Instant Pot Ropa Vieja

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Instant Pot Ropa Vieja is a delicious braised beef recipe that has been made easier and faster by cooking it in the Instant Pot!

Shredded beef in a savory, beefy au jus with sliced onions, peppers, and the flavors of adobo, olives, and spices, make this dish exquisite!

I was introduced to Ropa Vieja years ago when a friend made this for a small get-together and I was wowed by the rich flavor of the beef. She had no leftovers as everyone went back for seconds because it was so good.

I start with that base recipe and modified it to pressure cook in the Instant Pot. I love the Instant Pot because it makes a one-pot meal and cooks faster than a slow cooker, but yet still results in that rich flavor that tastes like it cooked all day.

Table of Contents

• What Is Ropa Vieja?
• Why You’ll Love This Recipe
• Why This Recipe Works
• How to Make Ropa Vieja In An Instant Pot
• What Type Of Beef Is Used In Ropa Vieja?
• Recipe Tips
• Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
• What To Serve With Ropa Vieja
• Recipe
• Reviews

What Is Ropa Vieja?

Translated literally from Spanish, ropa vieja means “old clothes.” The braised shredded beef and colorful sliced peppers, onions, and olives do somewhat resemble a pile of tattered old clothing, and that is how many believe that the dish got its name.

Some believe that the recipe name comes from a story that a penniless man shredded and cooked his own clothes because he could not afford food to feed his family.

However, no matter how the recipe got its name, Ropa Vieja, known as the National dish of Cuba, bursts with flavor with the pressured cooked beef, peppers, and seasoning!

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

• Taste: Ropa Vieja has a wet rub resulting in a deep, rich-flavored meat with a hint of something richer (olives).
• Texture: The fork-tender meat is shredded with an au jus-type sauce and soft sliced vegetables.
• Ease: While I would love to say it is easy, it is probably medium since it needs time to marinate, and has a number of ingredients to develop that rich flavor.
• Appearance: Cooked shredded beef with a red au jus type sauce with sliced red peppers, green olives, and vegetables, and topped with chopped cilantro for some contrasting color.
• One-Pot Meal: The recipe is made easier since it is a one-pot meal made in the Instant Pot, which is faster than traditional Cuban beef.

Why This Recipe Works

• It is a tried and true recipe that has been family taste-tested many times over the last several decades.
• The sweet, salty, smoky flavor makes it taste delicious.
• There are so many possibilities for using leftovers. Sometimes that is the best part!

How to Make Ropa Vieja In An Instant Pot

Equipment

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• Instant Pot – This model of 6-quart Instant Pot is the same model that I use and works great.
• Large bowl – You’ll need a large bowl to marinate the beef.
• Large Spoon – You’ll need a spoon for the marinade and one for serving the sauce.
• Meat Fork – This makes it easier to handle a large chuck roast.
• Hand Mixer – Make it easy on yourself when shredding the cooked beef by using a hand mixer to shred it.

Ingredients

Below, I discuss the ingredients and possible substitutions if you don't have a specific ingredient. However, if you are looking for the specific measurements of each ingredient, scroll down to the bottom of this article, just above the comments, for the printable recipe card, which includes all the ingredients and the specific amounts of each one.

What Type Of Beef Is Used In Ropa Vieja?

• Flank Steak – Traditional Ropa Vieja uses flank steak, which is a lean cut of beef that is braised a long time but can sometimes still be tough.
• Chuck Roast – Since I’m cooking this dish in an Instant Pot, I like to use a Chuck Roast instead of flank steak because it has more fat and marbling, resulting in more tender beef after pressure cooking.

Marinade Ingredients

• Cubanelle pepper. If you cannot find this pepper, you can use ¼ green pepper diced and ½ jalapeno seeded and diced.   The cubanelle pepper is a sweeter pepper that is just a tad spicy.  
• Salt and pepper. You may have to reduce the amount of salt if you don’t use reduced-sodium soy sauce or low sodium beef bouillon.
• Low sodium soy sauce. If you use regular, then reduce the amount of salt used.
• Adobo seasoning. Use store-bought adobo seasoning or make it yourself with 1/2 teaspoon. turmeric, 1 teaspoon garlic powder, 1/2 teaspoon cumin.
• Mexican oregano. You can use regular oregano if you prefer.
• Beef bouillon. You can use Sazon if you have it. For beef bouillon, I recommend using the reduced-sodium version.
• Cumin.
• Bay leaves.
• Garlic. Use fresh or pre-minced.
• Lemon. The juice of one lemon is needed

Rest of The Ingredients

• Olive oil – or oil of choice
• Tomato paste – this gives needed flavor to this dish
• Onion – white or yellow is best
• Red bell pepper – you need to cut these into long thin strips
• Green bell pepper – also cut into long thin strips
• Spanish olives – This is important for this dish.  They bring a large amount of flavor.
• Apple cider vinegar – or red wine vinegar can be used.
• Cilantro

Directions

Below are the high-level steps required to make this recipe, and tie to the photos above. For the full, detailed step-by-step instructions, scroll down to the bottom of this article, just above the comments, for the printable recipe card.

1. Make the marinade – AKA wet rub.
2. Marinade for 1 to 24 hours, preferably overnight.
3. Brown the beef in the Instant Pot. Brown the beef in batches so you don’t crowd the meat.
4. Add the marinade, and set the instant pot for Meat and set for 45 minutes.
5. When the meat has finished cooking, remove and add all the remaining EXCEPT the cilantro. Stir to combine and set to Saute for 30 minutes. 
6. Shred the meat and add it back into the pan.  Saute for an additional 10 to 30 minutes.  You want the sauce to cook down to thicken.
7. Remove and serve with rice, garnished with cilantro.

Recipe Tips

• Marinade the Beef. Don’t skip this step. I realize it takes some planning and time, but it is well worth it because it adds so much flavor. I call it a marinade but it is more of a wet rub instead of a dry rub. You can marinate the beef for a minimum of an hour and up to 24 hours. However, I recommend marinating overnight.
• Reduced Sodium Ingredients. I highly recommend using reduced-sodium versions of the bouillon beef and beef broth. If you don’t use the reduced-sodium versions, then I recommend reducing or eliminating the added salt.
• Adobo Seasoning. If you don’t have store-bought Adobo Seasoning, then make your own by combining 1/2 teaspoon turmeric, 1 teaspoon garlic powder, and 1/2 teaspoon cumin in a bowl.
• Brown The Beef In Batches. It is important to brown the beef in batches because you don’t want to crowd the beef because what will happen is that the beef will end up being steamed instead of browned.
• Serve The Next Day. This is one of those dishes that tastes better the next day after the flavors have had additional time to combine and fully develop. This makes it a perfect make-ahead dish.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Recipe