Recipes Using Ground Beef - Spanish Style

This is a Spanish-style dish - it is one of the easy recipes using ground beef. It is really simple to put together but this is the secret...it has to be baked for a long time in a medium oven. This allows the spices and other ingredients to mingle and the dish to take on an intense flavor.

People say that they can knock up recipes using ground beef in minutes - in my book, it is simply not possible. However, this is one those ground beef casserole recipes which makes two meals, one that you can eat now and one that you can freeze, so it is well worth bulk cooking. This is also a great dish for a casual dinner party - served with tacos, tortillas and guacamole, it makes for informal, fun entertaining.

This dish is versatile and a base for so many recipes. There is a list of easy recipes for ground beef below, many of them Mexican or Spanish. Whilst it contains spices, it is very mild, and our kids love it.

A little effort

Makes two meals, each serving 4 - 6 people

Preparation time: 30 mins

Cooking time: 2 - 3 hours

Ingredients:

2½ lb / 1kg ground beef - use best quality, lean topside beef*

about 8 tablespoons vegetable oil for shallow frying

4 medium onions, finely diced

2 large red bell peppers, finely diced

2 cloves garlic crushed

2 teaspoons ground cumin

2 teaspoons ground paprika

1 teaspoon cumin seed (optional)

½ teaspoon cayenne pepper

4 large ripe tomatoes, roughly chopped

4 tablespoons tomato paste

1 cup beef stock

You will need a large pan or casserole dish with a lid that can be used on top of the hob and inside the oven.

Method:

Heat the oven to 300° F / 150° C.
On top of the hob, brown the minced meat in about 6 batches over a high heat. The meat needn't cook through, but it should look browned and fried. This is what gives flavor to the dish. (You don't want to put too much minced meat into the pan at a time, otherwise your oil loses heat and you just get a gray, watery mass of meat. Keep the meat aside.)
Fry the onions in one batch, until they are soft and a brown, caramel color. This, too, flavors the dish.
Add the garlic and peppers to the onions and cook over medium heat for about 5 minutes.
Add the cumin, paprika and cayenne pepper. Add the meat back to the pan. Add the tomatoes and tomato paste.
Add the beef stock. Place a lid on the casserole dish and put in the oven. Cook for about 2 hours on a low heat, checking every half an hour that the mixture hasn't got too dry. Add water if necessary. You will notice that the gravy browns at the side of the casserole - scrape this down and stir into the minced meat. Once the 2 hours are up, turn the oven off and leave the dish inside the oven. I have often done this overnight - but if you don't have time, a couple of hours will do. This is not obligatory, but just adds to the richness of the dish.
Serve with tortillas, refried beans, guacamole and chopped fresh tomatoes and a big leafy salad.
Freezing: Allow the portion that you are going to freeze to cool thoroughly. Pack into a suitable freezer container and label.

*If you are NOT using lean mince, it is advisable to make this dish in advance, following the instructions above. Then, cool the casserole in the refrigerator. The fat will solidify on top of the dish. Skim this off and discard. Then reheat or freeze the dish as you wish.

Recipes using ground beef - Spanish-style:

Ground Beef Taco Recipe

Chili con Carne Recipe

Beef Enchilada Recipe

Empanada Recipe