La Nueva Ropa Vieja

By ginasheppard

Use leftovers to make Beef Tortilla Soup!

Ingredients

• Makes 4 generous servings with about 5 C. leftover beef mixture and broth for Beefy Tortilla Soup.
• Cook's note: Sirloin steak or chuck roast can also be used. The exact seasoning for the diced tomatoes doesn't matter as long as you choose a type that includes garlic.
• 1 can (8 oz.) tomato sauce
• 1/2 C. water
• 3 bay leaves
• 1 T. red-wine vinegar
• 2 t. bottled,minced garlic
• 1/2 t. ground cumin
• 1/4 t. salt
• 1/4 t. black pepper
• 1 large onion (for about 1 C. diced)
• 2 lb. skirt or flank steak (see Cook's note)
• 1 red bell pepper (for about 1 C. pieces)
• 1 can (14.5 oz.) diced tomatoes seasoned with garlic and olive oil (see Cook's note)
• 2 cups cooked rice or noodles for serving.

Details

Servings 4

Preparation

Step 1

Put the tomato sauce, water, bay leaves, vinegar, garlic, cumin, salt and black pepper into a slow cooker. Stir to combine. Peel the onion, and cut it into quarters. Dice the onion and add it to the pot. Place the beef over the onion and spoon some of the liquid over the meat.

Rinse the bell peoppers and discard the seeds and membrnes. Cut the peppers into quarters, dice and place them in the crock pot. Pour the diced tomatoes with their juice evenly on top. Cover the pot and cook on low until the meat is so tender that it practically falls apart, about 8 hours if using skirt or flank steak, or 10 hours if using sirloin or chuck.

Before serving, transfer the beef and vegetables from the slow cooker to a large serving bowl. Use two forks to pull the beef apart into shreds. There should be some cooking juices in the bowl, but if not, add about 1/2 C. juices. Stir to mix the beef and vegetables. Season with additional salt and pepper, if desired. Serve all but 2 cups of the beef/vegetable mixture over a bed of hot rice or noodles.

To store the leftovers: Refrigerate the remaining 2 C. of the beef mixture in a large, covered storage container. Pour all of the cooking juices (just over 3 cups) into a separate container and refrigerate overnight to let any fat rise to the top. Discrd the fat from the broth, and then add the remaining broth to the beef/vegetable mixture.

Freeze for up to 1 month, (or the mixture may be refrigerated for up to 3 days).

Defrost overnight in the refrigerator or uuse the microwave according to the mainufacturer's defrosting instructions.