New! Slow Cooker Ropa Vieja (Delicious Chipotle Honey Version)

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There are few things more fetching than a big, hot pot of succulent shredded beef all tangled up with strands of onions and peppers, juicy tomato sauce, and pops of briny olives all accompanied by the satisfying aroma of a slow-cooked, deeply flavorful meal. You just know you’ve done something right. Slow cooker meals tend to have that positive effect on me, admittedly. This Slow Cooker Ropa Vieja is just that – deeply flavorful and completely satisfying.

In This Post

Here, a budget-friendly cast of classic characters will welcome cameos from a couple of guest stars – chipotle peppers and golden sweet honey – to create a recipe that has long been a go-to of mine, and that tends to me a major hit with just about anyone to whom you serve it.

What is Ropa Vieja?

Translated literally to “old clothes,” Ropa Vieja is a Cuban classic that also has variations in Filipino, Latin American, and Spanish cuisines. This slow-cooked, tomato-based shredded beef braise is most often served with rice and, as we’re doing in our recipe today, crispy plantain chips. The flavors in this dish really do sing. In fact, they’re practically operatic.

Ropa Vieja is actually a national dish of Cuba (though it purportedly was stolen from the Canary Islands). I’m quite sure that there are as many variations on the ingredients – little tweaks and twists here and there – as there are people who cook it. I am not Cuban. But I adore Cuban cuisine and am honoring a favorite Cuban dish of mine with this recipe today, made simple and quick thanks to the slow cooker.

Turn it into a quesadilla, eat it up like a taco, OR press it in between some fluffy pieces of flatbread (naan!) add some cheese, and create the most epic shredded beef grilled cheeses EVER. My point is that this slow cooker Ropa Vieja recipe is flexible and typically works well for more than one meal – it’s beautifully repurpose-able.

Classic Ropa Vieja: A Cuban National Treasure

The building blocks of a traditional Cuban Ropa Vieja are the tender, shredded or pulled beef and a mess of fresh veggies that cook down into the tomato sauce together.

You can use a number of different cuts of beef in a good Ropa Vieja, and you’ll often see flank steak, brisket, chuck roast, or as we’re employing today – flat iron steak. My grocery stores always have this cut, and I find it a bit tricker to locate flank steak all the time, so I’m calling for flat iron today. But please know that you can use almost any variety of beef that you either have, can find easily, or prefer.

Spicy Slow Cooker Ropa Vieja … with a Twist

This recipe, to me, is the absolute perfect occasion to wield the spicy, smoky flavors of canned chipotle peppers. Chipotles are just smoked jalapeños, so yes, they’re spicy, but we’re only using two in this recipe, and to me, the spice level is just perfect. This recipe is spicy but it’s not going to blow your palate to shreds. That said, if you want to dial it back, just use 1 chipotle or you can use 1 tablespoon of smoked paprika instead, to achieve the smokiness. Just add it in alongside the cumin and you’re all set.

Upon perusing the ingredient list for this slow cooker Ropa Vieja, your eyebrows might raise a bit when you see “honey,” sitting there. I find that the sweet floral notes proffered by a little honey (just 1/4 cup) perfectly offset both the spice of the chipotles as well as the acidity of the tomatoes. It’s sort of like how you’ll see a little sugar in Italian-style tomato sauce recipes … it helps balance the flavors beautifully.

What you’ll need to make my version of Slow Cooker Ropa Vieja

This recipe’s ingredients list is pretty classic, save for my tasty additions of smoky, spicy chipotle peppers and a little kiss of honey.

INGREDIENTS

Cooking oil: The oil in this recipe is used to sear off the beef, creating a brown, sealed crust all around the outsides. As such, we’ll want to use an oil that has neutral flavor (though I use olive oil, which is great), such as canola, grapeseed, or vegetable.

Flank steak or flat iron steak: Flank steak is a favorite cut of beef for me, and I feel like I need to share more recipe for it here on MKL. It is typically sold in large, long pieces and you’ll find that you need to cut it down sometimes, to get it in your pots and pans (and slow cookers). This is a super lean cut, taken from below the loin of the cow. This leanness (lack of fat) allows the meat to really soak up marinades beautifully. As such, it’s a great choice for grilled fajitas/tacos or longer cooked braises and stews (like this slow cooker Ropa Vieja).

Sweet onion: We’ll thinly slice a nice sweet onion for this recipe, and all of those allium-y strands will tangle up with the shedded beef, creating a lovely aromatic flavor. If you’re curious what I mean when I say a sweet onion, I’m referring to a Vidalia or Walla Walla, or one that is simply labeled as sweet. You’ll always find sweet onions in your stores, and they tend to make great additions to pretty much everything. This article is a good reference for onion cookery, if you’re curious.

Bell peppers: You can really use any color you like here. Just be sure to thinly slice them, just like the onions. We’re aiming for that “shredded rags of old clothing” vibe, of course. So, the thinner you slice your veggies, the more they will sort of melt into the stew, adding their sweet flavor and subtle color to the tasty mix. I personally like using poblanos, though. They are less traditional, but will lend a bit of heat to things, which is always welcome on my plates.

Garlic: Always and forever. Don’t be shy here – go a minimum of five fat cloves and never look back.

Cumin: Cumin is an essential ingredient here, in this slow cooker Ropa Vieja recipe. It lends it earthy, mellow warmth to every single bite of this stew. I buy this stuff by the truckload (almost), as it’s just such a frequently used ingredient in cuisines the world over.

Chipotle peppers: This is my little twist (I’m always twisting things), and I think it takes the beautiful base and sends it over the top. That smoky, piquant flavor and additional spice is just addicting to me. I don’t care that chipotles were some nineties food trend. They’re a forever favorite ingredient of mine (see here and here for further proof), and they’re just perfect here. I find that two is just right for this recipe, but you could start with one, taste it, and see what you think. Be sure to mince it well so it gets really well mixed once its in the mixture. Chipotles are

Tomato paste: Do you always have cans upon cans of this stuff in your pantry like I do? It’s so very essential in so many of my favorite recipes. My favorite pantry pasta would never be right without it. My One-Pan Creamy Tortellini Skillet would be lacking if there was no tomato paste going on inside. My delicious Butter-Roasted Tomato Basil Bisque would be sad and way less tasty if tomato paste weren’t a part of the mix. You get the idea – it’s a total powerhouse in the flavor game.

Diced tomatoes: From a can, in all their juicy, acidic glory.

Honey: Floral and golden, sweet and sticky, honey helps to balance out the acid of the tomatoes and the heat of the chipotles. It’s typically my natural sweetener of choice, as I love how seamlessly it melts into savory dishes like my Chipotle Honey Gumbo (takes its cues from this slow cooker Ropa Vieja, actually), and my Honey Garlic Noodles with Toasted Peanuts.

Pitted Spanish olives (Manzanilla): It wouldn’t be a proper Ropa Vieja recipe without these babies. They add an iconic briny salinity to the mix, and are my favorite part. Olives + Honey = LOVE forever. Want another recipe to help use up any extra olives? Try this Salmon and Chorizo number.

Capers: Speaking of brine. Little caper berries are yet another flavorful add to the classic Ropa Vieja mix that really make it memorable. You could leave them out, I suppose, but if you’re unsure – why not give them a try? They’re sort of irreplaceable, flavor-wise, as nothing tastes exactly like them. I love them, actually. They totally make my favorite salmon recipe, and they’re essential to a classic piccata.

SERVING SUGGESTIONS

Cooked white rice
Plantain chips (these are available at most grocery stores)
Chopped cilantro
Fresh cut limes for squeezing

How to make this chipotle honey spin on slow cooker Ropa Vieja

Dinner doesn’t get a whole lot easier than this. There are a whopping three steps to this simple ropa vieja recipe and it goes a little something like this:

DIRECTIONS

Add 1 to 2 tablespoons of cooking oil to a large frying pan set over medium-high heat. Season the flank or flat iron steak with salt and pepper and sear, on all sides, until you achieve a nice brown crust; about 5 to 7 minutes. Transfer to your slow cooker. Don’t clean out the pan!
Add the onion and bell peppers to the pan, and reduce the heat to medium. Season with salt and pepper, and cook until tender; about 5 to 6 minutes (stirring occasionally). Add the garlic, cumin, chipotles, and tomato paste. Stir and cook for one minute more. Add the tomatoes and honey; stir to combine. Transfer this mixture to the slow cooker.
Cook on high for (about) 5 hours, sometimes 4.5 is just fine for me. Shred the beef with a fork and then add the olives and (if using) capers to the slow cooker. Stir and allow everything to warm through. Serve hot (I like mine with rice, chopped cilantro, fresh lime juice, and crunchy plantain chips).

Ropa Vieja Frequently Asked Questions

What kind of beef is used in Ropa Vieja?

Traditionally, Ropa Vieja is made with flank steak, as this lean cut of meat hold sup well to the stewing/longer cooking of this dish. It also really absorbs seasonings and flavors, as it’s a leaner cut.

is Ropa Vieja Cuban?

Yes! Considered a national dish of Cuba, Ropa Vieja has strong Cuban roots, and Cubans delight in the funny folklore attached to the dish’s origins. That said, it is purported that Cuba “stole” the dish from the Canary Islands. Also, Ropa Vieja has versions present in Filipino, Spanish, and other Latin American cuisines as well.

What does Ropa Vieja taste like?

With is rich tomato sauce, punctuated strongly by lots of garlic, cumin, onions, and peppers, Ropa Vieja tastes like a deeply flavorful Latin American beef stew.