“Old Clothes” Recipe
- One 2¼- to 2½ pound chuck roast or two 1¼-pound flank steaks
- Fine sea or kosher salt
- Freshly ground pepper
- Onion powder
- 3 tablespoons canola oil
- ½ cup Sofrito
- ¼ teaspoon ground cumin
- Olive oil, as needed
- Two 8-ounce cans Spanish-style tomato sauce
- ½ cups water
- 3 tablespoons alcaparrado or coarsely chopped pimiento-stuffed olives
- 2 bay leaves
- 4 celery stalks, with leaves, cut into ¼-inch dice
- 3 medium carrots, trimmed and cut into ¼-inch dice
- 1 cup fresh or frozen green peas
- Pound the chuck roast or flank steaks with a heavy meat mallet until about ½ inch thick. Season both sides of the beef generously with salt, pepper, and onion powder.
- Heat the canola oil in a large, heavy, ovenproof skillet over high heat until rippling. Add the beef and cook it until well browned on both sides, about 10 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Drain or spoon off most of the fat from the pan. Stir in the sofrito, 2 teaspoons salt, and the cumin, and bring to a boil. Depending on how much oil was left in the pan, you may have to add a little olive oil to give the mix a creamy texture. Stir in the tomato sauce, water, alcaparrado, and bay leaves. Bring to a boil, cover the dish, put it in the oven, and bake until the meat pulls apart easily with a fork, about 2½ hours. Let stand in the sauce until cool enough to handle.
- Shred the meat coarsely by hand or use two forks. Return it to the sauce and add the celery and carrots. Bring to a simmer over low heat and cook until the vegetables are tender, about 10 minutes. Stir in the peas and cook a few minutes more. Watch the liquid as it cooks and add more broth or water as needed.
