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- Traditional Portuguese Soup Açorda from Alentejo
Traditional Portuguese Soup Açorda from Alentejo
Ingredients
Step by step process
Garlic-Coriander Paste
- 1
Açorda from Alentejo starts with a garlic-coriander paste. In a mortar and pestle, grind the garlic with salt into a smooth paste. Add the fresh coriander and keep grinding until you have an aromatic green paste. Mix in 2 tablespoons of olive oil.
- 2
Tear the bread by hand into rough chunks or cut into pieces. Place in deep bowls or one large pot.
Cooking the Soup
- 3
Bring the broth to a boil. Add the remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil and the garlic-coriander paste, stir and season with salt and pepper. Pour the hot broth over the bread, it should soften and give the soup a thick consistency.
- 4
Gently crack the eggs straight into the hot soup (or poach them separately in well-salted boiling water) and cook for 3-4 minutes, until the whites have set while the yolks remain runny.
Serving
- 5
Serve the Açorda immediately, each bowl should have one poached egg. Drizzle with a little olive oil and garnish with fresh coriander leaves.
More tips:
Use older stale bread, it soaks up the broth and thickens the soup.
Coriander is key to this soup, replace part of it with flat-leaf parsley.
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Topic: Portuguese Cuisine
