Cazuela de Vaca
As temperatures cool and the autumn sets in, we look for new ways to enjoy the summer's bounty. So, this recipe for Cazuela de Vaca (Beef and Pumpkin Stew) which showed up in my email a few days ago looked worth checking out.
Since we had a butternut squash already, I decided to use that instead of the pumpkin. And, instead of the one large chunk of each ingredient in the recipe, we chopped the ingredients a bit smaller. And, I skipped the polenta and reduced the number of potatoes to keep the starch down. Normally I would buy a roast or some round or sirloin steak and cut it myself, but since the butcher at the grocery had some already cut for the same price, I was lazy and bought that.
Here is my version.
Ingredients
2 Tbsp vegetable oil1 1/2 pounds beef roast
1 (32 ounce) carton beef broth
2 cups water
5 red potatoes, cut in small chunks
1 1/2 medium onions, coarsely chopped
1 1/2 pounds chopped butternut squash
1 ear fresh corn, cut into four sections
1 carrot, peeled and cut into small chunks
1 red bell pepper, seeded and cut into 1 inch pieces
2 stalks celery, cut into small chunks
3 green onions, chopped coarsely
1/2 Tbsp minced garlic
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp paprika
1/2 cup coarsely chpped cilantro leaves
Directions:
1. Cut the beef into small chunks. Heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium high heat. Add the beef chunks and brown briefly. Add the garlic, onions, and celery chunks and cook until the onions are partly cooked and begin to soften. Pour in the beef broth and water. Heat to a boil, reduce heat to medium, cover and simmer about one hour or until tender.
2. Add the potatoes and cook for 15 minutes.
3, Add the squash, corn, carrot, bell pepper, and green onions. Add the dried oregano also. Simmer about 10 minutes until the vegetables are tender. Sprinkle the paprika on the stew and stir thoroughly. Heat for 5 more minutes.
4. Ladle into serving bowls, and sprinkle with chopped cilantro.
Enjoy!
We served it with some small multigrain crackers.
