I have been cooking for so long and mastered nearly all the basics that I find myself branching out to dishes and cuisines that are outside of my comfort or familiarity zone. I have simplified a classic adobo recipe compared to the traditional but still offers complex flavors. To add to this recipes' simplicity I used regular cubed stew beef instead of a more classic flank steak.
Note: there is spicy heat.
Adobo weather it is Mexican or Filipino is generally served as a sauce with chicken or pork. For all you red blooded eaters out there this recipe features beef. This recipe leans towards Mexican cuisine and while a great adobo takes hours of preparation and dozens of warm toasty ingredients you can make a great tasting adobo with fewer ingredients and prep. steps. I also prefer to use my crockpot for my long slow braise dishes rather than the oven. The oven simply over heats one's small apartment and clean up is so much easier. Serves 6.
2 lbs. cubed beef stew meat
2.5 oz. dried Pasilla seeded chilis (approx. 6 large)
3/4 cup tomatillo salsa
3/4 cup chicken broth
1 cup orange juice
4 limes, juiced
1 ripe mango
1/3 cup dark brown sugar
1/4 cup raisins
1/2 tea. salt
1/2 tea. black pepper
1 1/2 tea. oregano
1/4 tea. cinnamon
1/8 tea. cardamom seeds, crushed
Zest of 1 lime
1 onion, diced
1/4 tea. salt
8 garlic cloves, crushed
1 Tbl. cumin
Cut open Pasilla chilis and remove seeds and stem, toast in 350-degree preheated oven for 4 minutes until toasted.
Then place in a bowl of warm water to soften.
In a frying pan brown cubed meat in two batches with olive oil, remove to your preheated crockpot or large baking dish. In the same pan with beef drippings brown chopped onion until translucent then add salt, crushed garlic and cumin. Stir for 2 minutes to bloom cumin and garlic. Add to the browned beef cube.
To prepare the adobo sauce remove soaking chilis to a blender. Add remaining ingredients: tomatillo salsa, chicken broth, orange juice, lime juice, brown sugar, salt, pepper oregano and cinnamon. Blenderize until smooth. Pour sauce over meat and onion mix and cook in hot crockpot or 350-degree oven covered for 90 minutes.
Garnish with crumbled Cotija cheese and chopped fresh cilantro. Feel free to add slices of fresh avocado and a quick squeeze of fresh lime. Serve with freshly made warm flour tortilla.
Save any extra leftover sauce and pour over cooked turkey meat or make another quickie dish using uncooked turkey in a saucepan until cooked through.
- Per Serving:
- Calories: 388.8 kcal
- Total Fat: 15.21 g
- Cholesterol: 53.33 mg
- Sodium: 531.71 mg
- Carbohydrates: 41.61 g
- Dietary Fiber: 5.44 g
- Sugars: 30.69 g
- Protein: 30.14 g
America's Test Kitchen has their following take on making flour tortillas:
2 cups all purpose flour
1 1/4 tea. salt
5 Tbl. lard
2/3 cup warm water
Mix all ingredients in a large bowl and knead to form a smooth ball. Cut into 12 pieces and roll into smaller balls. Rest dough covered for 30 minutes. Roll out each dough ball into a 6-inch disk and place one tortilla at a time on a hot skillet and allow to cook on one side for one minute until large air bubbles form. Turn over for another 30 seconds until interior is cooked. Keep warm inside a clean folded towel until ready to serve.
