This is one of my all time favorite dishes! I was born in South America and love to try all Spanish dishes but one of my favorite cuisines is Cuban.
I've tried a few different Cuban dishes and so far my favorites are Vaca Frita (I have yet to attempt making this myself) and Ropa Vieja.
Ropa Vieja, which translates to "Old Clothes", is a tomato based shredded beef dish. It originated as a beef stew and is one of Cuba's national dishes. There are different stories on why it got the name "Old Clothes" but my favorite is the tale of a man that couldn't afford to feed his family so he shredded and cooked his own clothes hoping for it to turn into food. After praying while it "cooked", it turned into a beef stew. Although this is just a tale, stories like this make you really appreciate what we have and it makes the dish that much more interesting!
A few years ago my husband found a recipe for us (a.k.a. him) to cook at home. He has always told me how simple the recipe is but up until now I didn't want to try to make it myself and end up ruining my favorite dish!
Even though I have been cooking for a few months, and have become super comfortable with slow cooker recipes, I was still nervous to try this one but it was time! It came out as delicious as he makes it! It may have even been a little better (Just Kidding 😉).
Below is the original recipe with a few modifications (courtesy of my husband) we have made to add more flavor:
- In our version we add about 1-2 tbsp. of cumin
- We use slightly less tomato paste and sauce so it's not too liquidy
-We like to add A LOT of cilantro. At least a handful (see picture below for reference)
We add extra cilantro before cooking to give it more flavor.
After you shred the beef, mix it back into the sauce and let it sit for a few minutes on warm before serving.
You can top it off with chopped red onion to give it a little crunch and more cilantro.
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