Ropa vieja

Ingredients

Beef and broth

• 1.2 kgbeef flank or skirt (falda), in 2 pieces
• 1onion, halved
• 1carrot, halved
• 2bay leaves
• 1 tspblack peppercorns
• 1 tbspsalt
• 2 Lwater

Sofrito and sauce

• 4 tbspolive oil
• 2large onions, sliced into thin half-moons
• 1red and 1 green bell pepper, sliced into 5 mm strips
• 6garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 2 tbsptomato puree
• 400 gtinned chopped tomatoes
• 150 mldry white wine
• 2 tspground cumin
• 1 tbspdried oregano
• 1 tspsweet paprika
• 2bay leaves
• 100 gpimiento-stuffed green olives, halved
• 2 tbspcapers, rinsed
• salt and black pepper

Directions

1. Simmer the beef with the onion, carrot, bay, peppercorns and salt in the water, covered, for 2 hours, skimming the grey foam in the first 15 minutes. It is ready when a fork twists a fibre away with no resistance.
2. Lift the beef out and cool 15 minutes. Strain and keep 500 ml of the broth.
3. Shred the meat by hand along the grain into long, ropy threads. Never chop it: those rags are what the dish is named for.
4. Heat the olive oil in a wide casserole over medium heat and cook the onions and peppers slowly for 15 minutes until slumped and sweet, not coloured.
5. Add garlic, cumin, oregano and paprika and fry 1 minute, then the tomato puree, frying it 2 minutes until it turns brick red and loses its raw edge.
6. Pour in the wine, boil hard 2 minutes, then add the tomatoes, bay leaves and 300 ml of the reserved broth. Simmer 10 minutes.
7. Fold the shredded beef through, cover, and cook on the lowest heat for 40–50 minutes, adding broth if it tightens, until the sauce clings to the strands and the peppers have dissolved into it.
8. Stir in olives and capers in the last 5 minutes, check the salt, and serve with white rice, black beans and fried sweet plantains.

Technique

• Flank or skirt is compulsory: those cuts have long, coarse fibres that shred into rags. Chuck falls into lumps and gives you a different dish.
• The slow braise after shredding is where the flavour gets into the meat. Skip it and you have beef sitting in sauce.
• The olives and capers are the Spanish inheritance, and they go in at the end so they stay briny rather than dissolving.

Substitutions

• No dry white wine: use 150 ml dry sherry, or 100 ml water with 2 tbsp white wine vinegar.

Variations

• Ropa vieja a la habanera, with a splash of sour orange and a pinch of cinnamon at the end.
• Some cooks in Camaguey add a diced potato to the braise so it thickens the sauce.

History

Shredded beef in tomato sofrito, brought from Spain by way of the Canary Islands; the name means old clothes, describing the frayed meat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Ropa vieja?

Ropa vieja is a main from Cuba: shredded beef braised with tomato, peppers, olives. Shredded beef in tomato sofrito, brought from Spain by way of the Canary Islands; the name means old clothes, describing the frayed meat.

How long does Ropa vieja take to make?

Ropa vieja takes 30 min of preparation and 3 hr of cooking. The recipe makes 6 servings. It is rated medium to make.

What can I substitute in Ropa vieja?

Yes, within limits. No dry white wine: use 150 ml dry sherry, or 100 ml water with 2 tbsp white wine vinegar.

What is the most important thing to get right in Ropa vieja?

Shred the meat by hand along the grain into long, ropy threads. Never chop it: those rags are what the dish is named for.