Tenderize Beef with Tomatoes
I was told of this trick from a good friend that was reluctant to tell me thinking this was common knowledge. I have since done this, and I will say 100%, this works great! And I never knew about this. The key to think about is beef that is going in a tomato based recipe. If you are making a dish that calls for cubed beef like for a stew, or something like Swiss Steak, this would be perfect. The acid in the tomatoes is a natural tenderizer.
Ingredients
- 1 can whole peeled tomatoes, see Step 1
- beef, see Step 2
Instructions
- You will need 1 can of tomatoes, these can be crushed, diced, or in my case, whole in juice as the only thing available to me at my location. If using whole tomatoes in a can with juice, chop the tomatoes up, takes just a minute, you can do this while they are still in the can as well.
- Cut the beef into what you need, like cubes for a stew, or larger pieces for say a Swiss Steak, add the beef to a pot, pour in the can of tomatoes, crushed, diced or whole that have been chopped, and all of the juice from the can as well. Add water to just cover the beef.
- Heat this to a boil for 30 minutes. Then use the beef in your recipe as described. If the recipe calls for tomatoes, use the tomatoes and juice from the pot you cooked the beef in.
Notes
The cost to do this is low as a can of tomatoes, whole with juice is just 35 Baht.
I have used this with local raised beef in the village where I live, this beef is tough at best and it worked 100% as expected, fork tender beef for a Slow Cooker Swiss Steak I was making, the beef was fork tender before adding to the slow cooker. This would work with pork as well, and I have lived in the far north and ate local raised buffalo, this would be spot on for buffalo (and much needed!).
Provided courtesy of good friend, Stephen Connell.
United States.
United States.
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