# Best Ropa Vieja

> The best ropa vieja recipe for Cuba's national dish: beef braised low and slow until it shreds apart, then simmered in a garlicky tomato sauce with peppers, olives, and capers.

- Source: https://clevertourists.com/recipes/ropa-vieja
- Authors: Evan & Clara, Clever Tourists (first-hand, from years of travel across 20 countries)
- Published: 2026-07-05
- Cuisine: Cuban
- Servings: 6
- Total time: 3 hr

## About this dish

Ropa vieja means "old clothes" in Spanish, a nod to how the long-cooked, shredded beef looks like a heap of tattered rags once it is pulled apart. It is widely considered Cuba’s national dish, but its roots reach back across the Atlantic. Food historians trace it to the Spanish Canary Islands, and further still to the Sephardic Jewish communities of medieval Spain, who favored slow-cooked, make-ahead dishes that could rest through the Sabbath. A well-worn legend tells of a poor man who, with nothing to feed his family, shredded and stewed his own clothes; as he prayed over the pot, the rags are said to have turned to meat. Spanish settlers carried the dish to the Caribbean, where it picked up tomatoes, peppers, and briny olives and capers and became the version Cuba is known for today: a tough, inexpensive cut of beef simmered until it falls apart, then folded into a bright, garlicky sauce that cuts the richness.

## Ingredients

- 2 lbs flank steak or skirt steak (chuck roast or boneless short rib also work well)
- 2 tbsp salt, for boiling the beef
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 large yellow onion, thinly sliced, divided
- 1 green bell pepper, thinly sliced
- 1 red bell pepper, thinly sliced
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 cup passata (Italian tomato purée)
- 1 cup reserved beef cooking liquid (from boiling the beef)
- 1 tbsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp smoked paprika
- 1 tbsp dried oregano
- 1 bay leaf
- 1/2 cup Castelvetrano olives, pitted and halved
- 2 tbsp capers
- 1/4 cup dry red or white wine (optional, but recommended)
- Black pepper, to taste
- Fresh cilantro, chopped, for garnish

## Method

1. Place the beef in a large pot and cover with water by a couple inches. Add the 2 tablespoons of salt, bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer and cook for 2 hours, until the meat is very tender. Skim off any foam that rises to the top as it cooks.

2. Remove the beef and set aside to cool slightly; reserve 1 cup of the cooking liquid. Once cool enough to handle, shred the beef with two forks.

3. In a large Dutch oven or heavy pot, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add half the sliced onion along with the bell peppers and garlic. Cook until softened, about 5 minutes.

4. Add the passata, reserved cooking liquid, wine (if using), cumin, smoked paprika, oregano, and bay leaf. Bring to a simmer and cook uncovered for 10-15 minutes to let the flavors come together.

5. Stir in the shredded beef along with the remaining sliced onion, the olives, and capers. Simmer uncovered for 10-15 minutes, until the sauce thickens slightly and the raw onion softens. Discard the bay leaf.

6. Taste and adjust seasoning with black pepper (and salt if needed). Garnish with fresh cilantro and serve hot.

## Notes

- Flank and skirt steak are the traditional cuts, but chuck roast or boneless short rib boil down just as tender and shred just as easily -- use whichever is freshest or cheapest at your butcher.
- Don't skip skimming the foam while the beef boils -- it keeps the cooking liquid clean enough to reuse in the sauce.
- Leftovers taste even better the next day once the sauce has had more time to soak into the meat.