Ropa Vieja Canaria
Beef chuck does the heavy lifting here, with chickpeas rounding it out. A Spanish dinner that takes 120 minutes, start to finish.
✓ USDA-verified nutrition data
625 calories
55g protein
37g carbs
25g fat
5g fiber
Ingredients
- 2.5 lb Beef chuck
- 2 cups Chickpeas
- 3 Potatoes
- 1 Red bell pepper
- 1 Onion
- 3 Tomatoes
- 5 cloves Garlic
- 2 tsp Smoked paprika
- 1 cup White wine
Steps
- Simmer the beef with onion, garlic, and bay 90 minutes until it shreds at a touch; reserve the broth.
- Shred the meat into long strands — ropa vieja means “old clothes,” named for the tattered look.
- Soften the pepper, onion, and tomatoes in olive oil 12 minutes into a rich sofrito with paprika.
- Add the shredded beef, chickpeas, and potato chunks with enough broth to braise; simmer 25 minutes.
- The potatoes should be tender and the broth reduced to a clinging sauce.
- Rest 10 minutes and serve with white rice; the Canarian version adds chickpeas to the Cuban classic’s formula.
- Traditionally made from the previous day’s puchero leftovers — the best ropa vieja is always a second act.