Picante de carne (spicy Peruvian beef stew)
Ingredients:
300 gms beef
2 tbsps oil
1 red onion, diced
1 tsp garlic, minced
3 tbsps Panca chile paste*
1 tbsp mirasol chile paste *
Salt and pepper to taste
1 tsp cumin
2 bay leaves
2 cups beef stock
1 carrot, sliced into rounds
½ cup peas
500 gms potato, diced small
Chopped parsley
*If you can’t find ají panca, use ancho or guajillo chiles. The mirasol is a tiny, round, hot pepper; in Mexico, they’d probably use chiltepin or chile de arbol.
Method:
Cut the meat into cubes, add s&p then set to one side
Heat the oil in a pan and sauté the beef. Remove.
In the same pan, fry the chopped onion until soft. Add the garlic and cook for a minute.
Add the chiles and fry for 5 minutes (or less, if you’re using ground chiles)
Add the beef, the bay leaves and the stock and mix well together. Put the lid on and cook for about 20 minutes, or until the meat is cooked to your liking.
Now add the carrot, the peas and the potato. Mix, add a little more stock if necessary and cook for 8-10 minutes, or until the potatoes are soft.
Finally add the parsley, mix well together & serve.
