Seco de Res // Cilantro Beef Stew

Ingredients

• 2 pounds of stew meat, cubed
• 2 cups of stout beer, divided
• 2 teaspoons of salt, divided
• 2 teaspoons of cumin powder
• 2 onions
• 3 Peruvian yellow peppers, deveined and seeded
• 4 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
• 2 teaspoons canola oil
• 1 beef bouillon cube
• 1 cup of pureed cilantro (about 4 cups of leaves blended with 1 cup of water)
• 2 carrots, peeled and sliced
• 1 cup of fresh peas

Preparation

1. In a large bowl, combine stew meat with dark beer, 1 teaspoon of salt and the cumin powder. Stir to coat meat with beer mixture. Allow this to marinate while preparing the other ingredients or overnight; stir occasionally.
2. Add onion, aji amarillo peppers and garlic to a blender with 1/2 cup of water and puree until smooth.
3. Heat oil in a large pot over medium high heat and brown beef on all sides. Remove beef and keep warm. Pour in the pureed onion mixture, remaining salt, and bouillon cube. Cook 10 minutes or until mixture darkens.
4. Add pureed cilantro to the onion mixture and cook for 10-15 minutes, or until the mixture darkens.
5. Add meat with all the juices and, if necessary, add a bit of water (about 1/2 cup) until level barely covers beef. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover and simmer for 45 minutes. Add carrot slices and fresh peas (if using frozen, add in the last 5 minutes). Simmer until the vegetables are cooked and sauce slightly reduced.

Notes