Caldo de Pata
South America — Ecuador
Ecuador's most important collagen tradition. A rich soup made from cattle feet — extracting tendon, skin, and collagen into a gelatinous broth. One of the strongest tendon traditions in Latin America.
Caldo de pata is centered on cattle feet — the tendons and skin extracted from the hoof area. Feet are not a canonical in this dataset; cuts[] maps to tendon and skin as the closest structural equivalents.
Cuts in this tradition
Cultural context
Especially associated with Ambato and highland Ecuador. Served at markets as a breakfast and recovery dish. The gelatinous texture of the broth is the defining quality. Comparable to Vietnamese bò kho for collagen richness and to Turkish kelle-paça for the foot-centered approach.
Preparation
Cattle feet cleaned and split. Simmered many hours with onion, garlic, cumin, achiote, and mote (hominy). Broth becomes deeply gelatinous. Served with mote, cilantro, and ají.