Growing up in my family, I can honestly say that there were only a handful of soup recipes prepared. There was menudo, pozole, caldo de pollo, caldo de albondigas and the family favorite, caldo de res(mexican-style beef soup). When I signed on with Rumba Meats to share some of my favorite family recipes and memories of cooking with family, I knew that this recipe would surely be one that I would share. Today I share with you my version of Caldo de Res. This was a dish typically prepared for a Sunday meal in our house.
Deciding To Return To Mexico Was Not An Easy Decision
After much soul searching, in 2011, I decided to return to Monterrey, Mexico to visit my extended family. Losing both of my parents just a few short years earlier, I had resigned myself to never returning. I just thought it would never be the same. One of the motivations for me to return, besides getting to see all my family, was to experience one on one cooking in Mexico with all of the plentiful ingredients that I loved. I would be staying with my madrina(godmother), mom’s younger sister Minerva. She was always ahead of her time when it came to cooking and I could not wait to experience it all first hand. I made so many new memories, and as you can guess, most of them were food memories. Cooking with family and enjoying many, many meals together as a family.
I Was Scared To Death Of The Traditional Pressure Cooker!
Besides all the wonderful recipes I learned, I came home determined to conquer my fear of cooking with the pressure cooker. As a child, I always remember how my abuelita and tias would all use the pressure cooker for meals every single day. My Mom was not a fan of the pressure cooker, so I never learned to use one. Soon after arriving home, I purchased a small basic pressure cooker. There was no looking back! At the end of the post, I will share with you the more traditional directions on how to prepare this recipe.
Traditional Cooking Method~ Add all of the beef and marrow bones to a large soup pot. Cover with a generous amount of water. Add onion, celery, bay leaves, peppercorns and salt. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer. Skim the foam off the top as needed. Cover partially and continue cooking for 1 1/2 hours or until meat is tender. Add the vegetables as directed above and finish cooking the soup.
Here are a few pictures of my visit to Mexico, just a small piece of all the cooking we did. My tia Minerva, tia Amelia and me in the bottom left. While in Monterrey, I purchased my tia Minerva a better set of knives and a better cutting board, lol! For me, two very important tools in the kitchen for slicing up all those wonderful cuts from Rumba Meats.
Caldo de Res(Mexican-Style Beef Soup)
Ingredients
Ingredients
- 4 pounds beef hind shanks
- 6 Marrow bones
- 1/2 large white onion, peeled
- 1 head garlic
- 2 bay leaves
- 10 peppercorns
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 8 cups water
You will also need
- 8 cups water
- 3 medium carrots sliced
- 1 large chayote sliced into wedges
- 2 ears of corn sliced into 4 pieces each
- 2 med sticks of celery sliced
- 2 medium russet potatoes sliced into quarters
- 2 roma tomatoes diced or pureed
- 1/2 head of green cabbage quartered
- 2 med calabacitas or zucchini sliced chunky
- handful of cilantro
- Salt to taste
For Serrano Salsa
- 8 to 10 serrano peppers roughly chopped
- 1/2 cup water
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
Instructions
Directions
- Wash the beef and bones under cold water then transfer to a 8 quart pressure cooker. Add 1/2 of the onion, head of garlic, bay leaves, peppercorns and 1/3 of celery. Add just enough water so it comes 1/2 an inch below maximum fill line. Secure and lock the lid. Turn heat to high.
- Once the safety valve locks and the pressure release valve begins to hiss and or rotate, turn heat to medium/low. Set timer for 1 hour. The pressure cooker will yield a much more concentrated broth and the most tender meat.
- After 20 minutes, add 8 cups of water to a large soup pot. Season with 1 teaspoon of salt and bring to a boil at medium heat. Reduce to a simmer. Add the carrots, chayote, corn, celery, and tomatoes. Bring back up to a simmer and cook for 10 minutes. Then add the potatoes. Continue cooking for 10 minutes.
- By this time the beef should be just about done. If timer has gone off, remove pressure cooker from heat and let sit until safety valve unlocks or carefully release steam. Follow instructions on your pressure cooker. Once it unlocks, carefully remove the lid. Remove all the beef(discarding excess fat) and transfer to simmering soup with vegetables. Strain the solids from the beef stock and discard the solids. Skim the fat on the top of stock. Add some or all of the remaining beef stock to soup pot, if you like.
- Add the cabbage, squash and cilantro. Cook for 15 more minutes or until cabbage and squash are cooked through. Remove from heat. Ladle soup into serving bowls and garnish with serrano salsa, lemon(or lime) and fresh cilantro if desired. Serve with warm corn tortillas and rice. We like to spread the bone marrow on the warm tortilla with serrano salsa, lemon and salt.
Notes
Reader Interactions
Comments
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[…] I am using beef hind shank . This traditional cut of beef is also used to prepare my favorite soup, caldo de res […]
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[…] The serrano salsa is simply roughly chopped serrano peppers with water and a little salt. My mom used to prepare this quick salsa to garnish Caldo de Res, beef and vegetable soup. https://pinaenlacocina.com/caldo-de-resits-a-sunday-thing-mexican-style-beef-soup/ […]
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I didn’t see where you added the Magi.
Sorry about that Maria. I edited the post so it includes the maggi seasoning in the instructions. It is optional. I use it to season. like salt and it adds a rich flavor. My mom didn’t use it, but I enjoy it for my beef recipes.