Interested to learn that more old-school recipes call for the meat to be fully cooked first, and the veggies to be separately stewed then combined. Much better result that preserves the structural integrity of the veggies.

Made this with a chuck top blade roast, which is one of those "wtf meats" that the supermarkets practically give away because no one knows what to do with it. I chose it because the grain goes lengthwise more than crosswise so you get a result closer to the flank steak that most ropa vieja recipes call for. This cut has accurately been described as "a book where pages 1 - 90 are tender and delicious, 90 - 110 are gristle, and 111 - 200 are tender and delicious" but since you're going to have to boil and shred the meat for this dish anyway, who cares? I watch baseball and shred meats by hand, and it is very relaxing.

I used the pressure cooker and ended up with 5 cups of delicious beef broth which I am going to use in a noodle dish later. One note is that although I am a notorious undersalter I thought the dish needed a LOT more salt than the recipe indicated. I think this dish is best served over cauliflower -- boiled or creamed -- although that is probably a controversial opinion.