About a month ago I was really craving some Tex-Mex and wrote to my friend Jack, who lives in San Antonio and told him I needed some new recipe ideas. I wanted to know what his wife cooked or what his favorite meals are. He told me that his two favorite things are green chili pork and Carne Guisada. But he didn't have a recipe. I guess his wife just wings it! So I started searching. I came up with what I thought would be 3 reputable Tex-Mex cooks and naturally, their recipes all varied. So I further narrowed it down to the closest 2 recipes and sort of did a combination of both of their recipes. I used Homesick Texan (Lisa Fain) I've long been a fan of her website because she obsesses over Tex-Mex the way I do. The other recipe I used came from Robb Walsh, who is the author of The Tex-Mex Cookbook. My apologies go out to both of them for altering their great recipes.
Remember I live in the sticks. Therefore I can't always find the ingredients that I need but I improvised.
Here is what I used:
2 pounds of sirloin tips, cut into 1/2 inch cubes (Lisa swears by chuck or bottom round and she uses 4 pounds)
2 Tablespoons oil
1 yellow onion, diced
1 bell pepper, diced (you'll notice that missing in this pic)
4-5 garlic cloves, minced
1 can of diced tomatoes (or 3 fresh tomatoes, diced)
1-2 jalepenos, diced
1-2 serrano chilis, minced (I couldn't find this)
1 Tablespoon cumin
1 Tablespoon of Chili powder
1 tsp. oregano
bay leaf
1 bottle of dark Mexican beer (couldn't find so I settled for Dos XX)
1 T. flour (optional)
2 cups water (I decided to substitute chicken stock for extra flavor)
1 pound of small red potatoes cut into 1/2 inch cubes. (I didn't used this. Lisa doesn't either)
Fresh cilantro
The deal with the peppers is... I ended up raiding my friend's pepper plant because I was watering for her and they needed to be picked!
The Coke Zero is for me to drink so I'll stay out of the Dos XX. :)
Here is what I used:
2 pounds of sirloin tips, cut into 1/2 inch cubes (Lisa swears by chuck or bottom round and she uses 4 pounds)
2 Tablespoons oil
1 yellow onion, diced
1 bell pepper, diced (you'll notice that missing in this pic)
4-5 garlic cloves, minced
1 can of diced tomatoes (or 3 fresh tomatoes, diced)
1-2 jalepenos, diced
1-2 serrano chilis, minced (I couldn't find this)
1 Tablespoon cumin
1 Tablespoon of Chili powder
1 tsp. oregano
bay leaf
1 bottle of dark Mexican beer (couldn't find so I settled for Dos XX)
1 T. flour (optional)
2 cups water (I decided to substitute chicken stock for extra flavor)
1 pound of small red potatoes cut into 1/2 inch cubes. (I didn't used this. Lisa doesn't either)
Fresh cilantro
The deal with the peppers is... I ended up raiding my friend's pepper plant because I was watering for her and they needed to be picked!
The Coke Zero is for me to drink so I'll stay out of the Dos XX. :)
This seams like a lot of ingredients but really it wasn't that bad! I browned my beef pieces and then removed from the pan and then sauteed my onions, peppers, and garlic. Then I put the beef back into the pan and added everything except the flour and the fresh cilantro. Those will go in towards the end.
Here is what The Homesick Texan had to say:Throw in the browned beef, add the herbs, spices, water, tomatoes and beer and mix everything really well. Turn up the heat to high, bring the stew to a boil and then turn heat down to low and simmer for five hours, stirring occasionally. At this point, some of the meat will have turned to strings thus thickening the gravy.
Note: If you want your meat to be distinct cubes rather than strings, lessen the cooking time. If you cook the stew for less time, you may also need to add some flour to thicken the gravy. Take out a 1/4 cup of the cooking liquid, stir into it a 1 tablespoon of flour and then incorporate this back into the stew. Stir until gravy has thickened. Also, I like my meat in big stringy chunks, but if you prefer smaller pieces, cut the meat into 1/2 inch cubes.
Here is what The Homesick Texan had to say:Throw in the browned beef, add the herbs, spices, water, tomatoes and beer and mix everything really well. Turn up the heat to high, bring the stew to a boil and then turn heat down to low and simmer for five hours, stirring occasionally. At this point, some of the meat will have turned to strings thus thickening the gravy.
Note: If you want your meat to be distinct cubes rather than strings, lessen the cooking time. If you cook the stew for less time, you may also need to add some flour to thicken the gravy. Take out a 1/4 cup of the cooking liquid, stir into it a 1 tablespoon of flour and then incorporate this back into the stew. Stir until gravy has thickened. Also, I like my meat in big stringy chunks, but if you prefer smaller pieces, cut the meat into 1/2 inch cubes.
So that's just what I did (I did end up using the flour at the end) and here's what mine turned out looking like! voila! or rather Ole! :)
You are welcome to serve this up with beans and rice but we didn't need that much food and we were starving by the time this got done. So I heated some tortillas and, no, they weren't low carb :( I feel like a low carb failure. But some things are just worth it.
I tossed some chopped fresh cilantro in at the end for the bright green color and fresh flavor. I even had sour cream out but neither of us wanted to use it.
You are welcome to serve this up with beans and rice but we didn't need that much food and we were starving by the time this got done. So I heated some tortillas and, no, they weren't low carb :( I feel like a low carb failure. But some things are just worth it.
I tossed some chopped fresh cilantro in at the end for the bright green color and fresh flavor. I even had sour cream out but neither of us wanted to use it.
Carne Guisada
I have no idea how this is supposed to taste because I've never had it. But it was delicious! And I would do it again, only next time I'd make sure I have all the right ingredients.
This will be perfect for the days or nights during football season!! (Boomer Sooner!)
This will be perfect for the days or nights during football season!! (Boomer Sooner!)
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