The amount of meat called for sounds

 staggering. I kept the butcher

 at the Fresh Market busy gathering

 together what I needed. There

 was the stewing chicken which I

could not find, so substituted

 whole chicken legs. There was

 the pork loin which was easy

 enough. It called for a veal shank,

 but I chose to use a beef

shank which was half the price. A

ham hock was added to my

 purchases and then chorizo

 sausages. By this time the

butcher was ready to throw in an

extra sausage for free.

Baked Chicken Cocido

This takes a lot less time than making a real cocido, which can be

a blessing during amid the holiday rush. It is a one-pan meal

 (if you don't count the sauce), and goes from oven to

 the table with hardly any fuss.

This has meat, vegetables, and what ends up being a

very flavorful broth to spoon over your rice.

Chicken Cocido

Cocido is a stew with a rich chorizo

 flavor, and has been a

Filipino favorite during the

holiday season.

Spanish Cocido a la Snig

The ingredients of Cocido can vary.

I've had it with tripe and

without it. But it always has pork, either in

 the form of pork belly,

 trotters or the bones. It also usually has

 Chorizo to impart its

 paprika and fats to the gravy of the dish.

 I did not realise this

 until I researched it further, that Cocido

 can feature meatballs,

 blood sausage (morcilla),

potatoes and carrots.

Cocido de Pollo

Puchero - Cocido Style

Familiar noche buena dishes like

cocido served with and

chicken relleno (or stuffed chicken), served

 with salsa monja on the side

Cocido Special

Cocido is one of the national dishes of Spain, has many

regional variations (cocido madrileno from Madrid, cocido

 montanes from Cantabria and cocido maragato from Castile-Leon)

 and is often eaten midday. It should take a long time to

 cook (simmering away all night or all day) and, most importantly,

 contains various types of cured and smoked pork products

 and meat, bones, trotters, etc. On holy days or when meat

 should not be eaten, cocido can be made with bacalao

 (salted cod) or congrio (salted congereel).

 Long and slow

cooking of the cocido along with it���s other elements; chickpeas,

 carrots, potatoes and cabbage (among other veggies),

creates an amazingly flavorful and rich caldo.

Cocido will usually, and traditionally, be served in at least

two courses, often three. The first course is always the

strained caldo – pure, golden and rich, maybe with some rice

 or noodles. The second course could be all the vegetables

 alone or the veggies plus the meat (as we had it in Madrid

– see pics). This would include morcilla (Spanish black sausage),

chorizo, pieces of the meats (pork, chicken, pork belly etc.),

 potatoes, chickpeas, cabbage, carrots, leeks, etc. It is a

very filling meal, but extremely tasty and satisfying.

COCIDO RECIPE:

Ingredients for Cocido:

6 pieces beef, cubed
1-1/2 liter water
3 pieces chicken leg
olive oil
1/2 head garlic, minced
1 piece onion, minced
1/2 piece chorizo Bilbao, sliced 1/2-inch thickness
1 ham bone
1/2 cup garbanzos, boiled and skinned
salt and pepper, to taste
1 pc carrot, sliced 1/2-inch thickness
6 pieces pork balls or pelotas (see recipe)
1/2 head cabbage
1 bunch pechay
8 pieces baguio beans

Ingredients for Pork Balls (pelotas)

1/2 kilo ground pork
1 stalk celery, minced
1 onion, minced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup flour
salt and pepper, to taste

Ingredients for Tomato Olive Salsa

1/2 head garlic, minced
1 onion, diced
2 tomatoes, diced
olive oil
10 pieces olives, minced
dash of sugar
salt and pepper, to taste

Procedure for Cocido

1. In a stockpot, tenderize beef in water. Set aside.
2. Sear chicken in a little olive oil till golden brown. Set aside.
3. In a pot, sauté garlic, onion, chorizo and ham bone. Add half of beef stock (liquid where beef was tenderized) and let boil.
4. Add garbanzos and chicken. Simmer till almost done. Season with salt and pepper.
5. Remove ham bone. The broth must be a bit thick.
6. Add carrots and when almost done. Add pork balls and simmer for 5 minutes.
7. Add vegetables and simmer for another 3 minutes.
8. Serve hot with tomato olive salsa on the side.

Procedure for Pork balls (pelotas)

Mix all ingredients together. Form into small balls. Fry till golden brown and set aside.

Procedure for Tomato Olive Salsa

In high heat, sauté garlic, onion, and tomatoes in olive oil. Add olives. Add dash of sugar and season with salt and pepper. Set aside. Serve as side dish for cocido.