Although it translates as stone soup, this hearty Portuguese dish is actually a combination of beans and sausages such as chouriço and morcela (blood sausage), as well as pork belly, pig’s ear, and potatoes, while different regional varieties may also include pasta, carrots, and cabbage.
There's a legend saying that a monk in need wanted to prepare soup by using merely stones and water. When he asked for additional ingredients to supposedly flavor the soup, the family who'd hosted him was more than willing to provide some pork cuts, beans, sausages, and vegetables, and the monk ended with a rich and nutritious dish without any stones inside.
MOST ICONIC Sopa da pedra
This hearty bread soup is a Portuguese classic that combines thick, crusty slices of rustic bread and a flavorful broth that is infused with garlic, olive oil, and generous amounts of fresh cilantro or mint. Although it occasionally employs meat or sausages, in its basic form the soup is traditionally served topped with a poached egg.
Also popular is the seafood version of the dish, which typically employs cod fish and goes under the name of açorda de bacalhau à Alentejana. Like other varieties of açorda, Alentejana was invented as a frugal meal that soon developed into a true Portuguese classic.
MOST ICONIC Açorda à Alentejana
At first glance, it might seem like a regular tomato soup, but sopa de tomate Alentejana is made with a few unique, unlikely ingredients making for an extremely flavorful and rich soup. Apart from tomatoes, garlic, and onions, this dish features eggs, with optional potatoes and green pepper.
Just before the soup is ready to be served, a few eggs are cracked into the pot until they become fluffy and poached. Sometimes, the eggs might get stirred, creating cooked egg strings in the process. It is recommended to serve this unique tomato soup with a few slices of crusty artisan bread on the side.
MOST ICONIC Sopa de tomate alentejana
Sopa de cação is a traditional specialty made with slices of dogfish shark cooked in a flavorful broth infused with garlic and coriander. The dish is traditionally served over sliced bread, and it is occasionally thickened with flour and seasoned with bay leaves, ground paprika, and vinegar.
It is believed that this fragrant soup originated in the historical Portuguese region of Alentejo, but today it is considered to be an indispensable part of Portuguese national cuisine.
MOST ICONIC Sopa de cação
View moreSopa caramela is a stew made with catarino beans, either butter or wine-colored depending on preference, sausages, lean pork (rarely), and fatty cuts like ear, chispe (knuckle), head, or pork belly. These ingredients are seasoned with onion and garlic and accompanied by carrots, turnips, potatoes, cabbage, and kale—traditionally sourced from the garden.
The soup is finished with a drizzle of olive oil and a bit of elbow pasta to add body and consistency. It is a traditional Portuguese soup from the Pinhal Novo area that originated in the 16th century and was brought by rural workers from Beira Litoral and Baixo Mondego, who settled there in the 19th century.
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