This Carne Guisada is a delicious Latin Beef Stew made with chunks of beef slowly cooked in the most delicious gravy. Serve it with rice, refried beans and warmed up tortillas for the ultimate dinner.
Easy Carne Guisada Recipe
I always say that in another life I was probably Italian or Mexican because those are my favorite cuisines of all time. This time of year as we approach Cinco de Mayo is also a favorite time of the year for me because it gives me an excuse to start making all kinds of Mexican or Latin dishes. Not that I need an excuse.
But let’s talk about this Carne Guisada because it’s hands down my favorite beef stew ever. Carne Guisada literally means stewed meat. You’ll want to use a stewing meat in this recipe, because we’re slowly cooking it, so it has time to become fork tender and delicious. The beef is slowly cooked in this flavorful gravy that’s loaded with lots of great spices and is thick and rich.
Carne Guisada Highlights
- Simple To Make. While this recipe takes a bit longer to make because we’re slow cooking the meat, it’s quite simple to put together. Sear the meat, make the gravy, then all you have to do is slowly let it simmer.
- Rich And Flavorful. If you take the time to make this carne guisada, the end result will be so worth it. Succulent, fork tender beef with the most tasty gravy loaded with latin spices.
Ingredients You’ll Need
- Beef – Since, we’re slowly cooking the beef, any stew meat will be perfect for this recipe such as chuck roast, or beef round.
- Broth – The best would be a beef broth, preferably low sodium, but you can use a vegetable stock as well.
- Veggies – You’ll need onion, bell peppers and some fresh garlic here to add lots of great flavor to our gravy.
- Tomatoes – I prefer using Roma tomatoes cut into pieces, but any regular tomatoes will work. You can also use diced tomatoes.
- Tomato Paste – The tomato paste will intensify the umami tomato flavor already in the dish.
- Spices – You’ll need some chili powder, cumin, salt, pepper and a beef bouillon. Feel free to adjust the quantities to your preference. My chili powder was a mild one, so if you’re using a hot chili powder, you can use less.
- Flour – We’ll need some all-purpose flour to thicken our gravy.
- Oil – We need some olive oil or even vegetable oil to sear the beef in.
How To Make Carne Guisada
- Sear the beef. Add 2 tablespoons of the olive oil to a large skillet and heat over medium-high heat. Add the stew meat and cook until browned on all sides, about 5 to 7 minutes. Transfer the beef to a plate and set aside. You might have to do this in batches, you don’t want to overcrowd the meat in the pan. If doing in batches, only add 1 tablespoon of oil at a time.
- Cook the veggies. Drizzle the remaining olive oil to the skillet. Add the onion, bell pepper and cook for about 3 minutes until the onion becomes translucent. Add the garlic and cook for another minute until aromatic. Stir in the tomatoes and cook for another minute.
- Add the spices. Season with salt, pepper, cumin and chili powder. Stir well. Add the tomato paste and crumble up the beef bouillon, stir, scraping up the browned bits from the bottom of the pan.
- Start the gravy. Sprinkle the flour over the veggies and stir well while cooking for another 1 to 2 minutes to remove the raw flour taste. Add a cup of the beef broth and stir everything together. The mixture should start to thicken from the flour.
- Add the beef and cook. Add the beef back to the skillet then another 2 cups of beef broth, stir until combined. Cover and cook for 1 and a half hours or more until the meat falls apart, over low heat, stirring occasionally. Add more beef broth if gravy is too thick.
- Garnish and serve. Taste for seasoning and adjust with salt and pepper as needed. Garnish with cilantro and serve alongside with rice and tortillas.
Can I Make This Stew Gluten Free
You can definitely replace the flour with corn starch, just make a slurry with a couple tablespoons of corn starch and a couple tablespoons of water then add as needed to achieve desired gravy thickness. Also make sure that other ingredients used are gluten-free.
Instant Pot Carne Guisada
The great news is that you can make this beef stew quicker in your pressure cooker. Simply sear the meat as instructed then add all the ingredients, minus the flour and stir. Cook on high pressure for 35 minutes then make a corn starch slurry with a couple tablespoons of corn starch and a couple tablespoons of water. Stir a bit at a time into the stew as needed to achieve desired gravy thickness.
What’s The Best Beef To Use For Stew
Make sure you use the right cut of meat for your stew! Opt for a less expensive, tougher cut. Because of the slow cooking, tougher beef cuts like chuck or round break down and become really tender and that’s exactly what we want in a stew, fall apart tender beef! These are the best beef options for your stew:
- Chuck Roast (my preference)
- Top Round
- Rump Roast
- Chuck Shoulder
- Eye Round Roast
How To Serve Carne Guisada
Expert Tips
- Searing the beef before actually slow cooking it is very important to caramelize the natural sugars in the meat and brown the meat. It forms a rich and delicious crust on the surface which amplifies the flavor of the entire dish.
- This stew is low carb and delicious as is, but sometimes potatoes are added to it for a heartier stew.
- Use beer instead of beef broth to add more richness to the stew.
- The simmering time can vary, depending on what cut of beef you use and the size of your beef cubes. The longer you cook it, the more tender the beef will be.
- This stew is not meant to be hot or spicy but feel free to use a hot chili powder, add in some crushed red peppers or even some cayenne pepper.
Leftovers
Store leftover carne guisada in an airtight container for 3 to 5 days. You can also freeze it for up to 6 months. Simply reheat it in the microwave or in a skillet by adding a splash of beef broth to it.
More Latin Recipes To Try
- Birria Tacos
- Carne Asada
- Pollo Asado (Chicken Asado)
- Arroz Con Pollo
- Tacos Al Pastor
- Pork Carnitas
- Barbacoa
- Chimichangas
- Sopapillas
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Carne Guisada
Equipment
Ingredients
- ¼ cup olive oil or vegetable oil
- 3 pounds stew meat cut into small bite size pieces, 1-inch cubes
- 1 large onion or 2 small ones, chopped
- 1 medium green bell pepper chopped
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 3 large roma tomatoes diced
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 2 teaspoons cumin ground
- 1½ teaspoons chili powder
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- 1 cube beef bouillon
- 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour or more for thicker gravy
- 3-4 cups beef broth low sodium
- 2 tablespoons fresh cilantro chopped, for garnish
Instructions
- Sear the beef. Add 2 tablespoons of the olive oil to a large skillet and heat over medium-high heat. Add the stew meat and cook until browned on all sides, about 5 to 7 minutes. Transfer the beef to a plate and set aside. You might have to do this in batches, you don't want to overcrowd the meat in the pan. If doing in batches, only add 1 tablespoon of oil at a time.
- Cook the veggies. Drizzle the remaining olive oil to the skillet. Add the onion, bell pepper and cook for about 3 minutes until the onion becomes translucent. Add the garlic and cook for another minute until aromatic. Stir in the tomatoes and cook for another minute.
- Add the spices. Season with salt, pepper, cumin and chili powder. Stir well. Add the tomato paste and crumble up the beef bouillon, stir, scraping up the browned bits from the bottom of the pan.
- Start the gravy. Sprinkle the flour over the veggies and stir well while cooking for another 1 to 2 minutes to remove the raw flour taste. Add a cup of the beef broth and stir everything together. The mixture should start to thicken from the flour.
- Add the beef and cook. Add the beef back to the skillet then another 2 cups of beef broth, stir until combined. Cover and cook for 1 and a half hours or more until the meat falls apart, over low heat, stirring occasionally. Add more beef broth if gravy is too thick.
- Garnish and serve. Taste for seasoning and adjust with salt and pepper as needed. Garnish with cilantro and serve alongside with rice and tortillas.
Video
Recipe Notes
- Searing the beef before actually slow cooking it is very important to caramelize the natural sugars in the meat and brown the meat. It forms a rich and delicious crust on the surface which amplifies the flavor of the entire dish.
- This stew is low carb and delicious as is, but sometimes potatoes are added to it for a heartier stew.
- Use beer instead of beef broth to add more richness to the stew.
- The simmering time can vary, depending on what cut of beef you use and the size of your beef cubes. The longer you cook it, the more tender the beef will be.Â
- This stew is not meant to be hot or spicy but feel free to use a hot chili powder, add in some crushed red peppers or even some cayenne pepper.
- Store leftover carne guisada in an airtight container for 3 to 5 days. You can also freeze it for up to 6 months. Simply reheat it in the microwave or in a skillet by adding a splash of beef broth to it.
Delicious Pork, so flavorful, tender, and with perfect spices.
So glad you liked it!
Hi Jo, thanks for this great recipe! What changes would you make to cook this is a crock pot?
So I would probably do the same as the instant pot version. Sear the meat first then add everything to the crockpot without the flour, cook on low for 8 hours and then thicken it with the corn starch slurry.
Can pork be substituted for the beef?
Sure, I would probably use pork shoulder.