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Texas carne guisada
Tender beef stewed in a cumin-scented brown gravy
Carne guisada is the South Texas comfort stew of the Rio Grande Valley and Corpus Christi, ladled into fresh flour tortillas for breakfast tacos or eaten from a plate with rice and refried beans. Cubes of beef chuck are browned and slowly stewed with onion, pepper, garlic and cumin in a thick, peppery brown gravy. Chef's tip: dust the beef with flour as it browns; it thickens the gravy just enough to cling to a tortilla.
- Total time
- 135 min
- Difficulty
- easy
- Serves
- 6
Ingredients
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Fresh ingredients (4)
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Method
0/5 doneStep 1: Season the 2 ¼ lb beef chuck with 1 ½ tsp salt and 1 tsp black pepper. Brown in batches in the 3 tbsp vegetable oil in a heavy pot over a high heat for 8 minutes, until well browned.
10 minStep 2: Return all the beef, sprinkle with the 2 tbsp plain flour and stir 2 minutes. Add the 1 onion, 1 green pepper and 1 jalapeño and cook 5 minutes.
7 minStep 3: Add the 4 cloves garlic, 1 ½ tsp ground cumin and 2 tbsp tomato purée for 1 minute, then the 3 cups beef stock and 1 bay leaf. Scrape the base well.
3 minStep 4: Cover and simmer gently for 1½–2 hours, stirring now and then, until the beef breaks apart with a spoon and the gravy is thick. A common mistake is boiling hard, which toughens the meat; add a splash of water if it gets too thick.
110 minStep 5: Serve with warm 12 flour tortillas.
2 min
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 400 kcal
- Protein
- 38 g
- Carbs
- 10 g
- Fat
- 22 g
- Fibre
- 2 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does texas carne guisada take?
- About 135 minutes in total: 15 minutes to prepare and 120 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 6 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- What can I use instead of plain flour?
- Self-raising flour, same amount (then leave out the baking powder).
- What can I use instead of onion?
- 2 shallots per onion.
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