Caldo de costilla (KAHL-doh deh kohs-TEE-yah) means rib broth, and in Bogotá it is breakfast: a deep bowl of clear, golden beef broth with a couple of short ribs and a halved potato, finished with raw scallions and cilantro, eaten before work with an arepa on the side. Colombians call it levantamuertos, the dead-raiser, because of its reputation the morning after a party. If you have made beef stock, you already know most of this recipe. What makes the difference is fire control and timing, and a fridge.
Is caldo de costilla worth making at home?
How do you make caldo de costilla? Put 1.2 kg (2.65 lb) of bone-in beef short ribs in 2.5 liters (10½ cups) of cold water, skim the foam for 15 minutes as it heats, then simmer gently for 70 minutes with scallions, garlic and cilantro stems. Add halved potatoes for the last 25 minutes and finish with chopped scallions and cilantro. Ready in 120 minutes for 4 servings.
Yes, especially if you like a soup that tastes of one thing done properly. There are only five real ingredients, nothing you can’t find in an American or British supermarket, and the result is a bowl that eats like a full meal: about 40 g of protein per serving and ribs soft enough to pull off the bone with a spoon.
When it shines. A slow weekend breakfast or brunch, a cold morning, guests who stayed the night. It also works as a light supper.
When to skip it. If you want breakfast in 20 minutes and didn’t cook anything the night before. If you avoid beef fat, because short ribs are a fatty cut even after skimming. And if you want a soup packed with vegetables: this one has potatoes and nothing else, on purpose.
Real time. 120 minutes on the clock, about 40 of them hands-on. Made the night before, the morning part takes 40 minutes.
Honest difficulty: easy. The only thing that goes wrong is heat. Boil it hard and the broth turns cloudy and the meat stringy.
About the hangover. According to the US National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA), no hangover remedy has been proven to work and only time ends one. This soup cures nothing. It is a hot, salty, protein-heavy bowl that a lot of people find easy to eat at 8 a.m., and that’s as far as I’ll go.
What you need, with US and UK swaps
Everything is in the recipe card: 2.65 lb (1.2 kg) of short ribs, 1¾ lb (800 g) of potatoes, 2 bunches of scallions, 4 garlic cloves and a bunch of cilantro for 4 large bowls. The cut of beef and the potato are the two choices that change the bowl.
Which short ribs to buy
Ask for bone-in beef short ribs cut into 2-inch (5-6 cm) pieces. English-cut short ribs, one thick bone per piece, are closest to the Colombian costilla. Flanken-cut ribs, sliced thin across several bones, work too and soften about 20 minutes sooner. In the UK the same cut is sold as short ribs or Jacob’s ladder; any butcher will saw it into pieces for you. Boneless short rib gives tender meat and a thin broth, because the bone and cartilage are what give it body.
Potatoes, and why Yukon Gold is my pick outside Colombia
In Colombia the potato is papa pastusa, a floury variety whose edges crumble a little into the broth. Outside Colombia you have two honest options. Yukon Gold holds its shape and keeps the broth clear; it’s what I’d use in the US. Maris Piper or russet behaves more like pastusa and thickens the broth slightly; good if you like it with a bit more body. Red or new potatoes stay perfectly whole but add no body at all.
If you find frozen papa criolla in a Latin grocery, 300 g (10 oz) added for the last 15 minutes turns the broth yellow and a little thicker. It’s a common addition, not the default.
Equipment, and what to use if you don’t have it
A 5-liter (5-quart) pot with a lid, a ladle or slotted spoon, and a fork to test the meat. A Dutch oven is ideal. A pressure cooker or Instant Pot is optional; the next section explains how much it really saves.
How to plan it, and how to tell each stage is right
The full stovetop version runs 120 minutes: 10 minutes trimming, 15 skimming as the water heats, 70 at a bare simmer and 25 with the potatoes. The only part that needs you standing at the stove is the skimming.
The night-before plan, built for breakfast
This is the way I make it. In the evening, cook the ribs through the 70-minute simmer, lift out the scallions and stems, and cool the pot uncovered. It must be in the fridge within 2 hours. By morning the fat has set into a pale disc on top that lifts off in one piece, and the broth underneath is cleaner than skimming will ever get it.
Signs that each stage is going right
- Skimming → the foam goes from gray and heavy to white and sparse in about 15 minutes. When almost nothing rises, stop.
- Simmer → small bubbles breaking on one side of the pot, never a rolling boil. With the lid ajar you should see steam, not hear the lid rattle.
- Ribs → at 70 minutes a fork slides in and the meat still holds to the bone. If it’s falling off by then, the heat was too high.
- Potatoes → after 25 minutes a knife goes through and the edges look ragged.
- Broth → golden and see-through with a few beads of fat. More than ¼ inch (5 mm) of fat on top, ladle it off.
Pressure cooker and Instant Pot timing
Skim for 15 minutes with the lid off, add the aromatics, lock the lid and cook 30 minutes at high pressure, then let the pressure release naturally, about 10 minutes. Open it and cook the potatoes uncovered for 25 minutes on the sauté setting or over medium heat. Total time drops from 120 to about 95 minutes: a real saving, not half. Pressure-cooked broth comes out a little cloudier, and the potatoes never go under pressure, or they disintegrate.
At Bogotá’s altitude, about 2,600 meters (8,500 ft), water boils at roughly 196°F (91°C) instead of 212°F (100°C), which is why the pressure cooker, at about 250°F (121°C) at 15 psi, lives in nearly every kitchen there. If you live at high altitude in Denver or Mexico City, trust the fork, not the clock.
Scaling it for 8 or 12
| Serves | Short ribs | Water | Potatoes | Scallions | Pot |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 | 1.2 kg (2.65 lb) | 2.5 L (10½ cups) | 800 g (1¾ lb) | 2 bunches | 5 L (5 qt) |
| 8 | 2.4 kg (5.3 lb) | 5 L (5¼ qt) | 1.6 kg (3½ lb) | 4 bunches | 8 L (8 qt) |
| 12 | 3.6 kg (8 lb) | 7.5 L (8 qt) | 2.4 kg (5¼ lb) | 6 bunches | 12 L (12 qt) |
Cooking times stay the same, but a big pot of cold water takes about 25 minutes to reach a boil instead of 15. Salt in stages and taste at the end.
Before you cook, mistakes, spice, kids and allergens
The two things that matter. The 15 minutes of skimming and low heat for the 70 that follow. Everything else can be fixed. Cloudy broth can’t.
Common mistakes.
- Cloudy broth → it boiled hard or wasn’t skimmed early. Cold water, skim before the boil, low heat.
- Tough ribs → they needed more time, not more heat. Give them 10-15 minutes before the potatoes go in.
- Greasy → the outer fat wasn’t trimmed or the surface wasn’t skimmed. Ladle it off, or chill and lift the fat.
- Potatoes fell apart → they went in too early or cut too small. Halves, 25 minutes.
- Too salty → about 500 ml (2 cups) of water evaporates, so the broth concentrates. Add 1 tsp at the start and the rest with the potatoes.
Spice level, 0 out of 5. None. In Colombia a bowl of ají picante, the fresh Colombian hot sauce, sits on the table for anyone who wants heat.
Kids. Usually a hit: mild broth and soft potatoes. Pull the meat off the bone for them, since sawn ribs can leave small bone chips.
Allergens. None of the major ones: no gluten, dairy, egg, nuts, soy or fish. If you add bouillon powder, which some versions do, check the label for wheat and celery.
Which version should you make?
- Short on time → pressure cooker or Instant Pot, half an hour at high pressure, then a natural release.
- For breakfast → the night-before plan. Nothing else gets you a clean bowl by 8 a.m.
- Lighter → chill and lift the fat, and use 1 tsp of salt instead of 1½; sodium drops to about 720 mg a bowl.
- With papa criolla → 300 g (10 oz) of small yellow potatoes for the last 15 minutes.
- With yuca or an egg → some Colombian homes add 300 g (10 oz) of cassava with the potatoes, or slip a poached egg into each bowl.
- Vegetarian → there isn’t one; this is a beef soup. Bogotá’s meatless spoon breakfast is changua, the milk and egg soup, ready in 15 minutes.
How it compares with other Latin beef and hen soups. The Venezuelan beef hervido also starts from short ribs, but adds shank and seven vegetables and feeds 8 at lunch in 170 minutes. Colombia’s sancocho de gallina is a big hen and plantain pot for a crowd, and mondongo is tripe soup, a different cut and 160 minutes. Caldo de costilla is the plainest of them and the only one meant for the morning.
What it costs, and what makes it expensive
Roughly $30 for the pot, about $7.57 a bowl in the US. The beef is more than 80 % of that. The BLS doesn’t publish a price for short ribs, so the chart uses its closest series, boneless chuck roast at $9.448 per pound in August 2026; your butcher’s price per pound is the number that matters.
Yield. 4 big bowls of about 500 ml (2 cups) of broth each, with 2-3 pieces of rib and 2 potato halves. With arepas and hot chocolate on the side, it stretches to 6 lighter breakfasts.
In Colombia. At Bogotá wholesale prices for the week of September 12-18, 2026 (DANE’s SIPSA bulletin), the same pot costs about 35,400 pesos, and the ribs, at 27,250 pesos a kilo in Paloquemao market, are 92 % of it.
What to expect, how to serve it and how to store it
Taste and texture. A clear, golden, savory broth that tastes clearly of beef, brightened by raw scallion and cilantro stirred in at the end. The rib meat comes off the bone with a spoon and the potato edges crumble slightly. It isn’t thick; you drink it by the spoonful.
How it’s served in Bogotá. In a deep bowl with the chopped herbs on top, alongside Colombian cheese arepas or bread, and often followed by a cup of Colombian hot chocolate. Some people squeeze in lime; some add ají.
Fridge. The limits for soups with meat, according to USDA FSIS: no more than 2 hours at room temperature, then 3 to 4 days at 40°F (4°C) or below. Use shallow containers so it cools quickly, and lift off the set fat before reheating.
Freezer. The broth and ribs freeze well for 2 to 3 months (FSIS). The potatoes don’t; they turn grainy. Freeze the broth and meat without them and cook fresh potatoes, 25 minutes, when you reheat.
Reheating. Bring it back to a boil, as FSIS advises for soups and broths, then hold it at a low simmer for 2-3 minutes. In the microwave, heat in 2-minute rounds, stirring between them, until it steams throughout. Long, hard boiling dries the ribs out.
Frequently asked questions
What is caldo de costilla? A Colombian beef rib soup from the Andean highlands, eaten mostly for breakfast in Bogotá: short ribs simmered with scallions, garlic and cilantro, with potatoes added at the end.
Does caldo de costilla cure a hangover? No. It’s called levantamuertos for its reputation, but the NIAAA says no hangover remedy is proven and only time ends a hangover.
What cut of beef do I need? Bone-in beef short ribs cut into 2-inch (5 cm) pieces. Flanken-cut ribs also work and cook about 20 minutes faster.
How long do short ribs take to get tender in soup? Roughly 1 hour 25 minutes on the stovetop before the potatoes go in: 15 minutes heating and skimming, then 70 at a bare simmer. The potatoes need 25 more. Under pressure, half an hour at high pressure followed by a natural release of about 10 minutes.
Which potatoes should I use? Yukon Gold in the US for a clear broth; Maris Piper or russet if you want it slightly thicker. In Colombia it’s papa pastusa.
How do I keep the broth clear? Start with cold water, skim for the first 15 minutes before it boils, and keep it at a bare simmer afterwards.
Can I make it in an Instant Pot? Yes: skim on sauté, then 30 minutes at high pressure, 10 minutes natural release, and the potatoes on sauté with the lid off for 25 minutes.
Can I freeze caldo de costilla? Yes, for up to 3 months, but without the potatoes, which go grainy. Add fresh ones when you reheat.
Nutrition
Per bowl (a quarter of the pot), calculated ingredient by ingredient from the USDA FoodData Central SR Legacy database with this recipe’s quantities. I count 720 g (1.6 lb) of meat in the 1.2 kg of bone-in ribs, using the values for the lean part, since the method trims the thick fat and skims the broth, plus the 9 g of salt:
- Calories: 490 kcal
- Protein: 40 g
- Carbohydrates: 40 g
- Fat: 19 g, 8 g saturated
- Fiber: 5 g
- Sugars: 3 g
- Sodium: 1,010 mg
How much the fat matters: USDA lists short ribs with all their separable fat at 390 kcal per 100 g, against 175 for the lean alone. If you trim and skim nothing, each bowl can carry up to about 47 g (1⅔ oz) more fat, roughly 390 extra kcal. Reality sits in between, depending on how much you lift off. Of the sodium, about 870 mg per bowl comes from the salt in the pot.
Where I grew up in Venezuela, beef soup was a Sunday lunch with seven vegetables in it, so the first time I watched someone in Bogotá order a bowl of rib broth at seven in the morning, I assumed they hadn’t been to bed. Now it’s my own Sunday breakfast. The ribs go on Saturday night, the fat comes off with a spoon in the morning, and the potatoes cook while the arepas toast. Fifteen minutes of skimming is the whole secret, and nobody can tell you skipped it until they look at the broth. Josnaisis.