Carne en su Jugo

From Matt Zatkoff

“Carne en su jugo” means “meat in its juices,” and this deconstructed version of the Mexican delicacy lived up to the hype on January 30, with a phenomenal amount of complex flavor packed into the juice/stock. For an exhaustive rundown on the CESJ scene in and around Chicago, see this very informative thread over at LTH Forum, from whose ranks we pulled Matt and most of the other cooks for this savory night.

Ingredients
2-3 onions, chopped
½ head garlic
some beef shank
beef bones
4 to 5 tomatillos
1 serrano pepper
1 or 2 cloves
a pinch of cinnamon
2 bay leaves
1 pound well-salted and peppered, charcoal-grilled skirt steak, medium rare, chopped
1 pound thick cut very crispy bacon, chopped or crumbled
2 pound cooked (or canned) pinto beans, drained
chopped cilantro
chopped onion
sliced limes
sliced radish
chili oil (recipe below)

Preparation
Brown onions, garlic, beef, and bones in a pan or roast in an oven until darkened. Remove meat and bones to a large stock pot, cover with water, and cook in a 170 to 180 degree F oven for at least 8 hours. Add more water as needed.

During the last two hours add tomatillos, pepper, and spices.

Clarify and de-fat using your preferred method. Salt to taste.

To serve, ladle broth into a bowl, then top with beef, bacon, beans, cilantro, onion, and radish. Squeeze lime over top, and drizzle with chili oil.

Chili oil

Ingredients
10 to 15 dried chiles de arbol
1 small dried chipotle
1 dried ancho pepper
1 to 2 cups oil (I used 50/50 corn and sunflower oil)
½ cup gochugaru (korean red pepper powder)
1 teaspoon ground coriander seed
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon oregano
salt to taste

Preparation
Toast until dried and fragrant, in toaster oven or in a dry skillet.
Once cooled, remove stems and blend in a blender until a fine powder.

Add powder to oil and blend to desired consistency. Then add gochugaru, coriander, cumin, oregano, and salt.

Cook over low heat until powder begins to darken and smell nice and toasty, about 15 to 20 minutes. Stir often so it does not burn.