So the biggest day in advertising is coming up on Sunday; specifically, in my hometown of Tampa, Florida. And while I personally think that putting on a big stadium event (with all its public parades and citywide parties), during a panoramic, is an incredibly gross look (truly, in the worst of taste) ... the fact is, people really look forward to Advertising’s Biggest Day. While I am sad to say I don’t have a client represented during this year’s celebration, I am glad to have another reason to talk about Tampa Food.
As you’re considering your immediate household’s menu for Advertising’s Biggest Day -- because you won’t be hosting or attending a party, natch -- consider a dish that is incredibly rich, savory, beefy, takes a while to make on the stove, and whose flavors are some of the best of Tampa culinary heritage: ropa vieja!
If you do as I do, you’ll have time to stir and check in on your dinner with all the football breaks. See you on Sunday with your advertising drinking game ready!
ROPA VIEJA: “OLD CLOTHES”
Ropa vieja is generally connected to the Cuban culinary tradition, but it has variations across the Caribbean and Latin America, and its origins can be traced to the Canary Islands. It’s a bit of a dissonance dish, and a real privilege to eat — in many regards. Context is critical: ropa vieja is an inaccessible dish to many Cuban citizens:
“Ropa vieja, and beef in general, are meals reserved for the rich and tourists, two words that may as well be in interchangeable in a country with an average monthly salary of about $20.”
I also want to make clear that as a white person, I don’t have any claim to this recipe beyond having tweaked it a bit in my home kitchen. My connection to it is in eating it as a kid, at various Cuban & Caribbean restaurants across Tampa. So I recognize the privilege that comes with making and enjoying ropa vieja (while appreciating & respecting the complexity that comes with it), and hope you will as well.
INGREDIENTS
6 oz. thick-cut bacon, roughly chopped
2 lb. flank steak OR brisket, cut into 1 1/2” strips
Salt & pepper to taste
1 medium yellow onion, sliced
1 red bell pepper, sliced
1 green pepper, sliced
6 oz. tomato paste (or the entirety of a tube)
1 tbsp. cumin
1 tbsp. dried thyme
1 tbsp. dried oregano
5 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 bay leaf
1/2 cup red wine
2 cups beef stock
1 16-oz. can whole peeled tomatoes, crushed
1 cup of green olives with pimento
3 tbsp. capers, rinsed and drained
1 tbsp. white wine vinegar
1/4 cup roughly chopped cilantro (optional)
Yellow rice
WHAT TO DO
Cook bacon in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Transfer to a plate with a slotted spoon, leaving the fat in the pot.
Working in batches, add the meat and cook until browned on both sides, being careful not to crowd the meat in the pan -- this will steam instead of brown it. Transfer to the plate with the bacon.
Add onion and peppers; cook until soft, about 4 minutes. Add tomato paste, cumin, thyme, oregano, garlic, and bay leaf; cook until fragrant, about 3 minutes. Add wine; cook, scraping bottom of pot, for 1 minute and reduce by a quarter or so.
Return bacon, steak, and their juices to the pot with stock and tomatoes; bring to a boil. Then, reduce heat to a simmer and cook, covered, until steak is very tender, 2–3 hours.
Remove steak, and shred; return meat to pot with olives, capers, and vinegar. Cook on low-medium heat until sauce is slightly thickened, about 30 minutes. Add cilantro if you like at serving, otherwise serve on top of yellow rice.