Carne Mechada
Things to Remember
Carne Mechada
Ken's note: This is the best recipe that I have found that sounds like what we ate in Venezuela. I haven't made it yet as of 7/2019.
The mechada meat is one of the fillings of favorite arepas of Venezuelans, a delicious option that also stars in the rich pabellon, the national dish. This alternative, although it is laborious, is usually worthwhile and is that in most households prepare a good amount of meat loaf that yields enough to be enjoyed in several meals. If you want to prepare it but you do not know where to start, in unComo.com we explain how to make Venezuelan mecha meat with a delicious result.
Ingredients:
- 1 kilo of skirt steak
- 1 large onion
- 2 medium ripe tomatoes
- 1 small tin of tomate frito, or just fry and smush the tomatoes with some garlic and oil
- 2 cloves of garlic
- A small red pepper
- Worchestershire sauce (salsa inglesa)
- Cumin
- Oil
- Salt and pepper
Steps to follow to make this recipe
2 hours
1To start, it is very important to marinate the skirt meat so that it is juicy and full of flavor. In a large tray place the piece of meat and add a couple of tablespoons of oil, half a chopped onion, the 2 cloves of garlic and English sauce in abundant quantity.
2With this liquid, spread the meat and leave it marinated for at least 1 hour. It will be important to spray the meat occasionally with the mixture.
Once the marinade time has elapsed, we should proceed to soften the meat to dismember it. The best option is to place it in a pressure cooker with the juice of the marinade, salt and pepper, using this method of cooking the meat will take about 20 minutes to be ready.If you opt for a conventional pot, the meat will take about 1 hour to soften. When this happens, remove from heat and remove the meat from the pot to cool. Do not throw the preparation mixture as you will use it later.
3While the meat cools it proceeds to chop all the remaining ingredients:• Cut the half onion• Peel and diced two tomatoes• Chop the red pepper
4When the meat can be handled, you should begin to break it down following the sense of the meat's own fibers. It is important to remove excess fat and separate fine strands for a more delicious and delicate result.Once shredded, comes the final preparation of the rich mechada meat.
5In a very spacious pot or pan, add oil and bring to medium heat. Once hot, add the onion and pepper to make a sauce. When the onion begins to transparent add the tomato, stir a couple of minutes and add salt, pepper and cumin to taste. It is important that the meat has a good seasoning, so you should frequently correct the seasoning point.
6After 2 minutes have elapsed to add the tomato add the mechada meat and stir well the ingredients. Let cook 5 minutes stirring frequently, taste the seasoning point of the mixture, correct if necessary and then add the fried tomato can and a cup of the leftover broth from the previous preparation of the meat. Source: hispanickichen.com
7Your mechada meat is almost ready. Now you just have to wait for the tomato to thicken a bit, resulting in a meat with a juicy, tasty sauce and a lot of seasoning. Add a little more broth if desired and remove from the heat when you have reached the point of flavor you prefer.Now you can enjoy it with some rich arepas or in a pabellon, good profit!