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Puchero

A hearty Uruguayan stew of beef, veal or pork, chorizo, chicken, tomatoes, and assorted vegetables simmered in broth.

From the Recipes Wiki (Fandom) · 33 ingredients
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Why it works: Carrot and celery match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 10,173 recipes. Both carry myristicin, which smells spice, warm. The science ↓

Puchero

Time1 hour, then 30 minutes and 15 minutes

Ingredients

Directions

Make the broth

  1. Combine beef, veal or pork, bay leaves, onions, garlic, cilantro, carrot, and celery in a large pot and fill with water. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to a simmer. Skim the scum that rises to the surface.

  2. Add bouillon cubes and cook for 1 hour, or until the meat starts to become tender.

  3. Add chorizo, chicken, tomatoes, guajillo chile, cumin, and orange rind; cook for 30 minutes. Skim off fat.

Add vegetables and finish

  1. Add sweet potato, zucchini, cabbage, corn, apple, turnips, prunes, orange juice, cinnamon, and ginger; simmer 15 minutes, or until the zucchini is tender.

  2. Add green beans and chickpeas and heat through. Season to taste with salt and skim off all surface fat.

Serve in two courses

  1. Serve in two courses: ladle hot broth over cooked pasta and garnish with sliced green onions for the first course; for the main course, arrange the tender meats on a platter and carve. Dress vegetables with garlic vinaigrette and serve with boiled potatoes. Offer salsa, guacamole, chopped onions, cilantro, and/or pumpkin sauce at the table.

Store leftovers

  1. Store leftovers: refrigerate leftover meats and vegetables in their broth overnight. The next day, discard the layer of fat on the surface. Remove large pieces of meat and wrap tightly; refrigerate for up to 5 days or freeze for up to 2 months. Ladle vegetables (keep chickpeas separate) into covered containers and store in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Strain broth into a clean container; refrigerate for up to 1 week or freeze for 2 to 4 months.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

1939Calories
117 gProtein
52 gFat
259 gCarbs

Counts 28 of 32 ingredients. The other 4 aren't in our nutrition table and add nothing above, so the real totals are higher.

What these numbers assume: 28 portions
IngredientPortion assumedkcal
Beef100g cooked250
Pork100g cooked242
Pasta1 cup cooked (140g)220
Rice1 cup cooked (158g) white206
Chicken100g cooked165
Potato1 medium (173g) baked161
Olive Oil1 tbsp (14g)119
Apple1 medium (182g)95
Corn1/2 cup kernels (82g)77
Winter Squash1 cup cubed (140g) butternut76
Orange1 medium (131g)62
Broccoli1 cup chopped (156g)55
Onion1 medium (110g)44
Turnip1 medium (122g)34
Bell Pepper1 medium (119g)31
Carrot1 medium (61g)25
Tomato1 medium (123g)22
Cucumber1/2 cup sliced (52g)16
Cumin1 tsp ground (2.1g)8
Clove1 tsp ground (2g)7
Celery Stalks1 stalk (40g)6
Cinnamon1 tsp ground (2.6g)6
Garlic1 clove (3g)4
Vinegar1 tbsp (15ml) distilled3
Bay Leaf1 leaf (0.6g)2
Ginger1 tsp grated fresh (2g)2
Cilantro1 tbsp chopped fresh (1g)1
Salt1 tsp (6g)0
Vealnot in our table0
Pumpkinnot in our table0
Prunenot in our table0
Saucenot in our table0

One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.

Recipe from the Recipes Wiki (Fandom).

Steps grouped into stages for easier reading; the method is the source's own.

Explore the science

The flavor team

The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.

  1. Carrot + celerytop 1% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together10,173 recipes

    Shared aroma: myristicin (spice, warm).

  2. Onion + garlictop 1% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together29,058 recipes

    Shared aroma: furaneol (caramel, strawberry).

  3. Beef + chickentop 4% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together2,148 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-furfurylthiol (coffee, roasted).

  4. Clove + carrottop 5% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together5,873 recipes

    Shared aroma: cuminaldehyde (Spicy, cumin).

  5. Onion + carrottop 6% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together21,601 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Stewing beef
Slow simmering breaks down connective tissue, making the meat tender and enriching the broth.
Chorizo sausage
Releases seasoned fat and paprika-like flavor into the broth, adding aroma and depth.
Tomatoes
Add acidity and body to the broth, balancing the rich meats.
Chicken
Contributes flavor and body to the broth as it simmers with the other meats.
Prunes
Add natural sweetness and a soft, moist texture to the broth.
Chickpeas (in the method)
Add starchy body and a firm, creamy texture to the stew.

The step that matters

Skimming the broth. Scum and fat rise as the meats simmer. Removing them early keeps the broth clear and clean-tasting, and skimming later prevents it from becoming greasy.

Swap the clove

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (beef, veal, onion, garlic, carrot, celery, chicken):

  1. Parsleyfits better
  2. Cuminfits better
  3. Thymefits better
  4. Clovethe original

Fit is the average pairing score against beef, veal, onion, garlic, carrot, celery, chicken. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.

“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.

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