Carne en su Jugo (Meat in its Juices)
Published April 25, 2024. This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy.
This tasty Mexican Carne en su Jugo Recipe, which consists of slow-cooked beef and bacon in a zesty broth with beans, is the perfect weeknight comfort food. We are obsessed with this stew’s simple yet bold flavors, and I think you will be, too, if you try it.
I am always blown away by Mexican cuisine’s rich, delicious flavor and the love that goes into each recipe. If you want to explore some more Mexican food, try my Carnitas or Enchiladas.
Carne en su Jugo
Carne en su jugo consists of slow-cooked beef strips with bacon and spring onions in a zesty, flavorful broth. It is commonly served with frijoles de la olla and an assortment of optional garnishes. The phrase itself translates to meat in its juices.
This recipe is a classic Mexican recipe from the state of Jalisco. It originated in Guadalajara in the late 1960s at a restaurant called El Gallo. Legend has it that it was originally made and served to drunk people who were walking the streets at night to help sober them up. Regardless of what its original intent is, I can assure you that it is nothing short of delicious.
Ingredients and Substitutions
- Tomatillos – Fresh tomatillos are needed for this salsa.
- Onions — When making the salsa verde, you can use a red, white, yellow, or sweet onion. You’ll also need some whole garlic cloves. In addition, spring onions or scallions are used in the stew.
- Beef – I used flank steak. Other cuts that can be used are skirt steak, sirloin, top or bottom round, tenderloin, hanger, or ribeye.
- Bacon – Any thin or thick-cut smoked uncured bacon works great.
- Liquid – Chicken stock gives the stew the most flavor. You can substitute it with vegetable stock, brodo, beef stock, or water.
- Chilis – Fresh seeded serrano or jalapeño peppers can be used. In addition, you can also use any spicy green chili.
- Cilantro – Fresh cilantro is used to finish off the salsa. You can also use culantro for this.
- Oil – Any neutral-flavored oil like olive or avocado is best.
- Cumin – This is optional, but it adds wonderful earthy flavors to the soup.
- Beans – It is very classic to serve carne en su jugo with frijoles de la olla.
- Garnishes – I used optional garnishes of minced white onion, cilantro, sliced radishes, crispy bacon, and pickled jalapeños.
How to Make Carne en su Jugo
Prepare and keep your frijoles de la olla warm.
Spread the shucked and rinsed tomatillos on a sheet tray lined with parchment paper with onion, garlic, and peppers.
Drizzle the olive oil. Season with salt.
Place in the oven at 425° and cook for 20 to 25 minutes or until lightly browned. Transfer to a blender with a lid, but replace the centerpiece of the lid with a kitchen towel. Add cilantro and blend on medium speed until smooth.
Prepare the beef, bacon, and spring onions.
In a large rondeau or pot over low to medium heat, add the bacon and cook until crispy brown and a good amount of the fat from the bacon has rendered.
Set the bacon to the side. Add the spring onions to the pot of rendered fat, gently season with salt, and sauté over low to medium heat for 5 to 7 minutes or until they become light brown.
Place the onions with the bacon to the side and add the beef. Season generously with salt and cook over low to medium heat until the meat releases its juices.
Use your spoon to scrape all the fond off the bottom of the pot. Then, turn the heat high and cook for 4 to 6 minutes while constantly stirring to brown the meat.
Next, add the salsa verde, chicken stock, 2/3 of the crisp-cooked bacon, seared spring onions, salt, and optional toasted and ground cumin seeds, and bring the mixture to a boil. Cover and turn the heat low and cook for 20 to 25 minutes or until the meat is tender.
Serve the carne en su jugo in a bowl with some frijoles de la olla and optional garnishes of minced white onion, cilantro, sliced radishes, and crispy bacon.
Make-Ahead and Storage
Make-Ahead: You can make this up to 2 days ahead for freshness.
How to Store: Cover and keep it in the refrigerator for 5 days. Cover and freeze it for up to 6 months. Thaw it in the refrigerator for 1 day before reheating.
How to Reheat: Add the desired amount of carne en su jugo to a medium-sized pot and heat over low heat until hot.
Chef Notes + Tips
- You add gentle salt seasons to things you want to brown quickly. This process draws out moisture to help.
- If you feel there is too much rendered bacon fat, feel free to reserve ½ of it and use it or store it for other recipes.
- Fond is the dark pieces of food that stick to the bottom of the pot when cooking. When released, they will add incredible flavor to the food.
- The remaining 1/3 of the bacon is used for garnish.
More Mexican Recipes
Video
Carne en su Jugo Recipe (Meat in its Juices)
Ingredients
- 15 medium-sized shucked tomatillos
- 1 medium-sized peeled yellow onion cut in half
- 6 garlic cloves
- 3 seeded serrano chilis
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- ½ cup packed fresh cilantro and stems
- 1 ½ pounds bacon, cut into thin slices
- 10 to 12 spring onions, tops removed
- 2 ½ pounds flank steak, cut into thin bitesize slices
- 4 cups chicken stock
- 2 teaspoons toasted and ground cumin seeds
- frijoles de la olla recipe
- coarse salt to taste
- optional garnishes of diced white onion, chopped cilantro, pickled jalapeños, and sliced radishes
Instructions
- Prepare and keep your frijoles de la olla warm.
- Remove the husks from the tomatillos. Briefly rinse the tomatillos under cold water.
- Evenly spread them on a sheet tray lined with parchment paper with onion, garlic, and peppers.
- Drizzle the olive oil over the top of the vegetables. Season with salt.
- Place on a rack in the top 1/3 of the oven at 425° and cook for 20 to 25 minutes or until lightly browned, and the tomatillos and peppers turn a muted green color.
- Remove them from the oven and let them rest for 10 minutes.
- Transfer to a blender with a lid, but replace the centerpiece of the lid with a kitchen towel. Add in cilantro and blend at medium speed until smooth. Season with salt and set it to the side.
- Prepare the beef, bacon, and spring onions.
- In a large rondeau or pot over low to medium heat, add the bacon and cook until crispy brown and a good amount of the fat from the bacon has rendered.
- Set the bacon to the side. Add the spring onions to the pot of rendered fat, gently season with salt, and sauté over low to medium heat for 5 to 7 minutes or until they become light brown.
- Place the onions to the side with the bacon and add in the beef. Season generously with salt and cook over low to medium heat until the meat releases its juices.
- At this point use your spoon to scrape all the fond off the bottom of the pot. Then, turn the heat to high and cook for 4 to 6 minutes while constantly stirring to brown the meat.
- Next, pour in the salsa verde, chicken stock, 2/3 of the crisp-cooked bacon, seared spring onions, salt, and optional toasted and ground cumin seeds, and bring the mixture to a boil.
- Cover and turn the heat to low and cook for 20 to 25 minutes or until the meat is tender.
- Serve the carne en su jugo in a bowl with some frijoles de la olla and optional garnishes of minced white onion, cilantro, sliced radishes, and crispy bacon.
This was everything we were hoping for and more! Loved doing the tomatillos, peppers, onion and garlic in the oven, so easy! Served with all the extras plus sliced avocado and a squeeze of lime. So freaking good!!! Froze what little was leftover and had delicious tacos a few weeks later. Will definitely be making again!
Thank you for giving it a try!
Can I use ground cumin spice and how much? Also can I substitute canned beans? Maybe pinto?
same ground amount and sure on the canned beans
Absolutely Delish😁
Thank you!
😀😋thank you ChefBilly yum
Oh WOW!! Chef Billy, this is right up my alley. I have never made this before and I thought I had it all, but this is amazing. I can see how it will all come together to make a lovely soup. It seems like every Mexican soup is the one to cure a hang over or to feed a drunk person. I don’t drink and I never have, but I do love your food and I can’t wait to try this one. Thank you so much for another great recipe.
my pleasure!
I’ve been preparing pinto beans for many years and never had quite the right flavor. This is it!
Thanks!
fantastic!
Always the best