Carne Guisada Rápidas
Mañanas y Madrugadas: The Breakfast Taco & Morning Rhythms
At six a.m. before the commute, true guisada means dropping diced chuck into a hot skillet, yielding thick, heavily spiced brown gravy built specifically to be scooped up with a warm flour tortilla. We’re trading the traditional four-hour stovetop simmer for twenty minutes in an electric pressure cooker, but you will sear the beef hard, you will cook the flour in the rendered fat, and you will grind whole spices in a molcajete before the broth hits. No sad, watery broth here—spoon the stew onto a warm tortilla, fold it tight, and get out the door.
Ingredients
- neutral oil or beef tallow2 tbsp
- beef chuck roast2 1/2 lb
- white or yellow onion1/2 med
- green bell pepper1/2 med
- jalapeño or serrano chiles2 med
- cloves garlic3 large
- whole cumin seeds1 1/2 tsp
- whole black peppercorns1 tsp
- all-purpose flour3 tbsp
- tomato sauce3 tbsp
- Mexican oregano1 tsp
- beef broth1 1/2 cup
- kosher salt1 tsp
Method
- 01
Sear the beef hard.
Set your electric pressure cooker to the highest sauté function, add the oil, and brown the beef in two batches to build a deep crust. Do not skip this, or you are just boiling meat.
- 02
Sweat the sofrito.
Add the onion, green bell pepper, and chiles to the remaining hot fat in the pot, scraping up all the browned bits from the beef, and cook until the vegetables soften.
- 03
Crush the spices.
In a molcajete or mortar, vigorously grind the garlic, cumin seeds, and peppercorns into a fragrant paste, then stir it into the softening vegetables.
- 04
Toast the flour.
Sprinkle the flour over the vegetables and stir constantly for two minutes until it absorbs the fat and turns a sandy brown, cooking off the raw flour taste to build a proper roux.
- 05
Deglaze and pressure cook.
Pour in the beef broth and tomato sauce, scraping the bottom of the pot completely clean to avoid burn warnings, then stir in the oregano, salt, and seared beef. Seal the lid and cook on high pressure for 35 minutes.
- 06
Release the pressure and reduce.
Let the pressure release naturally for 15 minutes to keep the meat tender, then vent and open. If the gravy needs thickening, simmer uncovered on the sauté setting for a few minutes until it velvety coats the back of a spoon.
Notes
Respect the molcajete.
Pre-ground spices die in the jar; grinding whole cumin and peppercorns with fresh garlic releases the volatile oils that give this dish its authentic aroma.
Avoid pre-cut stew meat.
Buy a whole chuck roast. Pre-cut lean stew meat lacks the connective tissue and marbling necessary to create a rich, luxurious gravy.
Source real Mexican oregano.
Seek out Mexican oregano in the Hispanic aisle. It belongs to the verbena family and brings floral, citrusy notes that standard Mediterranean oregano simply cannot match.
From Cook Tex-Mex.