Carne con chile

Method

Slice the beef into thin, 1 inch long pieces.

Remove the stems and seeds from the chiles. Warm the chiles in a heavy skillet over medium heat. DO NOT ALLOW CHILES TO CHAR! Rip the chiles into pieces.

Pour 3/4 cup of water into a pyrex measuring cup. Place the cup in the microwave. Bring the water to a boil. Submerge the chiles in the hot water and cover until well saturated - about 1 hour. With a hand blender, purée the chile/water mixture.

In a large skillet - over low heat, place the beef and a small amount of water. Salt the beef down, cover with a lid and simmer for 30 minutes. Remove the lid. Allow the excess water to evaporate. Throw in 1 Tsp of lard. Brown the beef.

Smash the garlic clove. Pour the tomato purée, chile purée and 1/2 cup of water into the skillet. Add the garlic, cumin and Mexican oregano. Bring the liquids to a slow boil and cut the heat to a slow simmer. Simmer uncovered until heated through - 10 minutes.

Pour the Carne con Chile into a large bowl, top it with a massive amount of grated, cheddar cheese and cover the bowl - until the cheese is slightly melted. Serve with pre-warmed flour tortillas on the side. Rip-off a piece of tortilla and grab a saucy and cheesy beef hunk with it.

notes

Most any cut of meat may be used: beef sirloin, pork loin, pork butt, etc. Dark meat pork requires a longer cooking time than loin meat. The sauce should not be too thick. Adjust the water-level as needed. A Chile Guajillo or a chile Pasilla pepper may be substituted for the chile California.

In the video, a version of Carne con chile is made with beef sirloin tip by the master - Abuela.