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1
Start the Beef in Cold Water
15 Mins
Bring to the boil at 100°C (212°F), then reduce
Put the beef, onion, garlic, bay leaves and peppercorns in a very large pot and cover with the cold water. Bring to the boil over high heat, then skim off the grey foam that rises for the first 10 minutes — this keeps the broth clear and sweet. Add half the salt.
Start in cold water, not hot: it draws the flavour out of the beef and into the broth.
Done when: Broth clear, foam skimmed; beef covered by at least 5 cm of water.
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2
Simmer the Beef Until Tender
75 Mins
Simmer at 85–95°C (185–203°F)
Turn the heat down so the pot barely bubbles, cover loosely and simmer for 75 minutes. The beef should be getting tender but not yet falling apart — it will finish cooking with the vegetables. A thermometer in the thickest piece should already read above 74°C (165°F).
A lazy simmer, not a boil: boiling makes the beef stringy and the broth cloudy.
Done when: Beef yielding when pressed with a spoon; broth golden and clear.
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3
Add the Root Vegetables
40 Mins
Simmer at 85–95°C (185–203°F)
Lift the beef out briefly if the pot is crowded, then add the potatoes, sweet potatoes, pumpkin, carrots and leek. Return the beef, top up with a little hot water if anything is above the surface, and simmer 40 minutes until the roots are nearly tender.
Add the hardest vegetables first so they all finish at the same time.
Done when: Potatoes and pumpkin nearly tender when pierced; broth rich and golden.
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4
Add the Corn and Cabbage
30 Mins
Simmer at 85–95°C (185–203°F)
Add the corn rounds and the cabbage wedges, tucking them into the broth. Simmer 30 minutes more, until the cabbage is soft, the corn is tender and the beef shreds easily. Taste the broth and add the remaining salt.
Cabbage goes in last: it cooks quickly and turns grey and tired if it simmers too long.
Done when: Cabbage soft, corn tender, beef shredding; broth well seasoned.
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5
Rest, Slice and Serve in Two Parts
15 Mins
Serve hot, about 70°C (158°F)
Rest the pot 10 minutes off the heat. First ladle the hot broth into bowls and serve it as a soup. Then lift the beef onto a board, slice it thickly, and arrange it on a platter with the vegetables. Scatter parsley over everything and serve with crusty bread and coarse salt.
Serving the broth first is the tradition — it is the cook's reward, and it stretches one pot into a two-course dinner.
Done when: Broth served steaming; meat sliced and tender; vegetables in generous chunks.
auto_awesome Finishing Touches & Plating
Serve the broth first, then the sliced beef and vegetables on a shared platter — puchero is a slow Sunday dinner, not a rushed bowl, and the table should linger over it.
Uruguay
35m
