This Cuban dish of braised beef actually translates to “old clothes,” since some supposedly believed the crumbly flesh and vibrant onion and pepper strips knotted together resembled ratty, worn-out garments. If you enjoy strong flavors, you’ll adore this dish because it doesn’t use mild seasoning. It tastes great when combined with beans, rice, and plantain chips. Add additional cilantro as a garnish.
| Prep Time: | 15 mins |
| Cook Time: | 2 hrs 30 mins |
| Additional Time: | 8 hrs 45 mins |
| Total Time: | 11 hrs 30 mins |
| Servings: | 8 |
| Yield: | 8 servings |
Ingredients
- 1 (1 1/2-pound) flank steak
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt, or more to taste
- 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1 pinch cayenne pepper, or to taste
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 large red onion, sliced
- 4 cloves garlic, sliced
- 2 teaspoons ground cumin
- 2 teaspoons paprika
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- ⅛ teaspoon ground cloves
- ⅛ teaspoon ground allspice
- ½ cup white wine
- 1 ½ cups tomato sauce
- 1 ½ cups chicken broth
- 2 bay leaves
- 2 bell peppers, sliced
- 1 poblano pepper, sliced
- ½ teaspoon smoked paprika
- 2 tablespoons capers, drained
- 1 cup pimento-stuffed green olives, sliced
- 1 teaspoon white sugar, or to taste (Optional)
- ⅓ cup chopped fresh cilantro
Instructions
- Cut flank steak in half across the grain. Mix salt, black pepper, and cayenne. Season both sides generously with the salt mixture.
- Heat olive oil in a pot over high heat. Add steaks and cook until outsides are well browned, 4 to 5 minutes per side. Remove steaks to a plate.
- Reduce heat to medium. Add red onion, garlic, and more of the salt seasoning. Cook and stir until starting to soften, 3 to 5 minutes. Stir in cumin, paprika, oregano, cayenne pepper, cloves, and allspice. Cook and stir for 1 minute. Pour in white wine, scraping up the browned bits from the bottom of the pot. Stir in tomato sauce and chicken broth.
- Return beef and accumulated juices to the pot. Season with salt and add bay leaves. Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer until beef is almost fork-tender, not falling apart, about 2 hours.
- Remove pot from heat and let stew cool to room temperature, at least 45 minutes. Refrigerate, 8 hours to overnight, for best results.
- Remove beef to a plate and set stew over medium heat. Tear beef along the grain into 1/8- to 1/4-inch-wide shreds; place back in the stew. Add bell peppers, poblanos, smoked paprika, capers, olives, and sugar. Stir together and reduce heat to medium. Simmer until peppers are soft and meat is tender, 15 to 20 minutes. Turn off heat, remove bay leaves, and stir in cilantro.
- You can also use skirt steak, or big pieces of chuck, but flank is my favorite. Chuck is cheaper but shreds too small.
- Use finely crushed tomatoes instead of tomato sauce, if desired.
Nutrition Facts
| Calories | 209 kcal |
| Carbohydrate | 10 g |
| Cholesterol | 28 mg |
| Dietary Fiber | 3 g |
| Protein | 12 g |
| Saturated Fat | 3 g |
| Sodium | 1275 mg |
| Sugars | 5 g |
| Fat | 13 g |
| Unsaturated Fat | 0 g |
Reviews
I always visit this delicious Cuban diner in Miami, because their food is amazing… this tastes just like it!
Excellent .
Absolutely delicious! It reminds us of the fabulous Cuban meals we had in Miami. I serve it with seasoned black beans & rice and my whole family loves it.
Excellent bold flavor! It is worth it to add all the different spices. Instead of simmering on the stovetop for 2 hours, I put in the slow cooker on high. (This felt safer). Has anyone tried with red wine vs white? I wonder how that would change the flavor profile. Makes lots of sauce. I used the leftover sauce when I made instant rice; this created a kind of Spanish rice (Cuban rice)
Delicious!! Made it exactly according to Chef Johns directions and it turned out fantastic! This is going in my meal rotation!
I will never use another recipe for this dish again! Absolute perfection. Was tempted to skip overnight refrigeration because the house smelled so good! Glad I didn’t. I left out the sugar that was it.
We loved it so much! We followed the recipe exactly and it came out soooooo delicious. We are huge fans of Chef John.
Absolutely delicious. Nice blend of flavors – spicy without sacrificing taste. Another gem from Chef John!
It was so good! We used London Broil for the meat, and the flavor was fantastic.
My husband said it takes like he remembered. I’ll make it again. I left out the poblanos and the sugar
Followed this recipe to the T!!! Everyone enjoyed it and had seconds. I made some calabaza and added a tamale to make it more authentic
I always like Chef John’s recipes. I used pork instead of beef. This was wonderful but a little salty. The next time I make it I’ll use fewer olives (I like capers more).
Delicious recipe!! I did modify it a bit. I cooked the olives and capers in the sauce the whole time- that way it marries and melds into the sauce. I also use only 1 cup of chicken stock not 1.5 bc I like a little thicker sauce and skipped the cloves bc allspice has cloves in it
Loved this – and so did my kids! I used chuck and cooked it a bit longer. I might try with some tomatoes next time.
Followed Chef John’s recipe and it was excellent ! I did use flank steak and I’m glad I did. Will definitely make again.
love this recipe
Followed the recipe and it was a huge hit. Even my picky 11-year old son loved it. I was shocked! Look forward to making it again.
I found a sirloin tip roast and used that for the meat. I followed the recipe pretty exactly except I used the pressure cooker then finished it simmering on the stovetop until the sauce had cooked down to a thick consistency. And I’m mildly allergic to peppers so I left them out and used a can of Ro-tel instead. It was really delicious, and the meat turned out very tender. The leftovers were incredibly delicious over eggs the next day.