Sancocho Dominicano de Siete Carnes

Ingredients

• 400g beef chuck, cubed
• 400g pork shoulder, cubed
• 400g goat meat, cubed
• 400g chicken thighs, cut into pieces
• 300g pork ribs, cut into single ribs
• 250g longaniza sausage, sliced
• 250g smoked pork belly or bacon, cubed
• 3 limes, halved, for washing the meat
• 8 garlic cloves, mashed to a paste
• 2 tbsp dried oregano
• 3 tbsp lime juice
• 1 tbsp salt, for the marinade
• 1 tsp black pepper
• 4 tbsp neutral oil
• 2 tbsp brown sugar
• 3 litres water, plus more as needed
• 500g yuca, peeled and cut into chunks
• 400g yautía, peeled and cut into chunks
• 400g ñame, peeled and cut into chunks
• 400g auyama (kabocha or butternut squash), peeled and cubed
• 2 green plantains, peeled and cut into thick rounds
• 2 ears of sweetcorn, cut into rounds
• 1 large onion, diced
• 1 green bell pepper, diced
• 8 leaves culantro (recao), chopped
• 1 small bunch coriander, chopped
• 2 chicken stock cubes, crumbled
• Salt, to taste
• To serve: white rice, avocado slices and bitter orange juice

Before you cook

• Rub all the meats with the cut limes, rinse them under cold water, and pat them dry.
• Combine the mashed garlic, oregano, lime juice, one tablespoon of salt and the black pepper in a large bowl.
• Turn every piece of meat except the longaniza and smoked pork belly through this marinade, and leave it for at least one hour.
• Peel and chunk the yuca, yautía, ñame, auyama and plantains, keeping the yuca and plantain in water so they do not discolour.
• Chop the culantro and coriander and dice the onion and pepper.

Steps

1. Set a very large heavy pot over medium-high heat and add four tablespoons of oil.
2. Sprinkle the brown sugar into the oil and let it melt and darken to a deep amber, which takes about two minutes.
3. Add the beef, pork shoulder and goat, and brown them hard for ten minutes, working in batches if the pot is crowded.
4. Add the pork ribs and chicken and brown them for another six minutes.
5. Stir in the diced onion and green pepper and cook for four minutes.
6. Pour in three litres of water and scrape every browned scrap off the base of the pot.
7. Add the crumbled stock cubes and half the culantro.
8. Bring the pot to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer covered for one hour.
9. Skim any foam or excess fat from the surface as it collects.
10. Add the sliced longaniza and the smoked pork belly and simmer for a further twenty minutes.
11. Check the goat and beef, which should now be tender enough to bite through easily.
12. Add the yuca, yautía and ñame to the pot.
13. Simmer uncovered for twenty minutes, topping up with hot water if the meats stop being covered.
14. Add the plantain rounds, the sweetcorn and the auyama.
15. Simmer for a further twenty-five minutes, until the auyama has dissolved into the broth and thickened it.
16. Stir the pot from the bottom, mashing a few pieces of yuca against the side to thicken it further.
17. Taste and add salt in increments, because a pot this size needs far more than you expect.
18. Stir through the remaining culantro and most of the coriander.
19. Turn off the heat and let the sancocho settle for ten minutes so the flavours pull together.
20. Ladle into deep bowls, scatter with the last of the coriander, and serve with white rice, avocado and a splash of bitter orange juice.