Sancocho

Prep: 40 mins

Cook: 90 mins

Difficulty: Intermediate

Servings: 8 Servings

Sancocho is a soup made throughout Latin America and the Caribbean with meat, root vegetables, fresh sofrito (an aromatic Puerto Rican seasoning blend), and seasoned with sazón seasoning and an adobo spice blend. It’s often made differently depending on where you’re located, with the ingredients varying on what people have access to. You can often find chunks of meat (mostly beef or pork) and vegetables like taro, yuca, malanga (also known as cocoyam), and sweet potato.

Ingredients

6 frozen mini ears extra-sweet corn on the cob
2 pounds beef stew meat (1 1/2-inch pieces), boneless chuck roast, or London broil
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons neutral oil, such as canola, divided
10 cups unsalted beef broth or water
1 cup fresh sofrito or thawed frozen sofrito, divided
1 1/2 teaspoons sazón seasoning, such as Badia or Iberia, plus more as needed
1 1/2 teaspoons adobo spice blend, such as Spice Tribe, plus more as needed
2 Knorr pork bouillon cubes, or 2 packets Goya Ham Flavored Concentrate from a 1.41-ounce box
2 small bay leaves
1 large guineo (green banana)
1 (32-ounce) bag frozen sancocho tropical vegetable mix (no need to thaw)
4 fresh culantro leaves (also known as recao or sawtooth herb)
1 large fresh oregano brujo leaf (also known as Mexican mint)
Steamed white rice, for serving
Sliced avocado, for serving
Hot sauce (optional)

Instructions

Let 6 frozen mini ears corn thaw at room temperature while you start the sancocho.
Trim off any thick surface fat from 2 pounds chuck roast or London broil and cut into 1 1/2-inch pieces if needed (no need to cut beef stew meat). Season the beef with 2 teaspoons kosher salt and 1 teaspoon black pepper.
Heat 1 tablespoon of the neutral oil in a large pot or Dutch oven (at least 5 1/2 quarts) over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add half of the beef and sear until browned all over, 6 to 8 minutes. Transfer to a bowl or plate. Add the remaining 1 tablespoon neutral oil to the pot and repeat searing the remaining beef.
Return all the beef and any accumulated juices to the pot. Add 10 cups unsalted beef broth or water, 1/2 cup of the sofrito, 1 1/2 teaspoons sazón seasoning, 1 1/2 teaspoons adobo spice blend, 2 pork bouillon cubes or ham concentrate packets, and 2 small bay leaves. Stir to combine and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low. Cover and simmer until the beef is tender, about 1 1/2 hours.
When the beef is almost ready, cut each thawed mini ear of corn crosswise into 3 rounds. Peel and cut 1 guineo (green banana) crosswise into 1-inch thick rounds.
When the beef is ready, add the corn, guineo, remaining 1/2 cup sofrito, 1 (32-ounce) bag frozen sancocho tropical vegetable mix, 4 fresh culantro leaves, and 1 large fresh oregano brujo leaf. Stir to combine and bring to a simmer. Simmer uncovered until the root vegetables are fork-tender, about 30 minutes.
Remove the oregano brujo and bay leaves. Taste and season with more sazón and adobo as needed. Serve with steamed white rice, sliced avocado, and hot sauce if desired.