Carne con Papa
Classic Cuban beef and potato stew. Fork-tender chuck in a sofrito tomato sauce with potatoes that soak up everything.
The Cook
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Pat the beef cubes dry and season generously with salt and pepper. Have all the sofrito veg prepped and ready.
Set the Instant Pot to Sauté (high). Add the olive oil. Brown the beef in two batches on 2 sides, about 3 to 4 minutes per batch. Transfer to a plate.
Add the onion and bell pepper. Sauté 5 minutes until softened and starting to caramelize. Add the garlic and cook 30 seconds.
Pour in the wine and scrape up all the browned bits. Let it bubble a minute to cook off the raw alcohol.
Stir in the tomato paste and cook 30 seconds. Add tomato sauce, broth, cumin, oregano, bay leaves, Sazón, salt, and pepper. Return the beef and any juices. Stir.
Cancel Sauté. Lock the lid, valve to Sealing, pressure cook on High for 25 minutes.
Quick release. Stir in the potatoes and olives if using. Make sure the potatoes are mostly submerged, add a splash of broth if it's dry.
Lock the lid again and pressure cook on High for 6 minutes. Natural release for 10 minutes, then quick release.
Discard the bay leaves. Adjust salt. If it's too thin, hit Sauté for 3 to 5 minutes to reduce. Serve over white rice with a wedge of lime.
Serg's Notes
These amounts are already at my 1.5x bold profile, sauce included, so the potatoes have something worth soaking up.
Sazón con azafrán gives the classic golden-orange color. A splash of dry sherry or Marsala at the end adds depth.
Mash a few potato chunks against the side of the pot to thicken it naturally. Leftovers are better the next day.
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