{"id":2447,"date":"2022-02-08T12:28:04","date_gmt":"2022-02-08T11:28:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.esmadrid.com\/blog\/en\/?p=2447"},"modified":"2025-11-04T08:50:02","modified_gmt":"2025-11-04T07:50:02","slug":"tradition-on-the-table","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.esmadrid.com\/blog\/en\/2022\/02\/08\/tradition-on-the-table\/","title":{"rendered":"Tradition on the table"},"content":{"rendered":"
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La Cocina de Frente<\/p><\/div>\n

It\u2019s midwinter, and there\u2019s nothing we feel like more than a hearty bowl of stew. Luckily for us, we\u2019re in Madrid. And if there\u2019s a dish that represents the capital it\u2019s cocido<\/strong>. <\/em>This delicious meat and chickpea stew will be the star of a culinary itinerary<\/strong><\/a> which, from 15 February to 31 March, will bring this dish to the tables of many of the city\u2019s restaurants. What better incentive to delve into its origins.<\/strong><\/p>\n

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Ponzano<\/p><\/div>\n

\u201cDon\u2019t speak to me of banquets in Rome, or the menu at the Plaza Hotel in New York; don\u2019t mention pheasant or pigeon foie gras, or lobster thermidor.\u201d These are the opening lines to the famous copla by the trio Quintero, Le\u00f3n and Quiroga<\/strong>, whose chorus was brought fame to by the likes of Pepe Blanco and Manolo Escobar: \u201cCocidito Madrile\u00f1o<\/em>, chiming in the attic, the aroma of mint and sundown festivities at Las Vistillas Gardens.\u201d There\u2019s no denying it; there\u2019s not a dish in Madrid as traditional as that of cocido.<\/em> We don\u2019t need convincing; although some of the capital\u2019s other specialty dishes, from tripe to sea bream, would certainly put up a fight for the same title.<\/p>\n

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La Clave<\/p><\/div>\n

As we bid farewell to January, we give ourselves over to its aroma and flavour and embark on the long-standing Cocido<\/em>Route<\/a>, from 15 February to 31 March, to savour this heart-warming dish on the tables of many of the city\u2019s restaurants. This itinerary for gourmet foodies features the option to vote for your favourite cocido<\/em> to be in with the chance of winning a culinary prize. But there\u2019s a little more to it than simply satisfying the appetite. Before we pull up a chair, let\u2019s take a brief glimpse at the history of this classic dish.<\/p>\n

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Malacat\u00edn<\/p><\/div>\n

This emblem of gastronomy in the capital is the result of the coming together of two medieval dishes: olla podrida<\/em><\/strong>\u2013 literally \u201crotten pot\u201d \u2013 cropping up time and time again in Spanish Golden Age literature, and adafina<\/em><\/strong>, a Jewish stew prepared and set to simmer slowly in a clay pot on Friday nights ready for the Sabbath, ensuring no cooking would be required on the day of rest.\u00a0 The main ingredient of cocido<\/em> is the humble chickpea, introduced into the Iberian Peninsula by the Carthaginians. Not forgetting the other ingredients: vegetables, meat, pork fatback, and a variety of cured meats. Its beginnings were modest. It was initially eaten by the lower classes yet, slowly but surely, cocido<\/em> won over the higher classes and the Spanish Court with its charm, and went on to be served not only in traditional tabernas<\/em>, but also in high-class restaurants. It was at the turn of the 20th century when it came to be known as a quintessential dish of the capital, despite sharing origins with cocido monta\u00f1\u00e9s<\/em>, typically eaten in the Cantabrian mountains, and cocido maragato <\/em>from the ancient region of Maragater\u00eda.<\/p>\n

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Lhardy<\/p><\/div>\n

In Madrid, cocido<\/em> is commonly served in three vuelcos<\/em><\/strong>; these turns, or consecutive courses, take their name from the action of pouring or tipping the stew from the casserole pot into serving dishes. The order is always the same: first the soup is served with fine noodles, next come the chickpeas, potatoes and vegetables and, last but not least, the meat, typically fresh pork, stewing hen and beef. The third \u2018turn\u2019 is the perfect opportunity to help yourself to seconds and even thirds of any remaining ingredients. And if any leftovers survive the final turn, they\u2019re generally fried up as breaded croquetas<\/em>.<\/p>\n

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La Bola<\/p><\/div>\n

The most renowned cocidos<\/em> of the capital can be found at Lhardy <\/strong><\/a>(No. 8, Carrera de San Jer\u00f3nimo), where the dish is served on a silver tray; at Malacat\u00edn <\/strong><\/a>(No. 5, Calle de la Ruda), prepared following the very same recipe as in 1895, and at La Bola <\/strong><\/a>(No. 5, Calle de la Bola), cooked slowly over oak wood charcoal pieces in individual clay casserole dishes. The newspapers of the time tell us that cocido<\/em> was first served at varying time slots throughout the day: at midday for labourers and employees of local businesses, costing 1.15 pesetas; at one in the afternoon, prepared using stewing hen (the students\u2019 favourite), costing 1.25 pesetas; and at two o\u2019clock onwards, replete with chunks of meat and pork fatback, as preferred by the bourgeoisie, journalists and politicians.\u00a0 The story goes that Princess Isabella (known as La Chata <\/em>due to her button nose), daughter of Queen Isabella II of Spain, was the harbinger of take away food in the capital. To avoid socialising with the masses, she would enjoy her cocido<\/em>,recently prepared in the kitchen of La Bola, in the Royal Palace.<\/p>\n

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La Daniela<\/p><\/div>\n

Other celebrated restaurants serving this renowned dish are Cruz Blanca de Vallecas <\/strong><\/a>(No. 58, Calle de Carlos Mart\u00edn \u00c1lvarez), whose cocido <\/em>has been named on various occasions as the best in Madrid; the traditional taberna<\/em> La Daniela <\/strong><\/a>(No. 7, Plaza de Jes\u00fas), where the three \u2018turns\u2019 are referred to as the sota <\/em>(Jack), caballo<\/em> (horse) and rey <\/em>(king); Casa Carola <\/strong><\/a>(No. 54, Calle de Padilla), serving cocido<\/em> using chickpeas grown in the town of Caba\u00f1as de Polendo in Segovia; Casa Maravillas<\/strong><\/a> (No. 54, Calle de Jorge Juan), whose recipe includes pumpkin, lending the vegetables of the dish a touch of sweetness, and Iberian ham from Guijuelo; and, finally, Casa Mories <\/strong><\/a>(No 5, Plaza de San Miguel), where a cocido <\/em>Taster Menu is served on the last Thursday of every month, starting with a warm vegetable salad and ending with cheese cake for dessert.<\/p>\n

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La Casa de Cristal<\/p><\/div>\n

On Wednesdays at Ponzano<\/strong><\/a> (No. 12, Calle de Ponzano), you\u2019ll find cocido <\/em>in five \u2018turns\u2019, served with pan de cristal <\/em>(a light, crispy bread with a glass-like texture) smeared with pring\u00e1<\/em> (leftover shredded cooked meats) and a light side dish of endive and pomegranate salad. At L<\/strong>a Clave<\/strong><\/a> (No. 22, Calle de Vel\u00e1zquez) there are four \u2018turns\u2019, where the first consists of pring\u00e1<\/em> croquettes made from the leftover smoked ham, chorizo and blood sausage.<\/em> Don\u2019t miss modern eateries where meeting friends for cocido<\/em> is the thing to do. There\u2019s La Casa de Cristal<\/strong><\/a> (No. 1, Calle de Pedro Muguruza) whose menu, in addition to cocido<\/em>, includes quesadillas stuffed with ropa vieja <\/em>(leftover stewed meat) and hummous made from pumpkin and chickpeas taken straight from the casserole dish, and Media Raci\u00f3n<\/a>\u00a0<\/strong>(No. 15, Calle de la Beneficencia), where cocido<\/em> is served with piparra <\/em>chilli peppers and a secret ingredient \u2013 which, according to chef Antonio del Amo, has something to do with \u201cthe cocido <\/em>my mother would make when I was a child.\u201d At La Cocina de Frente <\/strong><\/a>(No. 40, Calle de Ibiza) an eatery serving homemade traditional dishes with a modern twist, Juanjo L\u00f3pez makes a tasty cocido <\/em>(which must be ordered at least 48 hours in advance), which includes ropa vieja<\/em> with a fried egg and veal marrow with celery tartar.<\/p>\n

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La Cocina de Frente<\/p><\/div>\n

And there are still two to go: the Cocido Madr\u00ed <\/strong><\/a>served in three \u2018turns\u2019 and carefully prepared and sent straight to your door by Grupo Arz\u00e1bal (cocidomadrid.com\/a-domicilio\/) and that at Hotel \u00cdndigo Madrid Gran V\u00eda <\/strong><\/a>(No. 6, Calle de Silva). Until 1 March, the hotel will be running Cocido and Siesta Sundays<\/em>, which does exactly what it says on the tin. Book lunch and an afternoon nap in one of its rooms, reserved for guests for three hours.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

It\u2019s midwinter, and there\u2019s nothing we feel like more than a hearty bowl of stew. Luckily for us, we\u2019re in Madrid. And if there\u2019s a dish that represents the capital it\u2019s cocido. This delicious meat and chickpea stew will be the star of a culinary itinerary which, from 15 February to 31 March, will bring […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":2460,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[3],"tags":[89,257,32],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.esmadrid.com\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2447"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.esmadrid.com\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.esmadrid.com\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.esmadrid.com\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.esmadrid.com\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2447"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/blog.esmadrid.com\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2447\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2619,"href":"https:\/\/blog.esmadrid.com\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2447\/revisions\/2619"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.esmadrid.com\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2460"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.esmadrid.com\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2447"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.esmadrid.com\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2447"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.esmadrid.com\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2447"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}