Madrid-Style Boiled Dinner (Cocido Madrileño de Casa Lhardy)

A true taste of Spanish cuisine, this dish serves a generous sampling of meats and vegetables.

Yield: serves 8

For the Relleno

¹⁄₃ lb. ground veal
³⁄₄ cup chunky fresh white bread crumbs
¹⁄₂ Tbsp. chopped flat-leaf parsley
1 tsp. salt
3 slices bacon, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 egg, lightly beaten

For the Cocido

1 lb. boneless beef shin
1 large carrot, peeled
1 smoked ham hock
1 veal knuckle bone
Salt, to taste
2 ¹⁄₂ cups dried chickpeas (about 1 lb.), soaked overnight and drained
1 large bone-in chicken breast half (about 1 lb.)
¹⁄₂ lb. chunk serrano ham
1 small green cabbage, cored and finely sliced
1 ¹⁄₃ lb. chunk fresh pork belly
6 (5"-long) breakfast sausages
2 Spanish chorizo sausages
2 morcilla sausages (Spanish blood sausages)
5 small yukon gold potatoes
1 cup (about 1⁄4 lb.) fideos (thin dried Spanish noodles)
2 cups warm tomato sauce

Instructions

For the relleno: Mix together veal, bread crumbs, parsley, salt, bacon, garlic, and egg in a bowl. Tightly roll up in cheesecloth, and twist both ends to form a 2 1⁄2"-wide log. Tie ends with butchers' twine and wrap with plastic; let chill.
For the cocido: Fill a large pot with 4 1⁄2 quarts water. Add beef, carrot, hock, knuckle, and salt and bring to a boil; skim off scum. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, partially covered, until beef and hock are tender, about 2 hours. Chill beef, carrot, and hock. Strain broth and return to pot with knuckle; bring to a boil. Wrap chickpeas in cheesecloth and tie with twine; add to broth. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer until tender, about 2 hours. Add relleno and chicken; simmer until chicken is cooked, 15–20 minutes. Chill chicken. Continue cooking until chickpeas are very tender and relleno is cooked, about 15 minutes more. Chill chickpeas and relleno. Strain broth (discard knuckle); return to pot.
Meanwhile, fill a large pot with 4 quarts water. Add ham, cabbage, and salt; bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, covered, for 2 hours. Add belly and sausages; simmer, covered, until ham is very tender and belly is just tender, 45–50 minutes. Chill ham, belly, and sausages. Transfer cabbage to a bowl and keep warm. Reserve cabbage broth in pot.
Put potatoes into a saucepan; cover with salted water; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer until tender, about 30 minutes. Drain; keep warm. Bring reserved chickpea broth to a boil, add fideos, reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer until tender, 18–20 minutes. Season noodle soup with salt.
To serve: Bring cabbage broth to a boil. Reheat cooked meats and vegetables in broth. Slice relleno, beef, carrot, chicken, and belly. Shred hock and ham; cut chorizo and morcilla into chunks. Put chickpeas on a platter; top with chicken, carrots, relleno, beef, and half the hock and ham. Put cabbage on a second platter; top with belly, breakfast sausages, and remaining hock and ham. Garnish with potatoes, chorizo, and morcilla. Serve soup with tomato sauce (to stir in) on the side. Spoon some cabbage broth over meat and vegetables to moisten.