Açorda Antelejana (Portuguese Bread Soup)

Name: Açorda Antelejana (Portuguese Bread Soup)
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 25 min
Yield: 4
Cuisine: european
Ingredients: 1 large bunch cilantro, torn in half; 4 garlic cloves; 1 serrano pepper, deseeded and roughly chopped (optional); 1 1⁄2 tsp white miso paste; 1/4 cup olive oil; 4 thick slices of stale crusty bread, cubed if you like; 6 cups vegetable broth; 4 large eggs; 1/4 tsp salt (optional); Chili oil, for garnish (optional)

Prep Time10 min
Total Time25 min
Makes4 servings

Açorda Antelejana or Portuguese Bread Soup served in a bowl with a thick slice of bread topped with cilantro paste and a poached egg

Produced by Chantal Braganza and Stephanie Han Kim; photography by Christie Vuong; food styling by Haley Polinsky; prop styling by Cailen Speers. Dusen Dusen Pattern Napkin – Sun, 313designmarket.com.

We know what you’re thinking: Poaching an egg? For a weekday lunch?! We promise this soup is quick and worth cracking a few eggs for if you have access to a stove during the workweek. Açorda, a traditional Portuguese dish that turns stale bread into a variety of soups, epitomizes the spirit of thrifty cooking. Bom proveito!—Chantal Braganza

Ingredients

1 large bunch cilantro, torn in half
4 garlic cloves
1 serrano pepper, deseeded and roughly chopped (optional)
1 1⁄2 tsp white miso paste
1/4 cup olive oil
4 thick slices of stale crusty bread, cubed if you like
6 cups vegetable broth
4 large eggs
1/4 tsp salt (optional)
Chili oil, for garnish (optional)

Instructions

Combine cilantro with garlic, serrano pepper and miso in a blender or food processor. Pulse, gradually adding oil, into a thick paste. Scrape paste into a resealable jar.
Slather each slice of bread with 1 to 2 tbsp cilantro paste. Divide bread among four soup bowls. (Or divide cubed bread among bowls and spoon paste overtop.)
Bring broth to a simmer in a medium saucepan set over medium. Poach eggs in broth, one at a time, cracking them into a ladle and slightly submerging and cooking until whites are just set, 2 to 3 min. Gently ladle egg over bread in each bowl. Taste and season broth with salt. Ladle into bowls. Let stand until bread soaks up broth, 2 to 3 min. Garnish with chili oil just before serving, if desired.

Kitchen tip

While this recipe serves four, the paste can be made in advance and doled out throughout the week. Just slather some day-old bread with it and top with piping hot broth and an egg.

Kitchen tip

Make this umami-rich paste in advance—it'll keep up to 5 days in the fridge.

Get more vegetarian soup recipes.

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Vegetarian lunch Soups Quick Weeknight Dinners

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