Carne Guisada –Mexican Pot Roast

So I am making, Carne Guisada today. this Mexican pot roast is going to be braised in

spices so that we end up with a perfectly tender roast that will fall apart after cooking.

Coat the beef with flour and sear. Such moves can significantly improve the taste of your roast.

It's going to seal the juices of the beef.

2. Creates a brown coating that sticks to the bottom of the pan, forming what's considered a fond coating.

Fond is a little bit of meat and juice added to the bottom of your pan, where great tastes are born.

You're going to use a method dubbed deglazing to bring these trapped bits out of the bottom of the pan and into your sauce. What you need to do is add a little liquid (wine, broth, lemon juice) and mix or scrape the bottom of the pan.

I would also like to note the chipotle peppers in this pot roast. Though you don't know about them, they're roasted jalapeno peppers. They're really sweet, so add them to your taste buds.

I don't like the spicy stuff, but I do like the Smokey taste they offer us, so I use one of the peppers in my carne guisada. I'm also trying to remove most of the seeds where a lot of heat resides.

But if you don't want a lot of heat, consider a little pepper and you're going to be all right.

Ingredients:

3lb. chuck roast

all purpose flour to dredge (coat) roast

sea salt

pepper

1 tbsp. vegetable oil

1 med yellow onion, minced

1/2 to 2 chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, chopped and seeds removed if needed

1 tsp. ground cumin

1 1/2 Tbsp. Chile powder

1/4 cup tomato paste

1 tsp. salt

4 cloves garlic, minced

1/4 tsp. ground cloves

4 cups beef broth

1/2 cup red wine

1 can diced tomatoes with basil and herbs if you can find it

1 can black beans, drained

4 carrots, cleaned and cut in half

On one side, salt and pepper the roast. Using a spatula to press in, the salt and pepper to the meat.

Cover the platter (big enough to carry the toast) with 1/2 cup of flour and spread it out. Place the side of the roast, salt and pepper in the flour. Cover with salt and pepper on the second side of the roast, then change over to cover with flour. Cover the entire roast with it.

When the oil is hot, place the roast in the pot to roast carefully. Searing the roast should lock in the juices and create a crust on the roast to produce those good flavors. Let the roast sear on the side for around 2 1/2 to 3 minutes. At this level, don't push it around.

Switch the roast over. I found it easy to flip the meat over with two sets of tongs. After all the sides of the roast have browned, place it in your stock pot.

At this point, you'll find some good brown caramelized bits of meat and juice sticking to the bottom of the pot.

That's the FOND, I've been informing you about.

At medium-high temperature, add the onion and sauté for around 5 minutes. Insert the chipotle pepper and cumin and sauté for 1 minute.

Now apply the tomato paste and mix for a minute or two. Since the tomato paste has a decent amount of sugar in it, it should melt and transform into a deep red brick color (more delicious flavor for the carne guisada).

Insert the garlic and cook for 2 minutes.

It's time to deglaze.

Add 1/2 cup of wine to the hot pan and mix and scrape to help remove the bits of beef, etc. that have been sticking to the bottom of the pan.

Transfer this mixture to the bowl holding the roast. Now you can add beef stock, black beans, carrots, diced tomatoes, garlic, chili powder, 1 tsp. Salt.  If you were to use a crock pot, that's where I'd place this Mexican pot roast into one.

Put the lid on, reduce it to a simmer, then reduce the temperature to low / low and relax. Cook the stew for at least 3 hours and it won't hurt to go longer. Note the lovely scent that fills your home.

Your guisada meat should be finished in 3 to 3 1/2 hours.

I eat my beans and cilantro lime rice in flour tortillas.