Caldo de Costilla (Colombian Beef Rib Broth)

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Beef ribs pressure cooked with potato, then finished with scallion and cilantro blended together and stirred in at the end. The Colombian breakfast broth, and the standard cure for the morning after.

Prep Time10

Cook Time30

Total Time40

Course: Soups

Cuisine: Colombian

Keyword: Beef Ribs broth

Servings:

Calories: 396kcal

Author: Angela Giraldo

Ingredients

1 ½ lbs beef ribs with plenty of bone: that is where the broth comes from
4 potatoes, or 5 a floury variety breaks down and thickens the broth
8 cups water
6 green onions 5 chopped into the pot, 1 blended with the cilantro at the end
3 cloves garlic
1 carrot diced
Cumin, to taste
Cilantro blended raw at the end, not boiled
Salt and pepper, to taste

Instructions

Put the water, the ribs, salt, pepper and cumin into a pressure cooker. Cook on high for about 20 minutes, to soften the ribs.
While that is happening, peel and slice the potatoes, finely chop 5 of the green onions and the garlic, and dice the carrot.
After 20 minutes, open the pressure cooker, add everything from the previous step, and check the water and the salt. Cook again until the potato is tender.
Blend the remaining green onion with the cilantro and a quarter cup of water. Once the soup is ready, stir this in off the heat and serve hot, with an arepa on the side.

Notes

The blended scallion and cilantro at the end is what makes this a caldo de costilla rather than a beef soup. It goes in raw and off the heat, so the aroma stays: boiled for even a minute it turns dull and grey. Ribs with plenty of bone give a better broth than meaty ones, since the bone and marrow are doing the work. In Colombia this is breakfast, served with an arepa and a cup of chocolate, and it has a long-standing reputation as the cure for a heavy night, which is why it is called a levantamuertos. Whether it works is another matter, but it is hot, salty and restorative.

Nutrition