(; "Madrid stew") is a traditional chickpea-based stew from

Madrid Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the Largest cities of the Europ ...

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

. A substantial dish prepared with meat and vegetables, it is most popular during the winter but is served throughout the year in some restaurants. Initially it was a dish for humble people, but it started to climb in society thanks to its inclusion in restaurant menus. The chickpea was introduced under Carthaginian rule, and was later used in medieval Spain. It is a dish normally eaten in winter, in the cold months of the year.

History

The origins of the dish are uncertain, but most sources agree that probably it was created during the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...

as an evolution of the Sephardic Jewish dish adafina. Long-cooking dishes were indispensable for

Jews Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

as they allowed hearty meals during Shabbat. These first versions were kosher, using

eggs Humans and human ancestors have scavenged and eaten animal eggs for millions of years. Humans in Southeast Asia had domesticated chickens and harvested their eggs for food by 1,500 BCE. The most widely consumed eggs are those of fowl, especial ...

and without

pork Pork is the culinary name for the meat of the domestic pig (''Sus domesticus''). It is the most commonly consumed meat worldwide, with evidence of pig husbandry dating back to 5000 BCE. Pork is eaten both freshly cooked and preserved; ...

. Within time, adafina was soon popular elsewhere. The growth of

anti-Semitism Antisemitism (also spelled anti-semitism or anti-Semitism) is hostility to, prejudice towards, or discrimination against Jews. A person who holds such positions is called an antisemite. Antisemitism is considered to be a form of racism. Antis ...

and the

Inquisition The Inquisition was a group of institutions within the Catholic Church whose aim was to combat heresy, conducting trials of suspected heretics. Studies of the records have found that the overwhelming majority of sentences consisted of penances, ...

during the 15th and 16th centuries modified the dish substantially, as the fear of being denounced as Jewish forced

Christians Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words '' Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρ ...

and ''

Marranos Marranos were Spanish and Portuguese Jews living in the Iberian Peninsula who converted or were forced to convert to Christianity during the Middle Ages, but continued to practice Judaism in secrecy. The term specifically refers to the cha ...

'' (converted Jews) alike to prove themselves as Christians by incorporating pork into their meals. Soon lard, bacon, '' chorizo'' (pork sausage) and ''

morcilla A blood sausage is a sausage filled with blood that is cooked or dried and mixed with a filler until it is thick enough to solidify when cooled. Most commonly, the blood of pigs, sheep, lamb, cow, chicken, or goose is used. In Europe and the A ...

'' (blood sausage) were added to the dish. From these origins, the recipe allowed few modifications and was soon established as a staple of

cuisine. During the growth of the city in the 19th and 20th centuries, its low cost and heartiness made it a popular order in small

restaurants A restaurant is a business that prepares and serves food and drinks to customers. Meals are generally served and eaten on the premises, but many restaurants also offer take-out and food delivery services. Restaurants vary greatly in appearan ...

and the

taverns A tavern is a place of business where people gather to drink alcoholic beverages and be served food such as different types of roast meats and cheese, and (mostly historically) where travelers would receive lodging. An inn is a tavern that ...

catering to manual workers. After the

Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

, the austerity period, followed by the introduction of more convenient meals, reduced the public popularity of the dish.

Ingredients

The main ingredient of ''cocido'' is the chickpea or ''garbanzo''. Vegetables are added: potatoes mainly, but also cabbage, carrots, and

turnips The turnip or white turnip (''Brassica rapa'' subsp. ''rapa'') is a root vegetable commonly grown in temperate climates worldwide for its white, fleshy taproot. The word ''turnip'' is a compound of ''turn'' as in turned/rounded on a lathe and ' ...

. In some cases, green bean, Chard or cardoon are also added. The meat used is fundamentally

pork belly Pork belly or belly pork is a boneless and fatty cut of meat from the belly of a pig. Pork belly is particularly popular in Hispanic, Chinese, Danish, Norwegian, Korean, Thai and Filipino cuisine. Regional dishes France In Alsatian ...

, usually fresh, but sometimes cured (some purists even insist to a point of

rancidity Rancidification is the process of complete or incomplete autoxidation or hydrolysis of fats and oils when exposed to air, light, moisture, or bacterial action, producing short-chain aldehydes, ketones and free fatty acids. When these processes o ...

); fresh (unsmoked) '' chorizo'';

onion An onion (''Allium cepa'' L., from Latin ''cepa'' meaning "onion"), also known as the bulb onion or common onion, is a vegetable that is the most widely cultivated species of the genus ''Allium''. The shallot is a botanical variety of the onio ...

'', and dried and cured

jamón serrano ''Jamón'' (, pl. ''jamones'') is a kind of dry-cured ham produced in Spain. It is one of the most globally recognized food items of Spanish cuisine. It is also regularly a component of tapas. Most ''jamón'' is commonly called '' jamón serran ...

Beef shank The beef shank is the leg portion of a steer or heifer. In the UK, the corresponding cuts of beef are the shin (the foreshank), and the leg (the hindshank). Due to the constant use of this muscle by the animal, it tends to be tough, dry, and ...

is also added; the

fat In nutrition, biology, and chemistry, fat usually means any ester of fatty acids, or a mixture of such compounds, most commonly those that occur in living beings or in food. The term often refers specifically to triglycerides (triple est ...

content (''flor'') of the piece is highly prized.

Chicken The chicken (''Gallus gallus domesticus'') is a domesticated junglefowl species, with attributes of wild species such as the grey and the Ceylon junglefowl that are originally from Southeastern Asia. Rooster or cock is a term for an adu ...

(especially old hens) is also part of the ''cocido''. Two

bone A bone is a rigid organ that constitutes part of the skeleton in most vertebrate animals. Bones protect the various other organs of the body, produce red and white blood cells, store minerals, provide structure and support for the body, ...

pieces (

ham Ham is pork from a leg cut that has been preserved by wet or dry curing, with or without smoking."Bacon: Bacon and Ham Curing" in ''Chambers's Encyclopædia''. London: George Newnes, 1961, Vol. 2, p. 39. As a processed meat, the term "ham ...

bone and

beef Beef is the culinary name for meat from cattle (''Bos taurus''). In prehistoric times, humankind hunted aurochs and later domesticated them. Since that time, numerous breeds of cattle have been bred specifically for the quality or quantit ...

spine bone) are added to enrich the stock. For some recipes, the final touch is the ''bola'', a

meatball A meatball is ground meat rolled into a ball, sometimes along with other ingredients, such as bread crumbs, minced onion, eggs, butter, and seasoning. Meatballs are cooked by frying, baking, steaming, or braising in sauce. There are many type ...

-like mix of

ground beef Ground beef, minced beef or beef mince is beef that has been finely chopped with a knife, meat grinder (American English), mincer or mincing machine (British English). It is used in many recipes including hamburgers, bolognese sauce, meatloaf, ...

bread crumbs Bread crumbs or breadcrumbs (regional variants including breading and crispies) consist of crumbled bread of various dryness, sometimes with seasonings added, used for breading or crumbing foods, topping casseroles, stuffing poultry, thicken ...

, parsley and other

spices A spice is a seed, fruit, root, bark, or other plant substance primarily used for flavoring or coloring food. Spices are distinguished from herbs, which are the leaves, flowers, or stems of plants used for flavoring or as a garnish. Spices are ...

, which, it is said, was created as a substitute of the eggs used in the ''adafaina''.

On the table

Tradition rules that the ingredients of ''cocido'' must be served separately. Each serving is known as a ''vuelco'' (tipping or emptying out), as at each time the pot must be emptied out to separate the ingredients. The first ''vuelco'' is to separate the stock of the ''cocido'' and serve it with

noodles Noodles are a type of food made from unleavened dough which is either rolled flat and cut, stretched, or extruded, into long strips or strings. Noodles are a staple food in many cultures (for example, Chinese noodles, Filipino noodles, Ind ...

added. The second ''vuelco'' consists of chickpeas and vegetables. The third ''vuelco'' is the meat dish.

Leftovers

Traditionally, dishes made with the leftovers of the ''cocido'' include Spanish ''croquetas'' ( croquettes), ''

ropa vieja Ropa vieja (; "old clothes") is a dish with regional variations in Latin America, the Philippines, and Spain. It normally includes some form of stewed beef and tomatoes with a sofrito base.

'' and ''

pringá Pringá is a Spanish dish popular in Andalusia. It consists of roast beef or pork, cured sausages such as chorizo and morcilla, and beef or pork fat slow-cooked for many hours until the meat falls apart easily. Pieces of crusty bread are used to ...

''.

References

{{DISPLAYTITLE:''Cocido madrileño'' Culture in Madrid Madrileño Chickpea dishes Spanish soups and stews Spanish legume dishes

History

Ingredients

On the table

Leftovers

See also

References