Chicken soup with mint and cilantro (Eng/Esp)

I'm back with another chicken soup, this time with a special touch of mint and cilantro, as these two fabulous medicinal herbs not only enhance the aroma and flavor, but also improve digestive health. The main ingredient in this recipe was yuca. Living in eastern Venezuela, yuca, not potatoes, is the queen of vegetables, so I want you to join me on this new adventure in the kitchen.

Ingredients:

• 3 pieces of chicken
• 1 kilo of yuca (4 large pieces)
• 1 Chinese taro
• 1/4 pumpkin
• 100 grams of mint
• 70 grams of cilantro
• Salt to taste
• 4 liters of water

Procedure:

Peeling the cassava pieces is a very simple task, as the skin usually gives way with just a little effort with the knife. The easier this process is, the better the quality of the cassava. Then I washed it thoroughly and cut it into medium-sized pieces.

Next, I removed the skins from the Chinese taro. I covered my hands with oil to avoid the itchiness that this variety of vegetable, which usually has a pockmarked appearance, tends to cause. My grandmother taught me this trick. Shortly after, I also cut it into medium-sized pieces, leaning on the cutting board for better mobility and knife handling, as this vegetable is tougher than cassava.

The third step was to remove the pumpkin skin. I like to remove it completely, because sometimes including it in the soup is risky as it can leave a slightly bitter taste in the broth. It's better to play it safe. I then cut it into pieces.

I washed the seasonings, removed the seeds, and chopped them into strips. It is important to remove the seeds from the sweet peppers and, if possible, taste them, especially the red ones, in case there is a spicy one in the batch. I recommend the type called jobito for soups, avoiding the rosita or oriental varieties. I also removed the first layer of the onion and cut it into julienne strips.

Next, I prepared the soup, placing the pot with water and yuca in it and adding a pinch of salt. Once it had softened, I added the other vegetables. After 10 minutes, it was time to add the chicken and seasonings to the pot.

When the broth thickened, I adjusted the salt and checked with a fork to make sure everything was cooked through.

Then I turned off the soup and immediately added the herbs, covering it so that all the aroma would be absorbed. The result was a delicious, natural soup with a special touch of mint and cilantro.