Carne en su Jugo - El Barzon

Carne en su jugo...

I’ve only had it twice, and both times I’ve ordered it from the same little restaurant in Little Village, El Barzon. In other words I don’t know anything about this dish. One day while at Chickie’s, we saw the sign across the street advertising carne en su jugo, and couldn’t resist. What we received was a steaming bowl of rich, meaty broth (the jugo) with little chunks of juicy, chewy (in a good way) meat (the carne). Also in the bowl were chunks of bacon, pinto beans, and softened onions. Along side came a heaping plate of limes, white onion, cilantro, dried red chile, avocado, radish, and pungent red salsa. Altogether it’s a primordial pleasure to eat.

Will someone, well versed in this dish (Amata, are you out there?) let me know

a. Where el Barzon’s version ranks compared to other Chicago places?
b. Who makes the best version?
c. Why have I not eaten this dish before this year?

Thanks!

Oh and el Barzon, is a tiny neighborhood joint – shabby and charming. Brush up on your conversational Spanish before you go, because when we went, no one spoke English.

El Barzon
3002 S. Pulaski


trixie-pea

trixie-pea wrote:Will someone, well versed in this dish (Amata, are you out there?) let me know

a. Where el Barzon’s version ranks compared to other Chicago places?
b. Who makes the best version?

Hi trixie-pea,

I'm out here but I certainly don't have the expertise to offer a ranking! Maybe VI?.... Or maybe you should call for a jugo-thon??

I do really like the carne en su jugo at Taqueria Tayahua, though, and I'll repeat the photo of their carne en su jugo here, since the version at El Barzon sounds just like it:


Food-styling by Monsieur Antoine, coiffeur de cuisine.

trixie-pea wrote:c. Why have I not eaten this dish before this year?

This one I can answer: no LTHForum before now!

Amata

Hey Trixie-Pea,

VI, ddickson and I enjoyed a few bowls of carne en su jugo last year at Los Tres Gallos in Melrose Park. I thought it was pretty good, but the pix Amata provided "looks" better than what we had. I liked what I had, but was not inspired to go back to Los Tres Gallos for more.

This is, as you say, "primordial" -- relatively few spices and basically just a real simple dish.

Hammond

I've read a lot of recipes for this dish and, as is so often the case, there is considerable variety in the approaches taken by different cooks. To my mind, highly desirable are the following: 1) frying the steak (in the bacon fat) till it browns a bit but doesn't dry out; 2) not stewing the steak in the broth too long, so that it gets rubbery. The beans are cooked separately (de olla) and added to the broth. Taqueria Tayahua does a nice job on this dish, with a good balance between the steak, beans, little touch of tomato, and the smokiness of the bacon. The garnishes all add a lot, especially the chile de arbol.

Antonius

So we went to Taqueria Tayahua tonight to try the carne en su jugo, and it was great. Very similar to el Barzon's version with a few minor differences:

The meat is cubed at El B, very coarsely ground at TaqTay.

A little more bacon fat is left in the broth at El B. The broth at TaqTay is really delicious. With a lesser coating of bacon fat on your tongue you are able to really taste all of the great earthy flavors going on. Although the bacon fatty version at El B has it's charms too.

The fresh griddled corn tortillas at TaqTay puts their version over the top in my opinion.

Although the carne en su jugo was the highlight of our meal, the tacos (carnitas and picadillo), huaraches con carne, and quesadilla w/ flor de calabaza were all homey and delicious. This is the kind of place that puts you in a good mood.

When our waitress asked us if this was our first time at Taqueria Tayahua, she seemed slightly surprised to hear us say yes. "How did you know to order the flor de calabaza? And carne en su jugo?" PIGMON opted to give her the short story rather than the long, and said, "internet."

Thanks A&A for the great find.

trixie-pea

While I have not had the carne en su jugo at Los Tres Gallos in Melrose Park in a while, I liked it a whole lot when I was spending time in Melrose Park, and took others to Los Tres Gallos who also liked the food, and if they ordered it, the carne en su jugo.

There's a lot to like about Melrose Park.

I recently tried the carne en su jugo from Tayahua and enjoyed it. I prefer the only other version I've had at El Taco Veloz although I tried them too long apart to give specific comparisons. I suppose I felt that Taco Veloz was a richer version.

El Taco Veloz
1745 W. Chicago Ave.

Thomas D. wrote: recently tried the carne en su jugo from Tayahua and enjoyed it. I prefer the only other version I've had at El Taco Veloz although I tried them too long apart to give specific comparisons. I suppose I felt that Taco Veloz was a richer version.

As I have mentioned before, another notable difference is the fact that the broth for the carne en su jugo at El Taco Veloz does not contain tomato products of any sort.

Regards,
Erik M.

Gee, Erik, I do not recall tomato in any of the versions I have had, and I agree that is how it should be done. A rich, beefy broth, to be dressed as one wishes.

Antonius, I agree with your points as to what makes a desirable carne en su jugo, though it is primarily about the rich broth for me. I also think less is more regarding bacon, not just because of the potential greasiness, but because it can take over the broth.

My recollection of the Tres Gallos version in Melrose Park is that the beef was properly browned but left a little too long in the broth rendering it a bit too chewy.

It is worth checking out Taqueria Los Gallos #1 which is mostly a Carne en su jugo shop, with very little else on the menu (couple of other soups and some tacos, but it is clear where the focus is). Their version is very tasty.

And I have had a very good rendition at Amanacer Tapatio in Joliet on a few occasions. I think if you search you may find some postings on that place somewhere.

VI did a lot of legwork on CH and helped me discover this great soup of the world.

Taqueria Los Gallos #1
4211 W 26th St
Chicago, 60623
(773) 762-7452

dicksond wrote:Gee, Erik, I do not recall tomato in any of the versions I have had, and I agree that is how it should be done. A rich, beefy broth, to be dressed as one wishes.

Well, the version at Taqueria Tayahua has a touch of tomato, giving a nice color to the broth and adding to the rich flavor, but it's hardly the dominant element. I mean, it's not like Campbell's Tomato Soup or anything.

trixie-pea, I'm so glad you and Pigmon went to Taqueria Tayahua and enjoyed it! And I love Pigmon's terse, mysterious reply: "Internet". (Wonder if the waitress was the same one who was too shy to be in the picture Antonius took of the tortillas cooking on the griddle?)

trixie-pea wrote:The meat is cubed at El B, very coarsely ground at TaqTay.

I guess I'd say rather that they chop the meat very finely, rather than grinding it. In fact after placing my order I remember hearing a whole lot of chopping going on.

Thanks for the report, trixie-pea. Reading it last night made us say, "Why didn't we go to Tayahua for lunch today??"

Amata wrote:
I guess I'd say rather that they chop the meat very finely, rather than grinding it. In fact after placing my order I remember hearing a whole lot of chopping going on.

Yes, that part confuses me. The first few times I had the dish, I thought it was a stewish thing. Then, I found out that the meat and the broth are not inter-mixed until the dish is ready. I've noted before that CESJ is kinda like pho, the way you customize, but it is also like pho in the sense that it is a broth that meat and other things are added.

Trixie-Pea, Pigmon:

I'm very happy to hear that you enjoyed Taqueria Tayahua, including both the carne en su jugo and the other items you tried. And I agree, the fresh tortillas are a major plus.

***

With regard to the composition of the broth, there is, as I said generally about this dish, much variation to be seen in recipes written by Mexicans and, more specifically, Jaliscans; the dish is considered a Jaliscan and especially Guadalajaran specialty but is clearly also commonly enjoyed throughout west-central Mexico.

There seem to be two basic approaches: 1) a quick approach, with a pseudo-broth, which relies primarily on store-bought, prepared items for flavour and colour, such as salsa inglesa (i.e. Worcestershire Sauce), soy sauce, Maggi seasoning, hot sauce (e.g. Tamazula); 2) a slow approach, with a real broth (consommé) to which are added fresh items.

The latter approach is clearly the more interesting one and I would assume any decent restaurant would have good broth on hand with which to make a traditional version of the dish. It is normal that tomatillos, tomatoes, onions, garlic, jalapeños and cilantro (or some subset thereof) are added to the dish and occasionally some of these are first roasted. These items are puréed and combined with the broth and to this mixture is typically added also some of the liquor from the separately prepared frijoles de olla. In any event, tomato is neither an uncommon nor somehow an inauthentic element in this dish. Indeed, as a conductor of flavour and an element that aids in darkening the broth, it seems to me personally a most appropriate ingredient. As VI says, customising -- albeit within certain parameters -- is part of what makes this dish work so well and the possibility of customising enters at several points: 1) how one prepares one's basic broth or consommé; 2) what fresh items one liquifies and combines with the broth; 3) what garnishes one uses.

While it is true that bacon can be an overwhelming element -- and I like the fact that Taqueria Tayahua's version is not overwhelmed by the bacon -- it is clear that the flavour of bacon is always intended to be a major componant of the dish in the dozens of Mexican recipes I've read. Without the bacon or with only a slight hint of bacon, the dish would not be carne en su jugo.

Antonius