Name: Sopa de Ajo (Spanish Garlic Soup)
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 30 min
Yield: 2 servings
Cuisine: Spanish
Ingredients: 80 g Bread, day-old, torn into chunks; 6 clove Garlic, thinly sliced; 2 Egg; 600 ml Vegetable Stock, hot; 2 tbsp Olive Oil; 1 tsp Paprika; 1 Bay Laurel Leaf; ¾ tsp Salt, adjust to stock saltiness; ¼ tsp Black Peppercorns, freshly crushed; 1 tbsp Parsley, chopped, for finishing

30 mintotal

Prep 10 min · Cook 20 min

Serves: 2
Difficulty: Easy
Spice: Mild

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Method

Heat the olive oil in a pot over medium-low heat. Add the sliced garlic and cook until fragrant and lightly golden, not dark brown.
Add the bread chunks and stir until they absorb the garlicky oil and begin to toast at the edges.
Stir in the paprika for a few seconds, then immediately add the hot vegetable stock and bay leaf so the paprika does not burn.
Simmer until the bread softens and thickens the soup slightly. Season with salt and black pepper.
Crack the eggs into the gently simmering soup and cook until the whites set but the yolks remain soft.
Finish with parsley and serve hot.

How to tell it's done

The soup should be brothy but lightly thickened by bread, with softly set eggs.

Getting it right

Tip

Add paprika only briefly before the stock; burnt paprika turns the soup bitter.

What to serve it with

Serve with extra bread or a simple salad for a light dinner.

Common mistakes

The soup tastes bitter.: Two things burn easily here: the garlic and the paprika. Cook the garlic gently to pale gold, and give the paprika only a few seconds before the stock goes in to stop it catching.
The eggs disperse into threads.: Bring the soup down to a bare tremble before cracking them in, and leave them undisturbed. A simmering soup will shred an egg white in seconds.

Substitutions

Chicken Stock can replace Vegetable Stock for a non-vegetarian version.
Use day-old Bread for the best texture; very fresh bread can become gummy.
Smoked Paprika can replace part of the Paprika for a deeper smoky flavor.

Storing and reheating

The soup base keeps three days in the fridge and thickens as the bread swells; loosen it with stock. Poach the eggs fresh into the reheated soup rather than storing them in it. It does not freeze — the bread turns to paste.

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Ingredients