Machaca (Authentic Mexican Shredded Beef)

BecR's Note:

An authentic Mexican recipe from the book "Mexican Cookery" by Barbara Hansen. This delectable shredded beef is perfection! Wonderful served stuffed into a warm flour tortilla. Recipe is easily doubled, or tripled. Could also be made in the crock pot.

• Total Time: 2 hrs 15 mins
• Prep Time: 15 mins
• Cook Time: 2 hrs

Ingredients:

Servings: 4

• 1 lb boneless beef chuck
• 1 cup water
• 6 peppercorns
• ¼ medium onion
• salt
• 1 garlic clove
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• ½ medium onion , chopped
• 1 california chili pepper , roasted, peeled (or 1 roasted and peeled poblano chili, or 1 canned whole green chili)
• 2 small tomatoes , peeled, chopped (1/2 pound)
• ¼ teaspoon ground cumin
• fresh ground pepper (to taste)

Directions:

1. Place meat in large saucepan. Add water, peppercorns, 1/4 onion and salt to taste. Bring to a boil, reduce heat. Cover and simmer until meat is very tender, about 1 1/2 hours.
2. Cool meat in broth. Drain, reserving 1/3 cup broth. Mash garlic with 1/4 teaspoon salt to make a paste. Heat oil in a large skillet. Add chopped onion and garlic paste. Cook until onion is tender. Cut chili into short strips. Add chili strips and tomatoes to cooked onion.
3. Cook 3 to 4 minutes. Add meat, cumin and freshly ground pepper to taste. Cook until meat is heated through. Stir in reserved broth. Taste and add salt if needed. Keep warm.
4. NOTE: Can be served as a main dish or in tacos or other tortilla dishes.

Reviews

[Kathiecooks!!]

yummy authentic and sooooo good! i'm trying it with chipotle in adobo today for a smoky beef burrito!! gotta love it!!

[Muffin Goddess]

I was pretty impressed with this! I was a teensy bit put off by the amount of fat in the meat (before it was cooked), but I simmered the meat yesterday afternoon and allowed it to chill until this morning due to time constraints. I skimmed the solidified fat, removed all the "sketchy parts" lol, and pulled the beef into chunks. I used a poblano for the chile pepper, but also ended up adding one diced serrano because DH likes the extra heat. I served this with some leftover red chile sauce and Monterey Jack polenta (reserved from another meal which had no leftover meat), then used fresh pico de gallo as a condiment. VERY good! I think my next use for the little bit of leftover meat is going to be burritos. I'd definitely make this one again, thanks for posting! Made for PAC Spring 08 :)