Passport & Plate - Cortadillo de Res en Salsa Verde
Mexico | Sunday, March 2, 2014 | 5 photos
Ingredients
For 4 people:
- 500 grams of black pulp beef (boneless meat that comes from the animal's leg), cut into small dices – The sauce of this dish just gives flavour to the beef, instead of tenderizing it. Also the beef in this dish is fried, rather than slow cooked, so you will need some tender beef with the fat inside the muscle (marbled) not around it like most of the ordinary cuts. The black pulp or ball pulp is the best for these kind of recipes for its tenderness and flavour.
- 6 or 7 poached green tomatillos (medium size, I normally pick the greener ones versus the yellow ones, as these are more acidic and they will dominate the flavour over the meat in the dish)
- 6 cloves of garlic peeled and minced
- ¼ teaspoon of ground oregano
- ¼ teaspoon of ground cumin
- 1 green pepper (remove the stem and seeds and cut in stripes)
- ½ pound of green beans chopped
- 1 big white onion cut in stripes
- 2 or 3 raw jalapeno peppers (remove the stem and seeds and cut in stripes)
- ½ teaspoon of sugar
- A small bunch of cilantro (Remove the stem to avoid getting it stuck in the blades of the blender or food processor)
- 2 tablespoons corn oil
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 2 tablespoons of soy sauce
How to prepare this recipeTo prepare this recipe, start by poaching the tomatillos in boiling water. Sauté the onion, the jalapenos and the garlic until the onion is transparent, about 5 min. Puree the tomatoes, the green pepper, the cilantro and the sautéd jalapenos, garlic and onion without water, salt and pepper in a food processor or a blender. Save this blend for later.
Heat the corn oil in a lidded pan over medium heat. Add the beef and cook until it is well browned, for about 5 minutes. Take the juice of the beef out of the pan and save it for later. Once the beef is browned add the soy sauce and the sugar to balance the flavour. The beef will then get a darker colour, let the soy sauce to evaporate and let the beef to fry for a while.
Add the tomato puree to the fried beef and combine well. Cover with a lid, reduce the heat and simmer for few minutes. When the tomato paste is cooked, add the beef juice and some salt if it is required, then add the cumin, the oregano and the green beans. At this point feel free to experiment and add hearty vegetables like carrots, potatoes, peas, corn as you would add to a stew. We cover the pan again, put the heat down to low and let it set for 30 min. Stir occasionally, until the beef is tender. The sauce should not get dry but it should thicken. After the half an hour, remove the lid for 10 minutes to allow the liquid to reduce before serving.
You can serve this plate with red rice, corn tortillas or with some of the many variations of beans.
As we say in Mexico, Buen Provecho! Enjoy!
The story behind this recipe"Cortadillo de res en salsa verde” (diced beef in green sauce) as the name Cortadillo, or "little cuts” suggests, the meat is diced into small cubes. The sauce is made from green chiles and green tomatillos which are found mainly in the region where I was born. The recipe is quick and easy, but really tasty! The dish itself has origins dating back to Colonial Mexico with many variations throughout the different states of Mexico. You can substitute different meats or poultry, but the constant ingredients are always in the sauce - green tomatillos, green chiles, garlic and ground oregano.
This recipe always reminds me of growing up in Mexico. Nothing else brings me back more than this flavourful dish! It's one of those dishes that have a wealth of great memories behind it. The smell, the taste, even the preparation brings me back to my childhood. My mom has always been the chef in our family, but on weekends the kitchen is dad's domain and this has been one of his go-to meals for as long as I can remember. It’s one of those dishes that end up a little different every time. My dad has a base recipe, but he loves to experiment and use different ingredients every time he cooks. You would see him scrambling through the drawers, the pantry shelves, the spices cabinets looking for different smells and flavours until he finds what he wants to use on his recipe this time, he’ll add a bit more of this and a bit less of that to really make it “his” recipe.
Having this meal with my family definitely led to my appreciation of food and my belief that a meal needs to be an experience. Cooking should be fun and exciting; eating is so much more than just consuming food! To me, a meal is sharing laughs, stories and thoughts over a table filled with inspiring tastes and aromas. This is a tradition in Mexico; especially for the main meal which is served at mid-day and traditionally enjoyed with family. The table is a place to meet, share and enjoy.
