Another recipe inspired by the collective motivation of the Internet BBQ and food communities I participate in. This week’s challenge was “cook something Cuban”. Ropa Vieja literally means “old clothes” and the traditional way of cooking this is “as a stew” probably in a Dutch Oven or similar. I found this updated recipe and thought I’d give it a go.
Cuban grandmothers may well turn their noses at this interpretation of their classic, national dish. This is supposed to be a rustic dish, cooked slowly so the beef is “pulled” rather than carved. To be fair, the results of the traditional method looks great too, and I’ll need to give that a go at some point in the future.
This “posh” approach sounded intriguing and has far more theatre involved…so of course it’s how I did it…
Ropa Vieja Roulade
A classy take on a classic Cuban dish. Ropa Vieja ("old clothes") is traditionally served as a stew, but this takes the same ingredients, refines it just a little, into a very acceptable dinner party main course.
Equipment
- Kamado Joe Junior
Ingredients
- 3 poblano peppers
- 2 red bell peppers
- 1 large white onion sliced into one inch rounds
- 1 large (2lb) flank steak
- ½ cup cilantro leaves, finely chopped
- ⅓ cup tomato paste
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- 6 spring onions (scallions) white and light green parts, finely chopped
- kosher/sea salt
- ½ cup pimento stuffed green olives
Instructions
- Set up the Kamado Joe Junior for direct cooking at 350°F
- Grill the red and poblano peppers over the direct heat turning occasionally until charred on the outside. This should take around 15 minutes. When done, transfer to a bowl and cover so they steam in their own heat for a further 10 minutes.
- While they're steaming, grill the onion discs until softened and slightly golden – 10 minutes or so. Transfer these to a plate.
- Peel the peppers and discard the skins, stems and seeds. Cut the peppers into half inch thick strips.
- Take the flank steak and put it in front of you on a cutting board so that the long edge is facing you. There should be a "pointy side" and a wide side. Starting at the pointy side, cut into the steak horizontally (you're "butterflying" the steak. Keep cutting across the steak until you're an inch away from the wide side. The whole thing should open up like a page in a book so you have one long steak.
- Pound the meat with a mallet or rolling pin so the whole thing is ¼inch thick. Set it to one side.
- In a bowl, combine the cilantro, tomato paste, oil, cumin, oregano, spring onions and two teaspoons of salt. Mix well.
- Arrange the steak on a board, with the long edge facing you. Spread the tomato/cilantro mixture evenly over the steak. Take the poblano strips, bell pepper strips, onion strips and olives and distribute over the steak/paste. Don't overfill it. One layer with even quantities of the four ingredients, and a two inch "empty space" on each end is what you want.
- Roll up the steak like a Swiss Roll, starting at the left edge. Use butcher's twine to secure the roll at 2 inch intervals. For good measure, tie a piece lengthwise around the steak too.
- The Kamado should still be at 350°F and set up for direct cooking. Place the steak on the grill and brown it on all sides and edges – about 2 minutes per side.
- Once it's browned, remove from the heat and install the heat deflector to switch to indirect cooking. Insert a meat probe into the steak, and put the steak back into the Kamado. Close the lid and monitor the cook until the steak is at 120°F in the centre. Turn it occasionally if you want to – the cook should take around 30 minutes. It should be medium rare in the middle and well done on the outside.
- Remove from the heat when the probe is at temperature. Leave to rest for 10 minutes. Carve into six thick "wheels" and serve.
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