Cazuela de Vaca (Beef and Pumpkin Stew)

  4.7 – 17 reviews  • Beef

This filling stew from Chile features meat, maize, and pumpkin. Each individual receives a sizable chunk of the primary components, which are cooked in serving-sized pieces, surrounded by a broth that also contains the other veggies.

Prep Time: 30 mins
Cook Time: 2 hrs 15 mins
Total Time: 2 hrs 45 mins
Servings: 6
Yield: 6 servings

Ingredients

  1. 1 ½ pounds beef roast
  2. 1 (32 ounce) carton beef broth
  3. 2 cups water
  4. ¼ cup polenta (coarse or fine)
  5. 8 red potatoes, cut in half
  6. 1 onion, quartered
  7. 1 ½ pounds slice of pumpkin (calabaza)
  8. 2 ears corn, cut into thirds
  9. 1 carrot, cut into 1/2 inch slices
  10. 1 small red bell pepper, seeded and cut into 1 inch pieces
  11. 1 stalk celery, cut into chunks
  12. 1 leek, split in half, then cut into 1/2-inch pieces
  13. 1 teaspoon minced fresh oregano
  14. ¼ teaspoon mild paprika
  15. salt and pepper to taste
  16. ½ cup coarsely chopped cilantro leaves (lightly packed)

Instructions

  1. Cut the piece of beef into 6 large chunks (one per serving). Place the beef into a large saucepan; pour in the beef broth and water. Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce heat to medium, cover, and simmer until nearly tender, 1 to 1 1/2 hours.
  2. Stir the polenta into the stew along with the potatoes and onion. Cover and simmer for 15 minutes. Cut the pumpkin into 6, serving-sized pieces, and add to the stew along with the corn, carrot, bell pepper, celery, and leek; simmer until the vegetables are tender, adding more water if needed to barely cover. Stir in the oregano and paprika during the last 5 minutes.
  3. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Ladle into serving bowls, and sprinkle with chopped cilantro.

Nutrition Facts

Calories 314 kcal
Carbohydrate 35 g
Cholesterol 48 mg
Dietary Fiber 4 g
Protein 22 g
Saturated Fat 4 g
Sodium 161 mg
Sugars 7 g
Fat 11 g
Unsaturated Fat 0 g

Reviews

James Gilmore
So good! I made exactly, not forgetting the fresh oregano. My husband spent 2 years in Chile eating casuela much of the time and he said it was very good. Casuela is not supposed to be spicy. I used an eating pumpkin (pie or sugar) and it was delicious!
Robert Obrien
Used butternut squash but otherwise as is – yum!
Christina Krueger
Wonderful flavour and such a nice stew for the fall/winter season. I added more paprika and oregano for extra flavour. I’ve been raving about this stew since I made it. Perfect for those squash lovers. Hearty and filling.
Teresa Jones
It is true the pumping is different than the Chilean one, but lets enjoy what mother nature give us on each place. But pleeeeaaassseee peeled the potatoes, so you take the dirt flavor off the food. 😉
Benjamin Whitaker
This Stew was a big hit in my home. I used half red potatoes and half sweet potatoes. I took the advice from reviews and added Cumin and used butternut squash instead of pumpkin. This is a great stew. Served it with warm Irish soda bread.
Michael Cook
What an excellent recipe for the cold weather! Very easy to make. I added yellow squash and delicata squash. The delicata squash is sweet giving the stew another layer of flavor. Also, I coated the meat in flour and lightly browned it before adding the other ingredients.
Tammy Simon
I had intended to add picture but the family loved this so much there was nothing left. Instead of beef I used chicken and chicken stock. Everything else in the recipe was used. Family approved this will for sure be made again.
Janice Shepherd
Absolutely delicious!! One of my favourites Chilean dishes! And if you eat it with a chilean salad (tomato and onion) is one of the best things you can try!
Sharon Byrd
SUPER! I eliminated the red pepper and corn on the cob, and substituted butternut squash for the pumpkin. It was delicious and we really enjoyed it!!
Derek Young
I liked this recipe. I thought it came our really good. Used butternut squash instead of pumpkin but otherwise followed recipe exactly. Slightly bland but not bad.
Tamara Campbell
South American ‘pumpkin’ is completely different from North American Pumpkin. It is sweeter and much softer, more a squash really. DO NOT USE PUMPKIN, SUBSTITUTE with Butternut Squash. I would use Knorr beef bouillon instead of beef broth and add sweet potato.
Ryan Macdonald
I have two Chilean students staying with us and I made this for them. They said it was very good and even went back for seconds!
Cory Hunter
This was a huge hit for our thanksgiving lunch for 4 people.I cooked it all in a crock pot over night except I didn’t add the pumpkin. Then the next morning I cut the top off a pumpkin and saved the top for later. Meanwhile I had some other pumpkin chunks I added to the stew and let it simmer for another 2 hrs. I transported part of the stew into the pumpkin and baked it with a foil on top. I baked it for another hr but I think that was too long. The bottom started to leek. I would say maybe 20 minuted would have enough time for the pumpkin to bake. The top was too big for it to fit in the oven on the pumpkin, so I cooked it for about 30 minutes so it would have an even color. This was an excellent recipe my whole family loved but the only problem I saw was cooking the pumpkin too long. Other than that A+
Lisa Green
That was really good soup! I was skeptical at first to try this recipe reading from the previous comments about adding cumin and substituting the pumpkin. But I wanted a pumpkin stew recipe from the enormous pumpkin we just harvested. I used all the above ingredients but I cut my roast and pumpkin a bit smaller and used little red potatoes. My stew came out more hearty than more liquid…and was so flavorful! I had some cumin just in case, but did not need it. This is my first time making a pumpkin beef stew and I can’t wait to bring it to my parents’ home for Thanksgiving! It’s so tender, that it won’t ruin my mother’s dentures! lol
Helen Williams
This soup is a big hit in our house! Even my picky 2 year old liked it. 🙂 I did substitute butternut squash for the pumpkin, used broccoli and mushrooms instead of leeks and onions (my husband doesn’t like onions and I had mushrooms and broccoli I didn’t want to go bad) as well as added the cumin someone else suggested. Amazing soup! Oh, but when I made it, it served way more than 6! It made a very large stock pot full. So good!
Holly Sanders
I tried this receipe for my in laws who are Chilean and just flew in from South America on night. I was sadden that the cazuela/pumpkin turned out dry. I would use butternut squash or acorn squash next time. My mother who made this dish back in the old country recommended trying it with butternut squash. You can also use this receipe with chicken instead of beef if you like. My father in law wanted to add Cumin since it was missing just a tad flavor. Overall it is a nice basic soup and I followed the receipe 100% as written. I was hoping to impress but instead got a cooking lesson at dinner.
Jennifer Soto
Nice start. I did add more veggies though. Topped it with Cilantro, and Onions. Really nice.

 

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