cook, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are softened and spices are aromatic, 1 to 2 minutes more.
Add wine, scraping any browned bits from bottom of pan, and cook, stirring occasionally, until reduced by half, about 2 minutes. Add tomatoes with their juices and bay leaves. Mash down on tomatoes to break up, then nestle beef into stew. Add water to cover beef, if needed, and bring to a simmer. Reduce heat to medium-low; cover and simmer until steaks are tender enough to shred, 2 1/2 to 3 hours. Transfer steaks to a plate and finely shred with 2 forks.
Stir shredded steak back into stew. Bring to a simmer and cook, stirring, until liquid has reduced to a sauce that coats steak, 5 to 10 minutes. Stir in olives; season with salt.
Spoon ropa vieja over rice and beans. Top with cilantro.
Nutrition
- Calories
- 458 Calories
- Fat Content
- 25 g
- Saturated Fat Content
- 6 g
- Trans Fat Content
- 0 g
- Cholesterol Content
- 103 mg
- Sodium Content
- 965 mg
- Carbohydrate Content
- 13 g
- Fiber Content
- 6 g
- Sugar Content
- 7 g
- Protein Content
- 36 g
