And some nights, without really planning on it, the perfect plate of Mexican food comes together. Steak Ranchero prepared family style with a side of rice, beans and crispy potato wedges. This was my week to prepare beans from scratch, rice and flour tortillas. I sent most of the flour tortillas to my little brother. Funny that I would be sending tortillas to Texas, Lol! During the holiday months November and December, I have made it my tradition to send some of the food items that my Mom used to prepare for us. She too used to send out care packages through out the year. My favorite ones were always the ones sent during the holidays filled with empanadas and hojarasca cookies. For today’s blog post, and with the flour tortillas as my inspiration, I prepared a very typical dish of Steak Ranchero, technically a carne guisada or stewed meat that is cooked for a shorter period of time.
Steak Ranchero con Papas (Steak and Potatoes
Ingredients
- 1.25 pounds boneless chuck roast sliced thin
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon pepper
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 1/4 to 1/3 teaspoon chile de arbol powder optional
- 1/2 teaspoon oregano crushed
- Olive oil
- 1 small white onion diced or sliced thin into strips
- 2 to 3 cloves garlic depending on size minced
- 2 to 3 jalapeño or serrano peppers sliced. Seeds removed, optional
- 3 large Roma tomatoes sliced into wedges
- 1/2 cup water
- 2 tablespoons Maggi sauce or worcestershire sauce
- 2 russet potatoes 1 pound.
Tips~ In previous recipes, I fried the diced potatoes until crispy and folded them into the steak ranchero right before serving. Both are delicious!
For Garnishes:
- Mexican crema
- Your favorite salsa
- Avocado slices cilantro and chile jalapeño slices...
Instructions
Directions:
- Freeze the chuck roast for 1 to 2 hours. This will make it easier to slice super thin. After you slice it and it comes to room temperature, mix the dried spices listed and season the meat generously, tossing to combine. Set aside. Trim off any excess fat if you wish.
- Wash the potatoes and cook on high in the microwave for 5 to 6 minutes, turning halfway through cooking time until potatoes are fork tender. Remove from microwave and let cool.
- To the blender, add 1/3 of tomatoes, 1 sliced jalapeño, 2 tablespoons of Maggi sauce and 1/2 cup of water. Blend on high until smooth, set aside. Heat 2 tablespoons of oil to medium/high heat. Add the seasoned beef and. Stir-fry until beef is nice and browned, tossing with tongs as needed.
- Add in the onions, garlic and 1 more sliced jalapeño. Saute for 2 minutes. Add in the tomato sauce from blender, stir well to combine. When it comes to a boil, taste for salt and reduce the heat. Cover and cook for 15 to 20 minutes. While the steak ranchero simmers, slice the cooled potatoes into wedges. Shallow fry in some olive oil at medium heat until crispy. Season with salt and pepper.
- Before serving the beef, garnish with fresh cilantro and sliced jalapeño if you like. Next, fold the potatoes into the steak ranchero. Cover and let stand for 5 minutes. Serve with rice, beans, potato wedges and warm tortillas. Garnish with crema, sasla and avocado. Yields 4 servings.
Notes
I really enjoy using the Maggi sauce as part of the seasonings. It is especially delicious for beef recipes. In a pinch you could substitute with worcestershire sauce. If using be aware that is does contain sodium.
Typically if you order steak ranchero in a mexican restaurant, at least in my experience, it comes out in one to two large pieces covered in the tomato salsa instead of sliced. The sliced version works well when preparing the dish family style.
For me, one of the steps you should never miss is the searing and browning of the meat. It adds so much more flavor.
If you are not a fan of the large chunks of vegetables, you could blend them or chop them finely before adding to your steak ranchero.
I like to cook mine until the tomato sauce reduces and becomes very thick. If you like it with more broth, just cook it for less time.
Fried potatoes, in wedges, chunks or diced are commonly found as a garnish on a variety of Mexican dishes. They were always a staple in our house. Add more flavor to your side of beans with a little chile ancho powder, cumin and garlic.
And what tasty plate of Mexican food could be without a little savory Mexican-Style Rice. Click onto picture to see full recipe right on site. The rice pictured in the plate with steak ranchero had no tomato product when I prepared it. This is why it is so light in color. It hass just a little annatto powder mixed in.
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Love the recipe. It’s the best one I found. Thank you
Thank you Anthony!