Name: Spanish shredded beef with sofrito
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 160 min
Total time: 180 min
Yield: 6
Ingredients: Sofrito; 1 tablespoon olive oil; 2 bacon rashers (140g), rind removed, chopped finely; 3 clove garlic, crushed; 1 small onion (80g), chopped finely; 1/2 small green capsicum (75g), chopped finely; 1 tablespoon tomato paste; 2 tablespoon red wine vinegar; Shredded beef with spanish rice and peas; 2 litre (8 cups) water; 1 bay leaf; 5 clove garlic, quartered; 6 black peppercorns; 1 large carrot (180g), chopped coarsely; 1 celery stalk, trimmed (100g), chopped coarsely; 1.5 kilogram beef skirt steak; 2 teaspoon dried oregano; 1 tablespoon olive oil; 1 medium red capsicum (200g), sliced thickly; 1 medium green capsicum (200g), sliced thickly; 2 medium brown onions (300g), sliced thickly; 400 gram can whole tomatoes; 1 teaspoon ground cumin; 1 cup (150g) pimiento-stuffed green olives, halved; 1/4 cup (60ml) lemon juice

Spanish shredded beef with sofrito

This traditional Cuban dish is known as ropa vieja, which translates as "old clothes". It is so-named because the tender shredded meat is said to resemble shreds of fabric. It is wonderfully flavoursome, and beautiful served up with crusty bread.

Shredded beef with spanish rice and peas

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Serves 6

Prep

20M

Cook

2H 40M

Total

Ingredients

Sofrito

1 tablespoon olive oil

2 bacon rashers (140g), rind removed, chopped finely

3 clove garlic, crushed

1 small onion (80g), chopped finely

1/2 small green capsicum (75g), chopped finely

1 tablespoon tomato paste

2 tablespoon red wine vinegar

Shredded beef with spanish rice and peas

2 litre (8 cups) water

1 bay leaf

5 clove garlic, quartered

6 black peppercorns

1 large carrot (180g), chopped coarsely

1 celery stalk, trimmed (100g), chopped coarsely

1.5 kilogram beef skirt steak

2 teaspoon dried oregano

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 medium red capsicum (200g), sliced thickly

1 medium green capsicum (200g), sliced thickly

2 medium brown onions (300g), sliced thickly

400 gram can whole tomatoes

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1 cup (150g) pimiento-stuffed green olives, halved

1/4 cup (60ml) lemon juice

Method

Shredded beef with spanish rice and peas

1.Combine the water, bay leaf, garlic, peppercorns, carrot, celery, beef and 1 teaspoon of the oregano in a large deep saucepan, bring to a boil. Reduce heat, simmer, uncovered, about 2 hours or until beef is tender.

2.Meanwhile, make sofrito: Heat oil in small frying pan, cook bacon, garlic, onion and capsicum, stirring, until onions soften. Add paste and vinegar, cook, stirring, until vinegar evaporates. Cool 10 minutes, blend or process until smooth.

3.Remove beef from braising liquid. Strain liquid over large bowl, discard solids. Using two forks, shred beef coarsely.

4.Heat oil in same cleaned pan, cook sofrito, capsicums and onion, stirring, until vegetables soften. Return beef and braising liquid to pan with undrained tomatoes, cumin and remaining oregano, bring to a boil. Reduce heat, simmer, uncovered, 20 minutes. Remove from heat, stir in olives and juice.

5.Serve shredded beef with crusty bread, if liked.

This dish is best if made a day ahead so the flavour can develop.
Note

Women's Weekly Food

Trusted by home cooks for 90 years, The Australian Women’s Weekly’s Test Kitchen and cookbooks hold a singular place in shaping home cooking within the Australian culinary landscape. Today, the AWW Test Kitchen in Sydney is a thriving hub for food content, connected to two bustling photographic studios where a talented team of Australia’s best recipe developers, art directors, editors and photographers create our world class food content. Our recipes are thoroughly tested and tasted and given the Test Kitchen tick of approval, guaranteeing you’ll get great results in your home kitchen.

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Ingredients

Method

Shredded beef with spanish rice and peas

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