I'm looking for a good Mexican shredded beef recipe.

[intheflow]

Please help me! I adore Mexican shredded beef and want to know how to make it at home. Eating it out at lest once a week is killing me, unemployed person that I am.

I've tried three crockpot recipes I found online, and one of my own creation, and they've all sucked. Tasted much more like pot roast or soupy spaghetti sauce than Mexican shredded beef.

I feel like I'm missing some important spice, but I have no idea what it is. :shrug:

[Shakespeare]

1. This looks pretty close to how I've made it in the past.

http://www.texascooking.com/features/jan2002beefmachaca.htm

[intheflow]

2. I like the idea of marinading the beef first.

That's something that's been missing from the other recipes. I'll try this for sure. :hi:

[anitar1]

19. Thanks, Shakespeare, for the link. I made the Chamaca

recipe yesterday and it was delicious. Will try some of the other recipes that others posted, later.Easy recipe.

[mike_c]

3. Bayless's recipe is pretty classic...

Northern style stredded beef:

1 lb boneless beef chuck, flank, or brisket, trimmed and cut into 1 1/2 in pieces
1 tsp salt + 1/2 tsp
1 med onion
3 peeled garlic cloves
2 Tbsp lard
2 roma style tomatoes, roasted, cored, peeled, and chopped (or 1 15 oz can of tomatoes, chopped)
2-3 chilis serrano, finely chopped (I usually substitute 2 dried ancho chilis, blistered on a hot skillet, then soaked in bioling water until softened, plus 1-3 serranos)

Boil the beef in a pot with some salt, 1/2 of the onion and 1 half of one garlic clove (just throw the onion and garlic in whole-- don't slice or anything). Skim off any foam that forms, then simmer until very tender, 45 min to 1 1/2 hours. Let the meat cool in the broth. Skim off any fat on top, then remove and finely shred the beef. Reserve the broth.

Dice the remaining onion half and mince the remaining garlic. Heat the lard in a skillet. Add the shredded beef and onion and fry for 8-10 minutes, stirring frequently, until well browned. Add the garlic, tomatoes, and chilis, and cook until the tomatoes have softened, about 5 minutes, stirring frequently. Stir in 1 cup of the reserved broth, then simmer until the liquid has evaporated, 10-15 minutes. Season with salt.

[intheflow]

4. Bugs... and you cook, too?

Wow! Whatta man! LOL! Hi mike_c! :hi:

It's funny you should post this. My SO suggested we check out Bayless, too. Of course anything cooked with lard is going to taste divine! I can see I'm going to have to try this one, too.


BTW, I think I've got my landlord convinced they're wasps. But we're waiting until it gets really, really cold before we check the coal bin for sure. :scared:

[mike_c]

5. yeah, LOL-- although I usually try to keep those particular vocations...

...separate.

[kestrel91316]

20. Could I maybe do this in a crockpot with venison or oryx?

Just to cook the meat...........then finish it in the skillet as described??

[OldLeftieLawyer]

6. If you mean "ropas viejas,"

that's a Cuban recipe that I use, but maybe it's not the same thing.

In any event, here's what I do:

Trim and slice about 3# of flank steak (that's my preferred cut for this recipe), and throw it in a big pot with some carrots, onions, celery, bay leaf or two or three, lots of garlic cloves slightly crushed, salt, pepper, oregano, cumin, any other "hard" vegetables you might want to include - sometimes I throw sweet potatoes in there, although it's not part of the traditional recipe.

So, let that braise for a couple of hours, and then take it off the heat, let it cool, and drain and save the braising liquid.

In a separate big pan, brown sliced peppers of all colors, onions, garlic in olive oil until they're soft.

When the meat's cool, pull it into shreds ("old clothes") with your fingers and toss it in with the peppers and onions and garlic. Add some of the braising liquid, a big can of tomatoes, with juice, some more oregano and cumin and salt and pepper, and just let it simmer.

Some ropas viejas I've had had peas in it, and they were bright green, so I suspect they're added at the last minute. Same with corn and chopped sweet onion, although that's not to my liking with this dish. Throw in a jar, drained and rinsed of what are called "salad olives," and that makes a very nice touch.

We always have this with rice, but I think a good crusty bread would be very nice.

Now you got me thinking of picadillo, which is a great Cuban breakfast from the old days.

Ah, Cuban bread, still warm, from a Key West bakery ............

[intheflow]

8. OK, now you get to learn of how truly ignorant a cook I am.

What is braising? :blush:

I've heard it before, but from what you describe, throwing food in a pot with no liquid, it looks amazingly similar to burning in my experience.

Other than that, I think it sound yummy! I don't think it's exactly the shredded Mexican beef I'm looking for, but it's still sounds tasty. I have a friend who's Cuban, maybe I'll try this one for her next birthday party.

[OldLeftieLawyer]

10. Braising

It's just browning the meat, then adding a little liquid - in this case, I use water or beer - and letting the meat cook, covered, in the liquid. If necessary, you add more liquid.

That's all.

[intheflow]

11. Yum!

So it's sort of like steaming the meat rather than boiling it. :think:

I like the idea of steaming it in something other than water. I think I might try using red wine.

[OldLeftieLawyer]

12. No, no, no!

Not for that dish!

Red wine is 'way too strong.

This is the voice of experience talking. Nothing stronger than beer.

[intheflow]

13. I believe you!

I will bow to your cooking prowess!

[grasswire]

14. do you happen....

....to have a recipe for a Cuban pork dish that has a lot of cumin and sour citrus? I've been yearning for that dish for about twelve years now, after having it once in Arlington VA. It was one of the most delicious foods I've ever eaten.

[OldLeftieLawyer]

15. Yeah, sort of

I'm not sure this is what you're looking for, but we've used this recipe for years to make Cuban roast pork sandwiches.

One thing you absolutely need for this recipe is something called Bitter Orange Juice. It's made by Goya food, and it's in Hispanic markets. It's not bitter, but it's made from Seville oranges, as I recall. It's just really, really sour. I bet that's the trick you're recalling in that dish.

You need a meat thermometer, too, for sure.

Anyway, I sometimes use a boneless pork roast, between 3-4 pounds. You can also use a nicely trimmed pork shoulder, which is - my opinion - tastier. The boneless pork roast is usually easier to find, though.

The marinade is:

1 cup of Goya Bitter Orange Juice

1 cup of fresh lime juice
tons of garlic, crushed, minced, chopped - I use a couple of heads (we like garlic)

a sprinkling of dried thyme - just a little bit (we're not big on thyme - you might want to use more - or leave it out - I use it because the lady who gave me the recipe had it listed)

a big bunch of fresh cilantro, chopped

a little salt, a little pepper

2 Tbs. ground cumin - if it's really fresh, you might want only to use 1 Tb. - it's a matter of personal taste - I always let the marinade sit for about 15 minutes, then I sniff it, and I can tell if it needs more cumin or anything else.

So, you mix all this together, and pour HALF of it over the roast - I use a ZipLoc bag, and refrigerate both the meat and the rest of the marinade.

I let it sit for a day or two. Some people just let it sit for a few hours. It depends.

Then, drain the meat, discard that marinade, put the meat in a 350 degree oven, and pour the other HALF of the marinade over it.

Cover it, let it bake for 1 hour, then take the cover off, and baste the roast as often as you want with the drippings. Let it bake until the meat thermometer reads 160. This could be 5 minutes after you take the cover off, it could be 30. It all depends. I just keep basting, like every 5 minutes.

Then, of course, let it sit for a bit before slicing.

This is another one that barely gets out of our kitchen without being devoured totally. It makes the BEST Cubano sandwiches.

I hope this is what you were looking for.

[Tab]

16. Speaking of Cubano sandwiches....

I've had some and have totally enjoyed them.

What specifically constitutes a cubano sandwich? There's the pork, of course, but also the bread (what type is best?) and cheese, and pickles, if I'm not mistaken, and... ?

[OldLeftieLawyer]

17. Oh, man, all this before breakfast...........

OK, that's just a joke. Around here, food dominates most conversations, anyway.

You really need authentic Cuban bread if you're gonna make a real Cubano, but if you can't find it, French bread is good - but NOT baguettes. Just a regular loaf of French bread, thickly sliced THE LONG WAY. (That's the trick, I think.)

Actually, they're just sort of grilled Cuban hoagies, I think.

But, you butter the bread on both sides, and then make layers of roast pork and lots of dill pickle slices and Swiss cheese (we've also used Provolone, which wasn't bad, but wasn't quite right) and then you do it just as if it were a grilled cheese sandwich, making sure all the cheese melts.

As it grills, give the sandwich a few good presses, and keep flipping it so one side doesn't get too done.

I've seen folks dip their sandwiches in mustard - on the side - and even mayonnaise - but we eat them just plain. The roast pork (from the first recipe I posted above) is awfully tasty.

Doesn't this sound good?

And all I have here is this damn toast ..................

[grasswire]

18. that's probably it, thanks

I didn't know the bitter orange was available bottled. You're right, that's the key ingredient. I always figured I'd have to find it fresh somewhere.

[cmf]

7. Here is my recipe

This is really good, but we hardly eat it, since we don't eat much red meat anymore. It's in the crockpot, but I don't know if it contains that important spice you've been missing.

2lb pot roast
1 tbsp cumin
chili powder to taste
salt and pepper to taste
1 medium onion, chopped coarsely
1 clove garlic, minced
1/4 c. cilantro, chopped
2 jalapeno peppers, finely chopped
1 beef bouillon cube
1 lime cut in half

Rub the pot roast with the seasonings. Combine it and the next four ingredients (onion-peppers) in the crock pot. Place the bouillon cube on top and squeeze the lime over everything. Throw the lime rinds in the crock pot, too, and turn it on low. Cook on low for about 10 hours until the meat is very tender and pulls apart easily. When it's ready to serve, take the lime rinds out, and shred the meat up. Serve with your favorite fixings.

[intheflow]

9. I've suspected that lime may be the flavor I'm missing.

This sound fast and easy. Thanks so much, cmf!