Ingredients
Broth
- 2 lb bone-in beef shank, cut into serving pieces
- 10 cups water, plus more as needed
- 1/2 white onion
- 3 garlic cloves
- 2 bay leaves
- 2 ears corn, cut into thirds
Chile base and vegetables
- 3 dried guajillo chiles, stemmed and seeded
- 2 dried pasilla chiles, stemmed and seeded
- 2 medium tomatoes
- 2 chayotes, peeled and cut into large chunks
- 2 carrots, thickly sliced
- 8 oz green beans, trimmed
- 2 medium zucchini, thickly sliced
- 1 xoconostle, peeled and seeded (optional)
- 2 sprigs fresh epazote
- Kosher salt, to taste
- Lime wedges, to serve
Equipment
- Large stockpot Room for beef, vegetables, and broth.
- Blender For the softened chiles and tomatoes.
- Fine-mesh strainer For a smoother chile broth.
Instructions
Make the broth and finish the soup
- Put beef, water, onion, garlic, and bay leaves in a large stockpot. Bring just to a boil, skim the surface, then simmer partly covered until beef is nearly tender, about 90–110 minutes.
- While beef cooks, toast guajillo and pasilla briefly in a dry skillet without burning, then soften in hot water for 15 minutes. Blend with tomatoes and 1 cup of cooking broth; strain into a bowl.
- Add corn, chayote, carrots, and strained chile sauce to the pot. Simmer 15 minutes.
- Add green beans, zucchini, xoconostle if using, and epazote. Simmer 12–15 minutes more, until vegetables are tender and beef is very tender. Add hot water if needed to keep a brothy consistency.
- Discard onion, bay leaves, and epazote stems. Season with salt. Serve beef, corn, vegetables, and plenty of broth with lime wedges.
Nutrition
Calories: 290kcalCarbohydrates: 25gProtein: 21gFat: 12g
Video
Notes
Nutrition: Approximate per serving; beef yield, vegetable sizes and broth portions vary.
Cost: Estimated $28.50 USD for the whole recipe (about $4.75 per serving) Estimated from the portions of beef shank, corn, chayote, vegetables, chiles and aromatics used.
Video companion: Jauja Cocina Mexicana also adds chochoyones, small masa dumplings; this version keeps the beef and vegetable broth but omits them.
