By Pati’s Mexican Table
Pati travels to Mexico City to reconnect with her father and help him cook one of her favorite childhood meals: Huevos a la Mexicana. Back in her own kitchen, she’ll use that visit as inspiration to cook a few dishes that she remembers fondly from childhood, and then pass on the tradition by cooking dessert with her youngest son Juju.
SHREDDED FLANK STEAK WITH POTATOES IN GREEN SALSA
Carne en Salsa Verde con Papitas
Serves 6
INGREDIENTS
– 2 pounds flank steak, cut into 3 to 4” chunks
– 2 bay leaves
– half of a white onion
– 3 garlic cloves, peeled
– 1 teaspoon kosher or sea salt
– 10 black peppercorns, optional
– 1 pound tomatillos, husks removed and rinsed
– 1 garlic clove, peeled
– 1 jalapeño or serrano chile, more or less to taste
– 1/3 cup coarsely chopped white onion
– 1cup cilantro leaves and top part of stems
– ½ teaspoon kosher or coarse sea salt, or more to taste
– 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
– 1 pound baby red potatoes (if they are not so small, halved or quartered to be bite size)
DIRECTIONS
Place meat in soup or heavy pot along with the bay leaves, half an onion, garlic cloves, salt and black peppercorns. Cover with water up to 2 inches above top of the meat. Bring to a boil over medium high heat, reduce the heat to medium and simmer, partially covered, for 50 minutes to an hour, until the meat is thoroughly cooked and soft. Strain, reserving 3 cups of the meat broth. Once the meat has cooled enough to handle, shred it into pieces.
Place tomatillos, garlic and chiles in a saucepan and cover with water. Bring to a simmer over medium heat, and cook until the tomatillos have changed their color from bright to pale green, and are soft and thoroughly cooked but not coming apart, about 10 minutes. Drain and place in a blender or food processor, adding only one chile to begin. Add the onion, cilantro and salt to the blender and puree until smooth. Taste for heat, adding more chile until you have the desired amount of heat.
Heat the oil in a large casserole over medium heat. When the oil is hot but not smoking, pour the salsa into the saucepan, along with the potatoes and cook, partially covered, until the sauce thickens slightly, about 5 to 6 minutes. Toss in the shredded meat and pour in 2 cups of the meat broth. Stir and cook uncovered for about 25 minutes, or until the potatoes are completely cooked through and soft and the stew has thickened considerably. Add more broth if the sauce is thickening too much.
Serve with a side of warm corn tortillas.
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