Caldo de Cilanto y Camote

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Beautiful, brilliant and delicious broth that’s easy to prepare. This striking green colored cilantro purée dish is beautiful and flavorful. The green contrasted by orange and white are so in-synch to the Mexican culture, displaying bright colors in Mexican cuisine, architecture and art. Because of this, I adapted the concept and presentation of this dish from Bruce Sherman, a Chicago based chef. From his recipe I’ve learned a culinary technique to extract the brilliant green color. This technique can be applied to enhance the color of tomatillo salsas, soups and stews. The green color shade of tomatillo dishes can vary between yellow, beautiful green to brown. To obtain a mint green color, many recipes mix and blend cilantro or spinach with the tomatillo, however, in my experience I’ve ended up with inconsistent results. Now I have a new tool in my kitchen tool box.

Let’s get started.

Ingredients

4 sweet potatoes (camote) about 2 lbs. washed

2 cups of cilantro leaves about 2 bunches

2 teaspoons white wine vinegar

½ teaspoon onion powder

4 cups chicken broth or water

2 eggs -Let eggs stand at room temperature for 20 minutes before cooking to eliminate the chill from the refrigerator.

½ cup crumbled crispy chicharron or bacon (optional)

Salt and pepper

Preparation

Heat oven to 425℉. Roast sweet potatoes on an aluminum foiled roasting tray for 45-50 minutes. Peel and mash, add ½ cup half and half (milk or cream) and stir to uniformly distributed. Salt and pepper to taste. Set aside. Optionally mix in crumbled chicharron or bacon.
Bring a pot of water to a boil. Add fresh cilantro leaves, cook for 1 minute. Transfer cilantro to a bowl of ice water. Drain, reserving ½ cup ice water. Purée cilantro and reserved water in a blender. Press through a fine sieve. Discard solids. To puréed cilantro add 2 teaspoons vinegar, 1 teaspoon onion powder and 4 cups water (or chicken broth). Salt to taste. Set the mixture aside.
Bring a pot of water to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to low, then add your eggs and cook 7 to 8 minutes. Drain, cool in ice water and peel. Lengthwise slice the eggs to obtain four pieces.

Plating

To serve, rewarm sweet potatoes. Warm cilantro broth. Spoon some potatoes into the center of bowls, pour cilantro broth around sides and op with and eggs