Asturian-American Migration Forum

My abuela made a soup using a large ham bone and pieces of ham for the broth. Then she added saffron, potatoes pared into bite-size or larger pieces and then peas. We usually had this with fresh bread fashioned into "rolls" with chorizo inside. She also made this soup with chorizo, but I liked the ham better. We called this cocido. I looked up cocido and it is defined as a Spanish stew.

Does anyone recognize this soup and have any more to add to the ingredients or the process? Thanks!
Betty

Cocido is a typical Spanish dish, but we'll need to know a little more about the ingredients to identify it.

Betty, what kind of "peas" did she use? Chickpeas (garbanzos)? Fresh green peas? Split peas?

Was there any cabbage or a noodle soup made from the broth?

------------------

Cocido es un plato típicamente español, pero precisamos más información sobre los ingredientes para identificarlo.

¿Betty, cuál clase de "peas" usaba? ¿Garbanzos, guisantes frescas, guisantes majados (secos)?

¿Hubo algún repollo o una sopa de fideos hecha con el caldo?

Hi Betty,

Yes I remember my abuela making cocido.

She always started off with ham bone with ham, chorizos and cut up white potatoes. Then she would use kale or cabbage...garbanzos or white beans. Sometimes morcila, which was never my favorite.

I don't remember bread with chorizos...but I do remember fresh baked bread. The smells were wonderful while the cocido was simmering and the bread was baking.

A cousin of mine, Manuel Gonzalez, made a wondeful soup called (I think I am spelling it correctly) pota de galego. If I remember correctly it was potatoes, chorizos, ham and kale. Does anyone know if this is right? Great soup too.

Barbara Alonso Novellino

My grandmother made an Asturian soup with morcilla, chorizo, scored salt pork, smooth kale (the curly is too hard to clean), soaked white beans, onions, ham bone, and cubed potatoes. She called it pote de berzas, if my memory is correct.

The meats and kale (chopped) go in early, then the beans if small (earlier if large) and oinions, the potatoes last.

Bob,

I remember my grandmother saying berzas.

What's the difference between berzas and cocido...or are they one in the same.

I thought berzas was with kale and cocido was with cabbage.

Berzas is simply the word for kale. Cabbage is col, although some people may use berzas for that too. Cocido is boiled or cooked or baked, or a kind of stew. Pote is another word for stew or a thick soup.

Pote o potaje: Cualquier guiso que lleve mezclados legumbres, carnes, verdura y patatas.

Pote de berzas: su ingrediente principal son las berzas

Cocido asturiano, maragato, madrileño etc., cada localidad tiene su especialidad, pero su ingrediente principal son los garbanzos. Con el caldo de cocer los ingredientes se hace sopa de fideos.

http://www.asturianus.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=1155

En este hilo hay una fotografia de las berzas y la receta del pote de berzas asturiano.

-------------------------
trans. Art

Pote or potaje: Whatever stew which is composed of a mixture of beans, meats, greens, and potatos.

Pote de berzas: It's principle ingredient is berzas [a green similar to kale in flavor and texture]

Cocido: There are many: cocido asturiano, cocido maragato, cocido madrileño, etc. Each region has its own speciality, but the main ingredient is chick peas or garbanzos. With the broth which results from cooking the cocido, one makes a noodle soup.

http://www.asturianus.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=1155

In this thread there is a photograph of berzas and the recipe for pote de berzas asturiano.
_________________

It just dawned on me why I love of one-pot meals! It must be carried in the genes.

Thanks for the definitions, Mafalda.

---------------------

Acaba de caer en la cuenta de porque me encanta tanto las comidas cocidas en solamente una ola! Debe ser llevado por los genes.

Gracias por las definiciones, Mafalda.

I have had my hambone and ham cooking today and it smells like my grandparents house! Wonderful memories!

I spoke with my mother last evening and she reminded me that my abuela always used garbanzos. But, one of my siblings (we were 7 children) wouldn't eat the garbanzos so my mother used green peas. Mom uses garbanzos now and I am using garbanzos in my soup!

Art, to answer your inquiry, no noodles or anything else was in our soup, just the broth, white potatoes and garbanzos/peas with saffron. I think some cabbage would be wonderful.

Mafalda's picture is SO enticing!!

Gracias a todos!
Betty