Preparation time: 3 hours (plan 2 days ahead)
Difficulty: Medium.
Ingredients
(for eight people)
· A piece of unto (aged, salted pork belly fat)
· Haricot beans (must be soaked for about 12 hours)
· A piece of streaky pancetta
· Salted pork meat (unsalt before use): Ribs, tongue, head, ear,...
· Half a chicken
· A piece of beef
· Washed choppedvegetables (young turnip shoots, turnip leaves, cabbage) and potatoes
· Chorizos
· Water and salt
Preparation
Depending on how many weeks it has been salted for, the pork meat may require between 12 and 48 unsalting.
Place the beans, unto and meats in a large pot with plenty of cold water. Boil this, making sure the meat doesn't become too soft. When it reaches optimum texture, and when cooked, remove from the pot. Lastly add the vegetables, chorizos, and shortly after, the potatoes. When cooked remove from the heat. Some people seal the streaky pork meat in the pan and add it along with the vegetables.
You can serve the broth (liquid) as a first dish, in a soup plate. And for main course the vegetables and potatoes in one dish and the meats and chorizos in another.
There is another varierty of caldo that incorporates small pieces of melon with the vegetables.