Puerto Rican Sancocho

Rating: Unrated 4

This is my mom's Puerto Rican comfort soup. The mix of vegetables and herbs is an influence of the Spanish Canary Island ancestors of some Puerto Rican families. The soup was adjusted to the vegetables available in Puerto Rico by the addition of corn and pumpkin. In the Canary Islands of the 1700s, corn was only fed to farm animals! In Puerto Rico, some cooks now add ginger root, chile pepper, cumin, and other ingredients but I believe it destroys the original rich natural vegetable taste. Similar Spanish sancocho recipes were passed on to other Spanish colonies such as Columbia. Serve hot with bread to soak up the delicious flavor.