Here’s our third episode on Romanian traditional food with another very popular dish, served as a first course with almost any meal: SOUPS! Usually (and unfairly) hated by most kids, soups are so common because they are filling, yet delicious and nutritious and can be done quickly with pretty much with anything left in your pantry. In Eastern Europe, there is a difference between supe (soups) and ciorbe (thicker soups).
Supă de pui cu tăieței (chicken soup with noodles) is one of the most common soups in Romania. Prepared especially in the countryside, it is made with home raised chicken and fresh vegetables from the garden (what we call nowadays organic products). Historically, it was regarded as a special dish, served only during religious holidays or on Sundays. As a kid at my grandparents’ farm, I used to watch grannie making the noodles! Best soup noodles ever! And so simple! As she always says: just mix the flour with water and one egg! Yes, simple indeed, but hers were hard to replicate…
There are more soups than you could ever imagine: with meat or vegetables like cabbage, potatoes, beans, and pretty much anything else (including chicken crests or fish heads…). We’ve selected two special recipes that are very easy to make at home and super nice for summer days!
Ciorbă is more richer in ingredients, consistency, and ufff… often in calories too (but hey, don’t get alarmed, some remain within reasonable limits!). Remember, we talked about smântână (sour cream) the other week? Well, ciorbă almost always has a good amount of it, along with plenty of meat and veggies, and other wonders that all turn ciorbă into a delicious and complete meal. Among the common Romanian types of ciorbă, quite unique in taste are: ciorbă de perișoare (meatball soup), ciorbă de burtă (tripe soup), or gulyas (as you might know, goulash is actually Hungarian, but centuries of Austro-Hungarian influence left some traces…)
Last week we shared our favourite summer soup recipe – cherry soup! Here comes another soup recipes we’ve tried, totally enjoy and highly recommend: salad soup! It’s definitely much better than it sounds. We’ll also tell you the secrets of preparing them from our grandmas and moms. And you know that nothing compares to a homemade, honest, yet full of love, meal!
Next week, we’ll talk about the favourite “vegetable” in Romania: MEAT!
Supă de salată (salad soup)
Print recipeIngredients
- 2l water
- 1 Large lettuce (or two smaller ones)
- 1 clove garlic
- 1 tablespoon vinegar
- 2 tablespoons sour cream
- 1 bunch dill
- salt and pepper (to taste)
Directions
| Step 1 | |
| Heat the water and when it starts boiling add the salad chopped into large chunks. | |
| Step 2 | |
| Add salt and garlic and boil for about 15 mins, then add the vinegar and let it cool to room temperature. | |
| Step 3 | |
| Mix in the sour cream, pepper and loads of freshly chopped dill. That's it! | |
