Greek Meat Pie - This one is for my Dad

My Dad passed away in October, 2014.  I still miss him.

I was looking at things around my house that reminded me of him, and I got to thinking about him from a food perspective.  I have a clear memory of being in my mid-teens when he took me to a local butcher shop and bought some extra-thick pork chops.  Once home, he cut a pocket into them, stuffed them, and baked them.  My dad!  He didn't always cook, but he liked to give it a try now and then.

My stepmother, who is an excellent cook, used to make this main course recipe for him, which he LOVED.  I'm not sure what book she got the recipe from, but it doesn't matter, because she modified it to suit his (their!) tastes and preferences.  That is what I decided to try for this post.

So here you go, Dad, this one is for you.  Thanks to my stepmom for sharing the recipe.

Kreatopita Cephalonitiki - Greek Meat Pie, Island Version  
- as modified by my stepmom and a little by me.

2 pounds ground beef

olive oil, as needed

1 onion, chopped 

2 cloves garlic, crushed and chopped 

1/4 cup rice

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp pepper

1/4 cup dry red wine

orange zest from one whole orange, finely grated

1 Tablespoon finely chopped fresh mint

1 teaspoon dried parsley

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

3 Tablespoons canned, diced tomatoes, pureed (or tomato sauce)

1 large zucchini, raw, diced

1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese

1/2 cup four-cheese mixture, shredded (or Parmesan or Romano)

1/2 pound filo sheets (divided into two sets of four 1/2 sheets each)

1/4 cup (or less) melted butter

 

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. 

Cook the ground beef in a little olive oil until just a little pink is left.  

Separately, saute the chopped onion in olive oil until golden; turn off the heat and add the chopped garlic, tossing for another minute or so more. 

Move the meat to a bowl, saving the juices in a measuring cup and skimming off the fat, if you can.  Add the salt and pepper to the meat.  Add the onion and garlic mixture, mixing well.

Add water to the juices to achieve 2 cups liquid.

Put the rice and one cup of the juices in the meat's fry pan, bring to a boil, then reduce the heat, cover, and simmer for 10 minutes.  Check it occasionally to make sure there is enough water, adding more as necessary.

In the bowl with the meat, add the rice, the last cup of the juices, wine, orange rind, mint, parsley, cinnamon, tomato puree, diced zucchini, and the two cheeses.  Mix together well.

Melt the butter over a low heat. 

Butter an 8 x 12 x 2-inch glass casserole dish.  Line the bottom half with four half-sheets of filo, brushing each layer with butter.

Spread the filling evening over the filo.  Cover the filling with four more half-sheets of filo, again brushing each layer with butter.

Score through the top layers of filo to designate 8 pieces.

Bake for 45 minutes.  Remove from the oven and let cool for 15 minutes before cutting and serving.

Still a bit of pink left in that meat.

The garlic is barely cooked, but it sure smells good.

Watch the rice so it doesn't dry out.

All the filling ingredients, premixing.

Now they are mixed.

TOO. MUCH. BUTTER.

Beautiful, no?

My Notes

The original recipe started with leg of lamb, but my stepmom and I both used ground beef.

I wrote down the spice amounts she used, but I used a fresh orange and fresh mint.

The original recipe specified potatoes, but we both liked the idea of zucchini.  It also said to put sliced hard-boiled eggs over the top of the meat mixture before covering it.  

She used a butter-flavored spray instead of butter.  I went for the butter!

The Verdict

This is tasty!  It is a robust meal, very filling, but the spices make it interesting and the zucchini makes it lighter than using potatoes.

The meat gives an umami taste, of course; the spices add complexity, although I wished I had added more orange zest; and the filo dough gives a nice crunch.  I think some of the spices could be increased, too, and you would still have a lovely meal.

The only issue we (myself and several guest tasters) had was that I was too heavy-handed with the butter between the layers.  It was too buttery, which distracted from the rest of flavors.  I haven't used filo in a long time, and I should have just put a light layer between the sheets.   It wasn't a problem with the top layer, but it was with the bottom layer. 

Success! 

We had leftovers, which were also tasty, except we couldn't get the crunch back into the top layers of filo.  That was okay.

Pollos en pebre gachupin - Chickens in gachupin pebre, a Pinedo recipe

I'm really enjoying the stews that Encarnación Pinedo included in her book, El Cocinero Español.  The flavors are intriguing with combinations I haven't tried before.

Today I tried Pollos en pebre gachupin, on page 208.  Today, the term "gachupin" is derogatory.  It started off as purely descriptive, used for Spaniards who left the Iberian peninsula to immigrate to the Americas.  But often those people had political or powerful connections.  When they arrived, they would have high-placed jobs waiting for them.  This, of course, was irritating to the people who were born and lived there.  It is understandable that the term started having negative connotations.

Did Miss Pinedo intend it to be an insult?  I doubt it.  First, why name a tasty food after someone you don't like?  Also consider that a pebre, while today is considered to be a Chilean condiment with pepper, vinegar, oil and chiles, also has culinary roots in Spain.  In Catalan, it means a sauce that has pepper, vinegar, and other spices.  Pinedo's family on her mother's side were from Spain (we think Basque) and her father was from Ecuador.  Recipes she included in her book reach far back into her European heritage.  Her maternal grandparents could have brought the recipe with them when they traveled from Mexico to the San Francisco area in the 1770s, when "gachupin" was not yet a bad word.

I conclude that the recipe refers to a sauce that uses pepper and has connections to Spain and does not intend an insult to anyone.  Perhaps her family brought it with them from Spain or got it from someone who had arrived from there. 

 You can see that the sauce she specifies to cook the chicken in has connections to Chile -- oil and vinegar -- and also to Spain because it is a simmer sauce and not a dip or condiment.

 Her Recipe

 

 My Translation

 

My Redaction 

2 to 3 pound whole chicken, boiled or otherwise cooked

1 tablespoon peppercorns

1 tablespoon coriander (seeds)

1 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon chile flakes

2 medium onions

1 cup olive oil

1 cup white wine vinegar

3 cloves garlic

1 cup loosely packed parsley leaves

I decided not to use the oregano.

Skin and debone the chicken, then chop into bite-sized pieces.

Grind the peppercorns and coriander in a mortar until fine.  Add the salt and chile flakes; grind again.

Peel and chop the onions.  Peel and mince the garlic.  Finely chop the parsley.

Heat the olive oil in a large Dutch oven over medium heat.  Cook onions in it until clear. 

Add the garlic and parsley; cook for 1 more minute.

Add the vinegar and stir well.  Bring the mixture to a simmer, then simmer it for about 2 minutes.

Add the chicken and 2 tablespoons of the spice mix.

Mix well, bring to a simmer, lower the heat and cook for about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Put the cover on the pan if the mixture appears to be drying out quickly.

When the cooking is done, add 1 more tablespoon (or whatever is left) of the spice mix and stir well.

Serve!

Chunks o'chicken.

Finely ground spices.

The simmer sauce.  Everything but the chicken and spice mix.

Now everything.  Ready to simmer.

It seemed more juicy once cooked.

My Notes

I previously cooked my chicken by bringing a kettle of water to a boil, adding the bird, bringing it to a boil for 3 minutes, then covering the pan and turning off the heat and letting it set for 2 hours.  This was done the day before, so the bird was cold when I starting making this recipe.  I saw the direction to shred the meat, so I assumed it was already cooked.  There are other Pinedo recipes that say specifically to shred raw meat, which I did not consider until after I cooked this one!

My cooked chicken weighed nearly 3 pounds; when I was done separating the meat from the bones and skin, I had about 2 1/2 pounds of just meat.

I had read up on pebres because I wasn't sure what spices I should use; I saw that chiles, black pepper, coriander, and maybe fresh oregano were ingredients.  I thought I would use oregano (that's why it's in the picture) but then changed my mind.  Also, I wasn't sure if the coriander meant the seeds or the leaves (cilantro) but chose to use the seeds because I wanted to grind them with the peppercorns.

I had to choose an oil, and since it was a primary ingredient of the sauce, I chose olive oil for the flavor. I also had to choose the vinegar, and white wine vinegar seemed to be both flavorful and not too acidic.  I thought it would complement the chicken meat.

I decided to add the vinegar after cooking the onions, garlic, and parsley in the oil.  It seemed that the goal was to get their flavors infused in the oil first.  

I thought that 2 tablespoons of the spice mix would be enough, and it tasted good when the cooking was done.  However, I thought about how cooking can reduce the impact of spices, and a pebre is really supposed to be "pepper-forward" and spicy.  That's why I added more spice mix afterwards - adjusting the spices to taste.

Keep in mind that when Miss Pinedo said "and then it is seasoned," she meant "cook the dish until the flavors meld and mature."

 The Verdict

I served it with white rice and cauliflower.  The cauliflower recipe was a repeat of Pinedo's, with butter sauce; you can view the recipe by clicking here.  And wine.  Don't forget the wine!

The cauliflower is not in the picture.

A nice combination in the bowl.

My guest taster and I enjoyed it very much.  The chicken was cooked and moist and tender.  The sauce had an oily mouthfeel, but not greasy.  It was tasty and not off-putting.  The spices were strong enough to make us taste them:  a bit of a chile kick but the other flavors were there, too, so they had a nice balance.  The vinegar countered the oily feeling with a bit of an acidic taste, which was also pleasant. I think the pepper flavor was the most dominant but not overwhelming the other flavors in the mix.

Two other guest tasters tried the leftovers.  One agreed that the flavors were good and not too strong.  She felt that there was lemon in it (that was the vinegar, I think).  The other said it was "yummy," but really didn't get the chile kick - which it not surprising since he likes strong chile flavors.  He thought it had wine in the mixture.

It made enough that there were leftovers for several meals, which we always served with rice.  It reheated well and tasted yummy each time.

Success!

It was easy and fast, because you start off with cooked chicken.  I made it again, starting with raw boneless, skinless thighs cut into chunks, and I also added the spices to the oil and vinegar mix while it was simmering.  I cooked it the same amount.  The finished look was a little different because the meat didn't look as "shredded" as it did the first time.  The chunks looked rounder.  The sauce was juicier.  But the taste was still the same.  Double success!

UPDATE:  I took the second attempt to a gathering, where it was well received. I suggest using less oil and vinegar, especially if you are starting with raw chicken.  I had a lot of liquid, only took about a third of it, and still thought it was too much.   

 

Barbecued Pork Ribs - a Texas recipe

Forty years ago, my Texas cousins gave me The Texas Cookbook by Mary Faulk Koock, as a gift that also reminded me of them.   

ISBN 0-316-50182-4

Its organization is interesting:  the chapters are regions of Texas, such as Amarillo, Houston, Corpus Christi, and The LBJ Ranch.  The recipes are from people the author knew in those regions, so there are often stories that go with the recipes to put them in context.  Some of the stories are funny, like the one about a Welshman who had never tried Fritos dipped in guacamole.  It did not go well - he spat out the one bite he took.  But the dinner was saved because he loved the buffet of rib eye, roast turkey, potatoes, rice pilaf, eggplant casserole, green tomato relish, whole wheat biscuits, and two types of cake.

The author name-drops like crazy, and why not?  If you've had a meal with President Lyndon B. Johnson and his wife, Lady Bird Johnson, you should talk about it!  

The recipes often are accompanied with menus, showing how the meal planners offered luncheons, buffets, wedding and anniversary parties, and more.  Those Texans knew how to party!

I had a slab of pork ribs that I wanted to cook, and my Texas cousins came to mind.  On page 215 I found a straight-forward recipe that I could try on my grill.  It came from the Brownsville chapter.

Barbecued Pork Ribs

10 pounds small pork ribs

Brown sugar

Salt

Java cracked pepper

Small bottle of soy sauce and/or lime juice or red wine vinegar

2 cloves garlic

Just one of those garlic cloves, please!

Rub ribs lightly with brown sugar and sprinkle with salt and cracked pepper.  Marinate in small bottle of soy sauce and/or fresh lime juice or red wine vinegar and sprinkle with cut cloves of garlic.  Cook and smoke slowly in covered barbecue for at least 1 1/2 hours, basting frequently with marinade.

My Notes    

I had 2 3/4 pounds pork loin back ribs, so I used as much sugar, salt, and pepper as I thought I needed, and one clove of garlic.  I also used 1/2 bottle (about 3 ounces) of low-sodium soy sauce.

So I rubbed the meat on all sides with brown sugar, about 1/2 cup.  Then I sprinkled about 1/2 teaspoon of salt and about 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper - that was probably not Java, and it was ground, not just cracked.

I poured the soy sauce over the meat slowly so as not to wash off the sugar and spices.  I put garlic on the meaty side only.

This mixture went into the refrigerator to marinate for one hour.  

I preheated my barbecue grill to between 300 and 350 degrees F.  Then I left on two burners on low on the left side of the grill and put the meat on the right side for indirect heat cooking.  That kept the temperature about the same.

The marinade measured about 1/3 cup, and I basted the meat every 15 minutes until the marinade ran out.  I stored the marinade in the refrigerator between bastings.  I left the barbecue's lid down when I wasn't basting the meat.

After one hour of cooking, I added a foil cup of mesquite chips to smoke the ribs. At this point the marinade was used up, so I just left the lid down so the meat could capture the smoke flavor.

Now here's the twist in the story.  After 1 1/2 hours, the ribs were not close to being done, and I had to prepare to leave for an hour or two.  I really didn't want to leave the barbecue cooking without me there to monitor it, so I removed the ribs from the grill.

Then I wrapped them in foil and put them in the oven at 300 degrees F.  When I got back from my appointment, the ribs were tender and smelled fabulous.

Rubbed with brown sugar and sprinkled with salt and pepper on all sides.

Garlic and soy sauce on the meaty side only.

Off the grill and almost ready for the oven.

The Verdict

They were GOOD.  

Sweet, salty, peppery, and an added burst of umami from the soy sauce.  Not overwhelmingly strong for any of the flavors, which is good because we wanted to taste the pork meat, too.  A nice enhancement for already good meat.

The garlic flavor was very subtle.  I could not taste the smoke, so I think I should have put the foil cup in earlier. 

As I mentioned, they were tender, to the point where they were falling off the bone, but not overcooked.  We ate half of them at one meal; the leftovers reheated were just as good.

Out of the oven.  So tender, it is easy to slice for serving.

Success!  Recommended!  My guest taster has asked to have a repeat performance.

Well done, Texas! 

(I haven't seen my cousins in years, and I miss them.) 

Errors and Old Cooking - Notes on some Pinedo recipes

As much as you might proofread your own writing, it seems like errors can manage to sneak by.  This is true even if you have other people reading your writing.  And the longer the document, the more likely an error will occur.

This was as true in 1898 when Encarnación Pinedo published her cookbook, El Cocinero Español, as it is today.  When I read through her book, I wasn't always sure if an error was hers (a writing error) or the printer's (a typesetting error).  

In some cases, I guessed it was the printer's fault.  For example, I came across "sicura" on page 73 and spent a long time trying to track down the meaning of that Spanish word.  Well, it's not a Spanish word.  But the word "cisura" is, and it means "opening."  This worked well within the context of the recipe.  This, I think, was made when the book was typeset (remember, no word processors or autocorrect back then!); they switched the c and the s.

 

 

On the other hand, on page 129, the second recipe for Stuffed Eggs has a very confusing direction.  After the hard-boiled eggs are stuffed - like the ever-popular Deviled Eggs but with a more complex stuffing - a bird feather is supposed to brown the eggs.

 A bird feather?  

This is when I think she made a writing error.  When you have about 880 recipes, this can happen.

Looking at the recipe as a whole, you recognize that the feather is the mistake, as evidenced by the instructions, "Put them in the dish when they have taken color" - that is, when they have browned.

 

  

This is where a knowledge of Old Cooking comes in handy.  In the days before ovens with broiler elements, one way to achieve the browning was using a salamander.  It is a metal disk with a long handle.  It is heated in the fire, then held over food.  Its heat acts like a modern broiler, browning crumbs, melting cheese, and whatever else you need to have cooked from above.

Here's a picture:

http://www.fightingquakerforge.com/uploads/1/3/3/0/13300957/2845458_orig.jpg 

I hope to acquire one some day, just for the fun of showing it off and, of course, to use it in my historical cooking demonstrations.

Further investigation helped me feel more confident of my change, because I found a German recipe that is very similar to her recipe: Eier gefüllt und gebraten.  Here, the stuffing is comprised of cooked yolks, with flavorings such as mustard and herbs, and is bound with soaked breadcrumbs and/or raw yolks, and then the filled eggs are fried stuffing-side-down or baked.  Once that is done, shredded cheese is put on top and the eggs are broiled or oven-baked to melt the cheese.  Some versions suggest making some sauce to put over the top.

I'm convinced Pinedo's recipe is a version of the German recipe, and no feather is needed to brown the stuffing.

There are more errors in her book, but nothing Earth-shattering. Items such as a simple misspelling, and instructions that appeared to be put in the wrong recipe.  Most everything is well written. 

Zanzibar Chicken, one of My Most Favorites

I guess I've been in the mood for returning to old favorite recipes lately.  My orange tree has been producing - they are Valencias, and so make wonderful juice - and I really wanted to make Zanzibar Chicken again (pg 92-93), a recipe I've been making since 1990.

It comes from a book I have used so many times, 365 Ways to Cook Chicken, by Cheryl Sedaker.  

ISBN 0-06-015539-6

When I look through it, I see notes I have made on a variety of recipes.  This one comes to mind as a favorite because the concepts it holds transfer to other ingredients so easily.  It also is a fruit-and-meat combination, which I love, along with some of my favorite spices.

When I first started cooking from this book, I was a new mom, trying to learn how to manage a house and a baby.  The recipes are often quite easily assembled, then can be left to cook while I did other things.  In fact, this recipe comes from the chapter titled "Chicken Quick."

So here it is, recipe #144:

Zanzibar Chicken

3 pounds chicken thighs and/or drumsticks

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 medium onion, chopped

1 garlic clove, crushed through a press

3/4 cup orange juice

3 tablespoons raisins

1/3 cup slivered almonds 

That's fresh squeezed juice in that glass measuring cup!

1. Season chicken with cinnamon, cloves, salt, and pepper.  In a large frying pan, heat oil over medium-high heat.  Add chicken, in batches in necessary, and cook, turning until browned, about 10 minutes.  Remove and set aside.

2. Add onion to pan.  Cook until soft, about 3 minutes.  Add garlic and cook 1 minute longer.

3. Return chicken to pan.  Add orange juice and raisins.  Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 15 minutes, until chicken is tender.  Garnish with almonds.

My Notes

Today I had about 1 1/2 pounds of chicken thighs (boneless, skinless).  That works for me, so I used all the same ingredient amounts, not halving them at all.

I mixed the seasonings in a bowl, then rolled the chicken pieces in them until each piece was thoroughly covered with a thin layer.  Keep in mind that I love these spices, so it would take a lot to make them too strong for me.

The smaller amount of chicken meant I didn't have to brown them in batches.  But brown them I did.  They even got a little crusty, but they weren't cooked all the way through. (I like crusty.)

I had to turn the heat down a little when the garlic went in, as I despise burnt garlic.  A quick one-minute cooking should be enough to make everything smell good.

I sometimes measure the raisins but I might just throw in a handful, depending on how much I want to taste raisins.

Sometimes I spoon the juice-raisins-onions mixture on top of the chicken pieces before simmering.  Just to get the extra flavor into the meat.

Roll that thigh in the spices!  Coat it well.

They all fit in the pan.

Crusty level of browning. Without burning the spices.

Everything together and ready to simmer.

It's done.

The Verdict

Of course it tastes good!  It's one of my favorites!  

The spices were strong but not too much.  My guest taster thought they were just right. The chicken was cooked all the way through and very tender.

The sauce, oh the sauce!  Orange, spices, sweet from the raisins, meaty, luscious.  It is just so good.  

Put the pan on a trivet and serve it forth.

I served the chicken and sauce with rice, both in a bowl, so the sauce could flavor both the meat and the rice.  Spoon that sauce over everything.

The almonds add a lovely crunch. 

Get every drop of that sauce.

Success! 

Now, what I meant by "the concepts transfer to other ingredients" is that you can create similar dishes with the ideas contained in the recipe.

I have used apple juice instead of orange juice, sometimes adding pieces of apple to the pan, with either chicken or pork chops.  Use the same spices or add some ginger (especially good with pork).  Apples and onions are a made-for-each-other combination.  I may or may not use raisins.

I have also used coconut milk along with fresh lemongrass, curry powder, and maybe a little ginger.  For fruit, pineapple is a good choice as well as raisins.

What other combinations could you use?  Use your imagination.  Have fun with it.  Consider chicken, pork, fish, or seafood.  Think about the spices that taste good with the meat you choose.  Pick a fruit that complements everything.

Carne asada en la olla de los misioneros - Roast meat in the missionaries' pot, a Pinedo recipe

After having tried the Adobo seco recipe last month, I wanted to try another meat recipe from Pinedo's book.  Click here to see the previous recipe.

This time I had a two-pound beef roast.  What I found was a recipe on pages 52-53 titled Carne asada en la olla de los misioneros.  It looked easy, but I learned from the last recipe that getting the spicing/herbs just right is the challenge.  Challenge accepted!

Her Recipe

 

My Translation

My Redaction

2 pound beef roast
12 costeño chiles
1 clove garlic
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh oregano

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.  

Thinly slice the garlic.  

Cut slits in the meat deep and wide enough for the garlic slices to fit. (I skipped the lardons.  See my note below.)

Insert garlic into slits in the meat.

Pour oil into the bottom of a heavy Dutch oven and spread it around.

Put the meat in the Dutch oven, cover with the lid, then put into the oven for 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, remove the seeds and cores of the chiles.  Toast the chiles in a hot, dry pan until browned with maybe a few black patches, stirring or turning them often to toast them evenly.

Remove chiles to a bowl and cover with hot water.  Allow them to soak until soft.  

If you haven't already, finely chop the oregano.

Once the chiles are ready, put them and some (or all) of the soaking water into a blender.  Blend until smooth.  Add the oregano and blend a few seconds more to mix.

When the 30 minutes is up on the meat, pour the sauce over the top of it.  Turn the meat and spoon the sauce over the top if needed.  Put the lid back on the Dutch oven and bake for another 20 minutes.

When done, let the meat rest for a few minutes.  Slice thinly and serve with a few spoonfuls of sauce over the slices.  The rest of the sauce can go in a small pitcher that goes on the table with the meat. 

 My Notes

Lardons are thin strips of fat that are inserted into the meat so that they melt into it while cooking.  They are a great way to keep the meat moist.  I didn't have any, although if I had thought about it enough, I probably could have used raw bacon fat.  That would add salt to the flavor.

My garlic clove was big, so after slicing it, I cut each slice in half.  That made it easy to put into the slits and not have them sticking out.  I used less than the whole clove.  I would guess my slits were 1 to 2 inches apart on all sides of the roast.

Tuck that garlic in!

 My chile sauce measured 1 1/2 cups when done.  I hoped it was "scant" enough.  

When the meat came out after 30 minutes of cooking, the center was at about 100 degrees F.  After the second round of cooking, it was 145 degrees F.  I considered that done.

That much fresh oregano. (I liked the picture!)

After the Round 1 cooking time.

Rolled that chunk o'meat in the sauce, and spooned on more.

After Round 2 of cooking.

I think that is perfect!

Ready for the table.

The Verdict

I served it with some roasted potatoes dressed with a little shredded asiago cheese;  steamed zucchini tossed with garlic powder, pepper, and salt; and wine.  Don't forget the wine!

The meat was a little more chewy than I had expected.  My guest taster agreed but did not see it as a negative.  To me, beef tends to be chewy and that usually disappoints me, so I have a hard time judging it.

The sauce was pleasantly spicy-hot, not too much for my guest taster who typically does not like spicy.  I got a little tingle on my tongue from each bite, which I enjoyed.  It did not set my mouth on fire.  (Whew!  The costeños are hotter than what I am used to, so I usually mix them with less fiery chiles.  But I am learning that cooking can reduce the fire a bit. )

The garlic and oregano were not dominant.  I believe the sauce was close to being balanced, but I think I would add more oregano next time.  I could barely taste them; I wasn't even sure I was tasting them.  My guest taster said he could get the herbal notes of the oregano.   

Also, I think I could have used less sauce for the second round of cooking.  Maybe 1 cup? It could have been more robust in flavor, which makes me think "watered down" implies "too much liquid."

If I had cooked the meat at a lower temperature, say 300 degrees F, that might have made the meat less chewy.  It would just take longer. 

We enjoyed the meal, so I call it a success!  We both poured on more sauce as we were eating the beef. Again, that added flavor and chile-heat but not too much.

I shared some of the leftovers with another favored guest taster who really likes hot and spicy chiles.  He has a discerning palate and has different food preferences than I have, so I really appreciate his take on things. He thought the meat was cooked just right.  However, he could not discern much taste from the sauce.  At all.  Not from the chiles or from the oregano.  So the sauce was a bust for him.  If you have guests who are similar, bump up the oregano quite a bit and reduce the amount of water used to make the sauce.  Maybe even reduce the sauce somewhat before serving, just to concentrate the flavor.  At least, that is my best guess.