Acquacotta
The name means “cooked water”, which says a lot about its roots: by tradition this is the soup of Maremma shepherds and woodcutters, made from whatever was at hand. The base is plenty of onion slowly softened in olive oil, with tomatoes and celery, and water instead of stock. The soup is ladled over a slice of stale bread and topped with an egg set in the hot broth. The simplest ingredients make a filling, sweetish, deeply flavoured meal. The whole secret is patience with the onion.
Your own work in that: 0 min.
- Chopping 10 min
- Softening the onion 25 min
- Tomatoes 10 min
- Simmering 20 min
- Eggs in the soup 5 min
Step by step
0 / 8 doneSlice the vegetables
Slice the onions into thin half-moons, the celery into slices and dice the carrot finely. There should be a lot of onion — it gives this soup its flavour.
Ingredients: 5 tbsp olive oil · 500 g red onions · 2 pcs celery · 1 pcs carrot · 2 cloves garlic · ½ tsp chilli flakes · 400 g canned chopped tomatoes · 1000 ml hot water · 1½ tsp salt · ½ tsp black pepper
Soften the onion slowly
Heat 4 tablespoons of the oil in a wide pot, add the onion, celery, carrot and a pinch of salt. Cook covered over low heat 20–25 minutes, stirring every few minutes, until the onion is soft, sweet and lightly golden. Do not let it burn — bitter onion ruins the soup.
Ingredients: 5 tbsp olive oil · 500 g red onions · 2 pcs celery · 1 pcs carrot · 2 cloves garlic · ½ tsp chilli flakes · 400 g canned chopped tomatoes · 1000 ml hot water · 1½ tsp salt · ½ tsp black pepper
Slow and covered — the onion should turn sweet.Add garlic and tomatoes
Add the chopped garlic and chilli flakes, fry for a minute, then add the tomatoes. Cook uncovered 10 minutes until slightly thickened.
Ingredients: 5 tbsp olive oil · 500 g red onions · 2 pcs celery · 1 pcs carrot · 2 cloves garlic · ½ tsp chilli flakes · 400 g canned chopped tomatoes · 1000 ml hot water · 1½ tsp salt · ½ tsp black pepper
Add water and simmer
Pour in the hot water, season with salt and pepper and simmer gently 20 minutes. Taste — the soup should be sweetish from the onion, with a little heat.
Ingredients: 5 tbsp olive oil · 500 g red onions · 2 pcs celery · 1 pcs carrot · 2 cloves garlic · ½ tsp chilli flakes · 400 g canned chopped tomatoes · 1000 ml hot water · 1½ tsp salt · ½ tsp black pepper
Toast the bread
Meanwhile toast the bread slices in a dry pan or toaster until crisp. Stale, well-dried bread will not fall apart in the soup.
Ingredients: 4 pcs eggs · 4 pcs stale bread, slices · 40 g pecorino, grated · 8 pcs mint or basil leaves
Crack the eggs into the soup
Lower the heat so the soup barely trembles. Crack in the eggs side by side, cover and cook 4–5 minutes, until the whites set and the yolks stay runny. If serving children, pregnant women or older people, cook the eggs 7–8 minutes until the yolks set.
Ingredients: 4 pcs eggs · 4 pcs stale bread, slices · 40 g pecorino, grated · 8 pcs mint or basil leaves
Barely trembling — the eggs set gently.Prepare the bowls
Put a slice of bread in each deep bowl and sprinkle it with half the pecorino.
Ingredients: 4 pcs eggs · 4 pcs stale bread, slices · 40 g pecorino, grated · 8 pcs mint or basil leaves
Bread and pecorino in the bottom of the bowl.Ladle the soup and serve
Carefully lay an egg on each slice, ladle over the soup, finish with the rest of the pecorino, mint leaves and a drizzle of the remaining oil. Serve at once, while the bread is still slightly crisp.
Ingredients: 4 pcs eggs · 4 pcs stale bread, slices · 40 g pecorino, grated · 8 pcs mint or basil leaves
Before you start
Mint for nepitella
In Maremma acquacotta is scented with nepitella, a wild mint with a hint of oregano. Ordinary mint or basil is the closest substitute.
Seasonal versions
In spring wild greens or chard go into the soup, in autumn mushrooms. Add mushrooms towards the end of softening the onion, and chard or greens with the water — the base of the soup stays the same.
Making ahead
You can make the soup without eggs and bread a day ahead and keep it in the fridge. Crack the eggs into the reheated, barely trembling soup just before serving.
