Colombian Cassava and Potato Soup
Cassava and potato simmered with beef or chicken until the cassava starts to break down and thickens the broth. It is the everyday Colombian soup: forty-five minutes in a pressure cooker and open to whatever else is in the fridge. Serves four.
Servings: 4
Calories: 341kcal
Ingredients
- 1 lb potato, cut into large pieces about 450 g
- 1 lb cassava, cut into large pieces about 450 g; frozen yuca works and comes peeled
- 4 pieces of beef or chicken, bone-in the bone is what gives the broth body
- 1 tomato, finely chopped
- ½ medium onion, or 2 scallions, finely chopped
- Fresh cilantro, finely chopped, to taste the leaf, not the seed
- ½ bouillon cube (Ricostilla or Maggi) optional; any stock cube works
- ½ small carrot, grated
- Salt and achiote colouring, to taste the colouring is for looks only
Instructions
- In a pressure cooker, add the meat, the cassava, salt and the colouring. Cook over medium-high heat for about 15 minutes with the pot semi-covered.
- Add the rest: the potato, tomato, onion, cilantro, bouillon cube and carrot. Add enough water to cover everything generously.
- Cover the pot and cook over medium heat for half an hour, until the meat is tender and the cassava has started to break down, which is what thickens the broth.
Notes
Arracacha is a good addition if you can find it: an Andean root, somewhere between celery root and parsnip, sold frozen in some Latin groceries. Carrot, plantain, corn on the cob or pumpkin all work too. This is a soup that takes whatever is in the fridge.
Nutrition
Calories: 341kcal | Carbohydrates: 66g | Protein: 15g | Fat: 2g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 32mg | Sodium: 789mg | Potassium: 1090mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 5g | Vitamin A: 1569IU | Vitamin C: 52mg | Calcium: 44mg | Iron: 2mg