Ropa Vieja

I was talking to a friend awhile ago while our kids played. She runs a fitness/lifestyle business where she provides workouts, meal plans and individual attention to help people achieve their goals.  She is very much a meal planner, where she plans for the week what they are having for each day and what she needs at the store. We were contrasting that to how I cook. I buy the major proteins every week, meat, poultry, etc and fresh vegetables along with whatever pantry items I have used up. The key for me though is pantry, I always have certain ingredients on hand and hardly ever know what I am going to cook on any given evening.

Today we had several inches of snow and everyone was home because of it. There was lots of shoveling and sledding going on and I thought we could all use a hearty dinner. I had a flank steak in the freezer and decided to crock pot that up. We have visited Puerto Rico a couple times and love it there, especially the food, so I looked up a recipe on Pinterest for Ropa Vieja. I adapted (extensively) one that I found:

1.5 pounds of Flank Steak

3 TBSP of Cumin

1 TBSP of Olive Oil

1 “serving” of chicken bouillon (I use packets from Trader Joe’s)

1 can (regular size) of diced tomatoes

1 TBSP Apple Cider Vinegar

4 garlic cloves, smushed

1 palm full of salt (maybe 1.5 tsps)

½ a Vidalia onion, chopped

1 red bell pepper sliced

1 tsp of coriander

2 TBSP of dried onion

1 tsp Oregano

I tossed all of the above in the crock pot (the meat was frozen) and cooked it on high for 5 hours and on low for about 40 minutes, I shredded it about 15 minutes before serving. 

For the instant pot, I add the liquid to the bottom, then the meat (sometimes frozen), then the spices. Manual on high for 75 minutes (depending on cut of meat, adjust up or down). NPR and shred. 

All of the ingredients are those that I had on hand and threw together on a whim.  My friend wishes she could do a little more of that, whereas I sometimes wish I could plan ahead and not have so much stress about dinner.

The ropa vieja turned out wonderfully, by the way. You are getting this blog post because my husband wanted me to actually write this one down so I can try to replicate it someday. The meat shredded easily and we served it with rice and beans for everyone but me (I made a burrito, because). The 4 year old cleaned the plate. The 1 year old got seconds. The husband, well, here is your blog post. And I ended up with two burritos (oops).  This reminder of a great vacation was perfect today.

I now need to replenish my cumin, canned tomatoes, red pepper, and frozen beef.