Caldo

By norsegal8

The Islenos (Islanders) came to the sultry, flat marshlands of St. Bernard Parish from the Canary Islands, off the coast of Morocco, over 200 years ago. They brought a version of the Spanish stew puchero, which they renamed caldo and made with vegetables from their South Louisiana harvest. Caldo is a slow-cooked soupy stew that always includes pork, often pickled.

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 2 large yellow onions, diced
• 1 bell pepper, seeded and diced
• 1 stalk celery, diced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 3 ham hocks
• 2 cups lima beans
• 2 large handfuls mustard greens, chopped
• 1 cup dice whole tomtoes, fresh or canned
• 1 cup corn kernels
• 1 sweet potato, peeled and diced
• 1 Yukon gold potato, peeled and diced
• 1 large handful of green beans, chopped
• 1 1/2 gallons basic chicken stock
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
• salt
• pepper

Details

Servings 10

Preparation

Step 1

1. Heat the olive oil in a large, heavy-bottomed pot over moderate heat. Add the onions, bell peppers, celery and garlic and cook, stirring until the vegetables are soft, about 15 minutes.

2. Add the ham hocks, lima beans, mustard greens, tomatoes, corn, sweet potatoes, Yukon Gold potatoes, and green beans and mix with the cooked vegetables.

3. Add the Chicken Stock, bay leaves, cayenne and allspice. Increase the heat to high and bring the soup to a boil. Reduce the heat to low and gently simmer the caldo until all the vegetables are soft and the ham hocks are tender, about 1 1/2 hours.

4. Season with salt and pepper. Remove the ham hocks from the soup , pull the meat from the bones, shred and return to the soup. Serve.