Carne Guisada
This Carne Guisada is a delicious Latin Beef Stew made with chunks of beef slowly cooked in the most delicious gravy. Serve it with rice, refried beans and warmed up tortillas for the ultimate dinner.
Prep Time15minutes mins
Cook Time2hours hrs
Total Time2hours hrs 15minutes mins
Course: Dinner, Main Course
Cuisine: Mexican
Keyword: carne guisada, latin beef stew
Servings: 6
Calories: 447kcal
Equipment
12″ AllClad Stainless Skillet
Ingredients:
¼ cup olive oil or vegetable oil
3 pounds stew meat cut into small bite size pieces, 1-inch cubes
1 large onion or 2 small ones, chopped
1 medium green bell pepper chopped
4 cloves garlic minced
3 large roma tomatoes diced
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon black pepper
2 teaspoons cumin ground
1½ teaspoons chili powder
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 cube beef bouillon
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour or more for thicker gravy
3-4 cups beef broth low sodium
2 tablespoons fresh cilantro chopped, for garnish
Instructions:
Sear the beef. Add 2 tablespoons of the olive oil to a large skillet and heat over medium-high heat. Add the stew meat and cook until browned on all sides, about 5 to 7 minutes. Transfer the beef to a plate and set aside. You might have to do this in batches, you don’t want to overcrowd the meat in the pan. If doing in batches, only add 1 tablespoon of oil at a time.
Cook the veggies. Drizzle the remaining olive oil to the skillet. Add the onion, bell pepper and cook for about 3 minutes until the onion becomes translucent. Add the garlic and cook for another minute until aromatic. Stir in the tomatoes and cook for another minute.
Add the spices. Season with salt, pepper, cumin and chili powder. Stir well. Add the tomato paste and crumble up the beef bouillon, stir, scraping up the browned bits from the bottom of the pan.
Start the gravy. Sprinkle the flour over the veggies and stir well while cooking for another 1 to 2 minutes to remove the raw flour taste. Add a cup of the beef broth and stir everything together. The mixture should start to thicken from the flour.
Add the beef and cook. Add the beef back to the skillet then another 2 cups of beef broth, stir until combined. Cover and cook for 1 and a half hours or more until the meat falls apart, over low heat, stirring occasionally. Add more beef broth if gravy is too thick.
Garnish and serve. Taste for seasoning and adjust with salt and pepper as needed. Garnish with cilantro and serve alongside with rice and tortillas.
Notes
Searing the beef before actually slow cooking it is very important to caramelize the natural sugars in the meat and brown the meat. It forms a rich and delicious crust on the surface which amplifies the flavor of the entire dish.
This stew is low carb and delicious as is, but sometimes potatoes are added to it for a heartier stew.
Use beer instead of beef broth to add more richness to the stew.
The simmering time can vary, depending on what cut of beef you use and the size of your beef cubes. The longer you cook it, the more tender the beef will be.
This stew is not meant to be hot or spicy but feel free to use a hot chili powder, add in some crushed red peppers or even some cayenne pepper.
Store leftover carne guisada in an airtight container for 3 to 5 days. You can also freeze it for up to 6 months. Simply reheat it in the microwave or in a skillet by adding a splash of beef broth to it.
