Recipe

Criollo Ajiaco with Corn Dumplings

Name: Criollo Ajiaco with Corn Dumplings
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 150 min
Total time: 180 min
Ingredients: ¼ kg of tasajo; 1 small hen; Beef flank; ½ kg of pork meat; 4 cobs of tender corn; ¼ kg of yam; 2 green plantains; ¼ kg of malanga; ¼ kg of cassava; ¼ kg of sweet potato; 2 ripe plantains; ¼ kg of pumpkin; 2 tablespoons of lard; 1 large onion; 3 cloves of garlic; 1 large ají cachucha; 1 cup of tomato sauce; 7 liters of water; 2 green lemons; Salt to taste; 1 bowl of grated corn; 1 teaspoon of salt; 2 crushed garlic cloves; 2 tablespoons of wheat flour (optional)

Cuban criollo ajiaco with tasajo, hen, pork and Island root vegetables, with tender corn dumplings. A hearty and very traditional broth.

CiberCubaJanuary 15, 2007

CiberCuba

Preparation30 min
Cooking2 h 30 min
Total time3 h
Servings6 servings
DifficultyMedium

Criollo ajiaco is a typical dish born in the rural areas of Cuba. It recalls the Spanish cocido, but instead of chickpeas it features a wide variety of our Island's root vegetables and plantains: yam, malanga, cassava, sweet potato, plantain and pumpkin, along with tasajo, hen and pork.

Method

For the ajiaco

Cut the tasajo into pieces and soak it from the night before.
Drain the tasajo and place it in a large pot with the water and the hen cut into quarters. Let it boil for one hour.
Add the beef flank and the pork meat in chunks. Continue boiling for one more hour, removing the foam and fat little by little.
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Make a sofrito with the lard, onion, garlic, ají cachucha and tomato sauce, and add it to the stew.
Peel, cut and add the root vegetables and plantains to the pot.
Squeeze the lemons and add their juice, which complements the flavor and cuts a bit of the fat from the meats. Adjust the salt.
If you want a thicker broth, remove some pieces of malanga, pumpkin and yam, mash them and return them to the pot.
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For the corn dumplings

Mix the grated corn with the crushed garlic and salt.
If you notice the dough is too soft, add two tablespoons of wheat flour.
With a spoon, gently drop the dumplings into the boiling broth, without stirring. The heat will make them cook and set. Serve very hot.