PBH / colombia (travelguide, pictures) / post

Sancocho and a family reunion

So there we are in my sister in laws home. There were a lot of us for sure. It is in the barrio 12 de October and one of the lower strata barrios. But my brother is law is quick to point out that it is safe here. He points to a neighborhood on another mountain near and tells me he used to live there and it is bad there. (Barrio July 21?) I can't recall.

Fannys casita is small but nice. The twenty or so of us are having a great time visiting drinking beer and soda.

It is situated such that there is always a cool breeze flowing through the house and air condition is not needed. I found Laureles much less comfortable climate wise.

Mama (my mother-in-law) comes through with something on a platter and cheers rise up. She has accounced that she is going to cook a sancocho and is displaying the two chicken necks with heads included.

Man those things are huge! Apparently the eyes have been gouged out and the beaks removed; but it is still clear what they are. Mama disappears into the kitchen to prepare the food.

The company is good and soon wonderful aromas are eminating from the kitchen. I sip a few more beers and listen to the family visit. They are reminising and recounting that it has been twenty four years since so many of them have gotten together at one time.

I am given credit for this happening and enjoy conversing and getting to know some of my wifes family that I have never met. My wife gets to meet some nieces that she has never known.

Man them damn chickens was staring at me when mother in law paraded them past. It as a small apartment and there are not enough places to sit for all and I have been standing for two or three hours and finally accept a seat when offered. They seem to have a natural rythm of rotating seats and eating and drinking utensils.

Soon the food will be ready and the pecking order for being served is being established by the women of the house. Dayum...those chickens had their eyes and beaks cut out. Hmmm...maybe it's time as the guest of honor to start the aguardiente flowing.

As the aguardiente and pilsen flow through my bloodstream I am wondering it there are any traditions concerning who gets the chicken heads? There are two of them. I am sure I hears that the abuelo would be served and I believed I was to be second. I sure was hoping I didn't have to eat a chiken head. I mean as a guest of honor how could I refuse?

I decided to wander into the kitchen and check out the progress of the sancocho. I took the lid off and there was the chicken head looking at me. And whoa! Chicken feet. I am a cajun from south Louisiana and I have eaten a lot of things most people don't. I have sucked squirrel brains from the skulls when they were served to me in a gumbo; but chicken heads and feet...no.

I am requested to sit after abuelo and I can see them serving my bowl in the kitchen. It is placed in front of me and YES! No chicken heads or feet! My misty eyes are interpeted as sentiment for the family reunion; but, I am just so happy there is no focking chicken head looking at me from my bowl.

t

By lpdiver on Oct 2, 2007, 17:25 in Friendly Talkzone.

lpdiver says on Oct 2, 2007, 17:43:

Can someone tell me how to insert a photo into my post?

t

"cook some rice!"

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Grateful Dead says on Oct 2, 2007, 17:47:

laughing my ass off ,

oh man that was funny lpdiver.

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lpdiver says on Oct 2, 2007, 17:50:

Greatful Dead...may be funny and is true

Peso...how did you put that photo in there man? Tell me!

t

"cook some rice!"

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lpdiver says on Oct 2, 2007, 18:27:

http://i219.photobucket.com/albums/cc71/tiberonsuave/sancocho/nearmiss...

Okay...lets see if this worked!

Sure enough...if you look closely at to top center of the pot you can see that peckerhead giving me el ojo and el dedo de hijo puta! jejeje
t

"cook some rice!"

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Robert Jorge says on Oct 2, 2007, 19:47:

I enjoyed your story. Thanks for sharing. I was caught off guard the first time I had soup with chicken feet. Now I love 'em. Menudencias is one of my favorite soups. I never had the pleasure of gnawing on a chicken head though. I am pretty adventursome, but I wouldn't be thrilled about eating an actual chicken head. But if you can eat squirrel brains, what the hell are you worried about a chicken foot for?

--"I believe in making the world safe for our children. But not for our children's children, because I don't think that children should be having sex." - Jack Handy

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lpdiver says on Oct 2, 2007, 19:56:

Robert...I don't know maybe it just a cultural thing. The foot doesn't put me off too much, the head maybe. Or maybe I was really intoxicated when induced to suck the squirrel brains from the skull. It's not a reqular thing...lol.

After dinner I noticed that the heads had been cut off and placed to the side prior to the sancocho being served. Sometimes my imagination just runs wild.

t

"cook some rice!"

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Robert Jorge says on Oct 2, 2007, 20:00:

LP, where were you guys? Mrs. RJ asked. She had never heard of eating chicken heads. Then she said maybe it was in Pasto .... just kidding Goin_South. It was a cheap shot.

--"I believe in making the world safe for our children. But not for our children's children, because I don't think that children should be having sex." - Jack Handy

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Robert Jorge says on Oct 2, 2007, 20:05:

Unfortuantely - or maybe fortunately, I do not have pictures. But, a delicacy in the plains is pig's head stuffed with rice. I would try it though. I like pig skin, feet, tails, etc. So maybe a piece of cheekmeat would be tasty??? It's called lechona, and sometimes served for festivos and very special occasions.

--"I believe in making the world safe for our children. But not for our children's children, because I don't think that children should be having sex." - Jack Handy

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lpdiver says on Oct 2, 2007, 20:11:

We were in the barrio doce de Octobre in Medellin. My wifes family is from Nariño and Sonson.

As a note they did not eat the heads just cooked the soup with the chicken neck and head attached. They cut off the heads prior to serving the soup.

I love hogs head cheese. They boil the heads until all the tissue fall off and then congeal it in gelatin.

t

"cook some rice!"

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Robert Jorge says on Oct 2, 2007, 20:17:

Ah, so it is just for the flavor.

--"I believe in making the world safe for our children. But not for our children's children, because I don't think that children should be having sex." - Jack Handy

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lpdiver says on Oct 2, 2007, 20:20:

Yes I suppose so..."modern" citified cajuns make it with boston butt.

t

"cook some rice!"

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El Polo says on Oct 3, 2007, 06:01:

"you can see that peckerhead giving me el ojo and el dedo de hijo puta" LOL

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El Polo says on Oct 3, 2007, 06:33:

LP if you really wanted to get back at him for giving you "el ojo and el dedo de hijo puta" you should of ate that sucka!!!

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Peter (Moderator) says on Oct 3, 2007, 07:12:

Hahaha that's funny.

I remember once I went to the Exito and bought some really cheap chicken meat that was frozen (hey, it's called poorbuthappy for a reason), and when I came home and dethawed it it turned out to be a bunch of chicken heads! I didn't know what to do with them so I gave them through a friend to a poor family.

If I only had known I could have made sancocho with that :)

Poor but snappy

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capitan_centella says on Oct 3, 2007, 22:14:

sancocho, . . .

D
E
L
I
C
I
O
S
O

"When you open your eyes, you turn around with the world, But it can change, if you only close it, and see a dream to yourself." Me.

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LA_MONA says on Oct 4, 2007, 01:56:

Nice story, keep them coming...

My suegra always uses the fish heads for flavour y "sustancia" and the soup always comes out nice, the pescuezo (sp) de pollo is nice to chew on. You can also put la cascara of platano in the sancocho so it has a more intense platano flavour.

Para volar, es preciso tener resistencia. -M.Lin

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eywed says on Oct 4, 2007, 03:53:

lpdiver - I think that the Neighborhood you were in is the same as my wife's family. Next time I'm in Medellin I'll buy you the drink I owe ya.

Ay Hombe!!!!!

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