Sancocho panameño (Panamanian hen stew)

Ingredients

• 1.5–2 kg old hen (gallina), cut into pieces; available at Latin or Asian butcher counters
• 500 g yuca (cassava), peeled, cut into large chunks
• 300 g ñame (white Caribbean yam), peeled, cut into large chunks; do not substitute regular yam
• 2 corn cobs, cut into 5 cm sections
• 6–8 leaves culantro (Eryngium foetidum), whole or roughly torn; not regular cilantro
• 4 cloves garlic, crushed
• 2 litres water, or enough to cover
• 2 tsp fine salt, to taste

Method

1. 1
   Place the hen pieces in a large, heavy pot. Add the water, garlic, and half the culantro. Bring to a gentle simmer over medium heat, skimming off any foam that rises in the first 10 minutes. Reduce the heat to low. The surface should tremble, not boil — high heat produces a cloudy, heavy broth. Simmer uncovered for 1 hour. The hen will begin to yield but the meat will still resist.
2. 2
   Add the yuca and ñame. Continue simmering on low heat for 30 minutes. This is where the dish lives or dies: the yuca must become fully tender — a skewer must pass through without resistance and the cut surface should look slightly translucent — because under-cooked yuca carries a fibrous, unpleasant texture that cannot be corrected at table.
3. 3
   Add the corn cob sections and the remaining culantro. Simmer for a further 20–30 minutes, until the kernels yield when pressed and the broth has taken on a deep golden colour and a faintly viscous quality. Season with salt.
4. 4
   Remove a ladleful of broth and let it cool briefly. It should coat the back of the spoon with a light, gelatinous film — the mark of the old hen's collagen. Taste and adjust salt. Serve in deep bowls with broth, hen pieces, roots, and corn together.