Here is another Costa Rican traditional dish! Cooking this hearty beef and vegetable soup took me many many years back, when I used to be the pickiest eater ever. There were only about 3-4 dishes I would eat: rice with chicken, rice with canned tuna, mac & cheese, and Olla de Carne, so coming home to the smell of this used to make me so happy.

The smell of the crock pot kept me around the kitchen all day, by the time dinner came I had already eaten a big portion of it…raw!

A crock pot is the easiest way to make it but I am also giving you stove top instructions, you can change the vegetables to whatever you have available, you can add squash, yam, sweet potato, green plantain, cabbage etc.

Ingredients:

2 lbs of grass-fed stew beef
1 lb of grass-fed beef bones (optional)
2 quarts of water
1 small rutabaga
1 small parsnip
1 chayote
1 small yucca (cassava)
1 small taro root
2 carrots
1 small onion
1 celery stalk
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 bay leaves
1 tsp of ground cumin
2 tsp of dry oregano
Salt and pepper to taste
Fresh cilantro for garnishing

Preparation for Slow Cooker:

• Peel and chop the vegetables in large pieces.
• Mix all ingredients together and cook for 5 hours on high or 8 hours on low
• Serve and garnish with fresh cilantro

Preparation for Stove Top:

• In a large saucepan add the water, beef, onion, garlic, celery, oregano, bay leaves, cumin salt and pepper and cook over medium heat until meat is tender (this will take at least an hour).
• Peel and chop the vegetables in large pieces and add to the pot keeping in mind that some vegetables take longer to cook; in this case I would add the yucca first, cook for 5-7 minutes, add the carrots and cook for an additional 2-3 minutes and then add the rest of the vegetables.
• Continue to cook until vegetables are tender adding water if needed
• Serve and garnish with fresh cilantro