Name: Ajiaco (Traditional Meat and Vegetable Stew)
Yield: Serves 12
Cuisine: Cuba
Ingredients: ¼ cup olive oil; 1 pound (2 medium) boniatos (white sweet potatoes); 1 pound beef skirt steak or flank steak; Fresh lime wedges; 3 bay leaves; ½ pound tasajo (salt dried beef); 1½ cups peeled, cubed calabaza or butternut squash; 3 to 4 ears fresh corn, husked and cut into 1-inch rounds; Salsa Picante de Don Justo (Don Justo’s Hot Sauce) or other hot pepper sauce to taste; 1 ripe plantain (skin should be black); 4 quarts Caldo de Res (Beef Broth) or water; 1½ pound (1 medium) white malanga (white-fleshed taro root); 1 green plantain (skin should be green to yellow); 2 teaspoons ground cumin, or to taste; 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice; Salt to taste; 1¼ pound (1 small) yellow malanga (yellow-fleshed taro root); 1 (15-ounce) can crushed tomatoes; 1½ pound (½ small) ñame (African yam); ½ pound (1 small) yuca; 1½ tablespoons (5 to 6 cloves) minced garlic; 2 green bell peppers, seeded and chopped; 1 pound pork shoulder; 2 cups (1 large) chopped onion; 1 pound beef short ribs

Preparation info

Serves
12

Difficulty
Medium

Appears in

Eating Cuban

By Beverly Cox and Martin Jacobs

Published 2006

About

Ajiaco is a dish with deep roots in Cuban history. Its origins can be traced back to the Ciboney and Taino people who inhabited the island before the arrival of the Spanish in the late fifteenth century. These Native Americans were fishermen, farmers, and hunters. Among the crops that they grew in mounded beds called conucos were yuca (cassava), maíz (corn), boniato (white sweet potato), calabaza (West Indian pumpkin), and ajies (hot chiles).

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