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№ 304 · Argentine

Estofado de Carne con Vino Tinto (Argentine Beef Stew)

Tempo

1h 10

Picante

Dificuldade

Médio

Rende

6porções

Ingredientes

Meat

1.2 kg

acém (beef chuck), cut into 4cm cubes — paleta bovina also works

Aromatics

3 tbsp

olive oil

200g panceta (pancetta) or smoked bacon, diced

large onions, diced

garlic cloves, minced

red bell peppers, diced

carrots, in 2cm rounds

stalk celery, diced

Sauce

2 tbsp

tomato paste

1 can

(400g) chopped tomatoes

350ml dry red wine (Malbec, naturally; or any decent Argentine/Brazilian Cabernet)

350ml beef stock

bay leaves

1 tbsp

dried oregano

1 tbsp

paprika defumada (smoked paprika)

1 tbsp

paprika doce

1 tsp

ground cumin

Pinch of dried chile flakes (optional, for whisper of warmth — keeps it heat 0 in practice)

200g potatoes, in 3cm chunks (added in stage 2)

Salt and pepper

Finish

hard-boiled eggs, halved

½ cup

green olives, pitted (optional, criollo-style)

¼ cup

fresh parsley, chopped

To serve

Mashed potatoes (puré de papas) — Argentine standard

OR soft polenta

A bowl of green salad with vinaigrette

Modo de preparo

01**Render panceta.** In pressure cooker on sauté mode, cook diced panceta in olive oil 4-5 minutes until fat renders and panceta is golden. Lift out with slotted spoon, leave fat.
02**Brown beef hard.** Pat beef dry. Salt generously. Brown in 2-3 batches, 4 minutes per side. Don't crowd. Remove to a plate.
03**Sweat the soffritto.** In the same pot, add onions, bell peppers, carrots, celery. Cook 8-10 minutes over medium until soft and onions are golden. Add garlic, cook 1 minute. Stir in oregano, paprika defumada, paprika doce, cumin, optional chile flakes. Toast 30 seconds.
04**Build sauce.** Add tomato paste, cook 1 minute. Pour in red wine, scrape the bottom hard. Reduce 4-5 minutes — should smell mellow, not sharp. Add chopped tomatoes, beef stock, bay leaves.
05**Combine.** Return beef and panceta and any juices to the pot. Stir.
06**Pressure cook stage 1.** Lock lid, high pressure, **35 minutes**. Natural release.
07**Add potatoes, stage 2.** Open lid. Add potato chunks. Lock, high pressure, **8 minutes**. Quick release.
08**Reduce.** Open lid. Discard bay leaves. Set sauté mode and reduce uncovered 8-10 minutes until sauce thickens to a deep red-brown that coats a spoon.
09**Final touches.** Slip the halved hard-boiled eggs into the pot — yolks facing up. Add olives if using. Simmer gently 3-4 minutes — eggs warm through, olives infuse. Off heat, scatter parsley.

Estofado de Carne

The Argentine winter stew — beef braised with red wine, peppers, smoked paprika, oregano, and a few halved hard-boiled eggs slipped into the pot at the end. Eaten with mashed potatoes or polenta. Less famous than Argentine grilling but every household has a version. Pressure cooker takes 2-hour stovetop down to under an hour.

Heat: 0/5. No chile. Spanish-Mediterranean flavor profile (smoked paprika, oregano, bay).

Serving

Mashed potatoes on each plate, ladle of estofado over the top with a half-egg per portion. A glass of Malbec, the same one you cooked with. Bread to mop. A simple lettuce-and-tomato salad alongside. This is honest food.

Notes

Wine quality matters less than character. Use a robust Argentine red — Malbec or Cabernet — but no need to spend on a special bottle. Heavily oaked wines will overpower; soft fruit-driven wines are best.
Panceta is the secret. Spanish/Italian cured pork belly. If you can't get it, smoked bacon (toucinho defumado) is the right substitute; raw streaky bacon misses the cured-pork dimension.
Eggs at the end is criollo home cooking — adds protein, looks rustic, soaks up sauce. A bit unusual to non-Argentines but worth doing.
Make ahead. Better the next day, like all wine-braises.
Variations: add 4 prunes (ameixas pretas) at stage 1 for a sweet-savory background. Some Argentine families add a dash of vinagre de jerez at the end (sherry vinegar) — does brighten.
Don't overcomplicate. Estofado is honest stew, not haute cuisine. Resist the urge to add extra spices or tricks.