1-Getting Caldo De Pollo right: starts with preparing your ingredients, which sets you up for success in the kitchen. Begin by washing and chopping the vegetables and rinsing the chicken to ensure everything is fresh and ready. In a large pot, boil the chicken with garlic, bay leaves, onion, and salt, covering it with water and simmering for about 1 hour.

2-Once the chicken has simmered, remove any foam, along with the garlic and bay leaves for a cleaner broth. If you like, shred the chicken at this point to make it easier to eat. Next, add the optional sauce, made by blending 4 Roma tomatoes, 3 garlic cloves, 1 white onion, 1 serrano pepper, 1 teaspoon oregano, a pinch of cumin, and 1 to 1.5 cups of the cooking broth until smooth.

3-Then, stir in the potatoes, corn, zucchini, carrots, and cabbage, bringing the pot to a boil before simmering for 10-15 minutes until the vegetables are tender. Finish by stirring in the cilantro, adjusting salt to taste, covering the pot, and simmering for another 10 minutes. Let it sit for 5 minutes off the heat before serving with lime wedges, chopped jalapeños, and warm tortillas for a complete meal. This method, which takes about 1 hour and 30 minutes total, allows flavors to meld perfectly and works well year-round, even with added veggies like chayote.