Inspiration: Being in a meat CSA has a ton of benefits. First and foremost, B and I are always sure that the meat that we’re eating has come from humanely raised animals, which is the reason that we joined the CSA in the first place. Awesome, awesome, awesome. But another added benefit is that we always have a freezer full of different cuts of meat that we have to build our menus around. It’s fun to figure out what to make with a random leg of lamb or an emu steak or, in this case, an English roast.

What we Loved: I’ve been making an effort to clean out my pantry and use up random ingredients, so I changed this recipe to use an extra can of tomato sauce that I had floating around. I immediately regretted the decision, thinking that by substituting tomato sauce for chopped tomatoes and water, I had ruined the recipe and made it into something much more like a tomato-based chili. But you know what? My worries were for nothing, because this meal was awesome and completely unique. The only liquid ingredients that I used were the tomato sauce and a bottle of Negra Modelo, and the prominent flavor of the stew was really that of the Negra Modelo. The beer is rich, nutty, a little bit sweet, a little bit smoky…and the stew was just the same. Such a fantastic flavor. The meat was incredibly tender and shredded right apart in the stew, and the garnish of cilantro added such a fresh herb flavor. And what better compliment to the meal than a couple of cold bottles of Negra Modelo?

Helpful Hints: The original recipe calls for simmering the stew on the stovetop, but I cooked mine in the crock pot all day because I had a bunch of errands to run. I think the sauce would be a little thicker if you simmer the stew on the stovetop, but the crockpot version was wonderful, too.

Carne Guisada
Source: Homesick Texan

I made some changes to the ingredient list and also cooked the recipe in my crock pot. I have a stove-top safe insert for my crockpot, but I will give the instructions for a regular crockpot. If you have a stove-top safe insert, just cook everything in the insert.

2 pounds beef roast, cut into 1-inch cubes
Extra virgin olive oil
1 onion, diced
2 jalapeno peppers, diced
2 serrano peppers, diced
5 cloves garlic, minced
1 14.5 oz can tomato sauce
1 12 oz bottle Negra Modelo
1 tablespoon cumin
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 teaspoon oregano
1/2 cup cilantro, chopped
1 bay leaf

1. Brown the beef in a saute pan over medium high heat. Add the beef to the pan in small batches, which will allow a nice brown crust to form. Remove the beef to a plate and set aside.

2. Add a drizzle of olive oil to the saute pan. Add the onions and peppers, and cook until the onions are translucent and starting to brown, approximately ten minutes. Scrape the bottom of the pan while the onions are cooking to release the browned bits. Add the garlic, and cook for an additional minute.

3. Place the beef and onion mixture in your crockpot. Add the tomato sauce, Negra Modelo, cumin, chili powder, oregano, cilantro, and bay leaf.

4. Cook on low for 7-8 hours. Serve garnished with cilantro.