Carne en su Jugo

There’s your Spanish lesson for the day. Carne en su jugo basically translates to meat in its juices. A little known fact that I took many, many years of Spanish and really only use it when ordering at my local taco shop. Many of the waitresses there actually go at me with the Spanish language right off the bat, that I actually have no idea what they are saying, and then I have to speak in English. Oh well, at least I try, right?

I first game across this dish when eating in Dallas, and was completely blown away. It basically is slow cooked meat, in its juices (obviously) that is paired with cooked bacon, and pinto beans. The one I had in Dallas was cooked in a tomatillo, jalapeño, and cilantro broth, almost like a chili verde, so I thought I would jazz it up a bit and go with a deeper beef base and utilize chipotles in adobo sauce rather than the one I experienced in the past. Let’s just say as the one in Dallas was good, this one was awesome, and it’s down right comforting.

Let’s get started.

Ingredients:

• 2 lbs of beef bottom round, thinly sliced, roughly chopped
• 1/2 tbsp cooking oil
• 2 15 oz cans of pinto beans, drained, rinsed
• 2 chipotles in adobo sauce (reduce to one for less spice)
• 4 cloves of garlic, peeled
• 4 cups of beef stock
• 1 tsp cumin powder
• 1 whole onion, roughly chopped
• 8 slices of bacon, chopped, and cooked
• fresh cilantro
• lime wedges, optional
• fresh jalapeño, thinly sliced, optional
• salt and pepper to taste

Start by preparing all of your ingredients. Once prepared add one cup of the stock to a blender. Toss in half a cup of fresh cilantro, the chipotle chili peppers, and the garlic. Blend until you have a smooth texture. Set aside.

Next, heat your a medium, to large size pot onto the stove and bring to a medium-high heat. Toss in the oil, then add in the chopped beef. Spread evenly and let it cook for about 5 minutes, undisturbed. Give a good stir, and reserve all of the liquid that gets extracted from the beef.  Add in the chipotle beef stock mixture, and give a good stir. Add the remaining stock, the cumin powder, and the pinto beans. Stir, cover, and reduce  the heat to a simmer. Cook for about 45 minutes.

During this time, cook your bacon. Once cooked, place onto a paper lined sheet to remove any excess bacon grease. Pour out the grease, but reserve about a tablespoon to cook the onions in. Add the chopped onions and cook for about 8 minutes or so, until they are translucent, not caramelized. Remove the onions and place them in a bowl.

Now onto plating.

Ladle a generous amount into your soup bowl. Add some cooked bacon, fresh cilantro, a squeeze of lime, and a couple of spoonfuls of the cooked onion.

Dig in.  This soup has everything in one of my favorite bowls of soup. It had that smokiness from the Nueske’s bacon, along with great heat from the chipotle peppers that is perfectly balanced by the sweetness of the onion. Now that you have that going on for you, you will keep spooning away with the great flavor from the garlic and cilantro, the super tender beef, and the creaminess of the pinto beans. Need I say more?

I wanted another bowl, but I refrained from doing so. Let’s just say this will be packed for lunch for the week, if it lasts that long. Give this one a shot, it’s really, really good, and perfect on this long winter we have been having. I hope you enjoy!

Carne en su Jugo

Dax Phillips

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Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 1 hour hr

Total Time 1 hour hr 10 minutes mins

Course Soup

Cuisine Mexican

Servings 6

Ingredients

  

• 2 lbs of beef bottom round thinly sliced, roughly chopped
• 1/2 tbsp cooking oil
• 2 15 oz cans of pinto beans drained, rinsed
• 2 chipotles in adobo sauce reduce to one for less spice
• 4 cloves of garlic peeled
• 4 cups of beef stock
• 1 tsp cumin powder
• 1 whole onion roughly chopped
• 8 slices of bacon chopped, and cooked
• fresh cilantro
• lime wedges optional
• fresh jalapeño thinly sliced, optional
• salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

 

• Start by preparing all of your ingredients. Once prepared add one cup of the stock to a blender. Toss in half a cup of fresh cilantro, the chipotle chili peppers, and the garlic. Blend until you have a smooth texture. Set aside.
• Next, heat your a medium, to large size pot onto the stove and bring to a medium-high heat. Toss in the oil, then add in the chopped beef. Spread evenly and let it cook for about 5 minutes, undisturbed. Give a good stir, and reserve all of the liquid that gets extracted from the beef. Add in the chipotle beef stock mixture, and give a good stir. Add the remaining stock, the cumin powder, and the pinto beans. Stir, cover, and reduce the heat to a simmer. Cook for about 45 minutes.
• During this time, cook your bacon. Once cooked, place onto a paper lined sheet to remove any excess bacon grease. Pour out the grease, but reserve about a tablespoon to cook the onions in. Add the chopped onions and cook for about 8 minutes or so, until they are translucent, not caramelized. Remove the onions and place them in a bowl.
• Now onto plating.
• Ladle a generous amount into your soup bowl. Add some cooked bacon, fresh cilantro, a squeeze of lime, and a couple of spoonfuls of the cooked onion.
• Dig in. This soup has everything in one of my favorite bowls of soup. It had that smokiness from the Nueske’s bacon, along with great heat from the chipotle peppers that is perfectly balanced by the sweetness of the onion. Now that you have that going on for you, you will keep spooning away with the great flavor from the garlic and cilantro, the super tender beef, and the creaminess of the pinto beans. Need I say more?