Acquacotta, Tuscan Vegetable Soup and Poached Eggs

Acquacotta is a traditional Tuscan soup made with beautiful seasonal vegetables, ladled on top of toasted bread and pecorino cheese and then topped with a poached egg. It's simple, wholesome and good!

Acquacotta is another great example of 'cucina povera' (poor kitchen or poor man's food). It's way of using up whatever is to hand and transforming it into something nourishing, satisfying and as always, good!

It was traditionally made by outdoor workers (usually cowboys or shepherds) in La Maremma area of Tuscany. Seasonal vegetables were cooked in water and spooned on top of stale bread and pecorino cheese.

We love this dish, not only because it's made with wholesome ingredients and feels good to eat, but proves that good food doesn't need to be complicated.

Quick note – our recipe vs tradition

Traditionally, the vegetables are not sauteed in olive oil and are added directly to water, which gives the dish a much more delicate flavour.

We opted to saute the soffritto for a little extra depth and decided to use vegetable stock, which is commonly used now instead of water.

Ingredient notes

• Soffritto – carrot, celery and onion. Some recipes don't use carrot and some use a lot more celery and onion. We're not a huge fan of celery, so this is the solid balance for us, but you can use more or less of what you love.
• Chard – We used rainbow chard because it's readily available right now, but use whatever green is in season, such as spinach, kale or cavolo nero.
• Tomatoes – Acquacotta doesn't tend to be tomato-heavy, and you don't want it to be the dominant flavour, so we drain the plum tomatoes before adding them. You can also use fresh tomatoes or add a little tomato paste.
• Chilli flakes – this is for a subtle kick of heat. We say, add them to taste or omit altogether if you prefer.

Recipe tips

Eat acquacotta all year round – this may seem like a hearty dish for cold weather but it's similar to Pappa al Pomodoro and Ribolilta in that it can also be eaten 'warm' during spring and summer.

Crusty bread – this is a great way to use up stale bread, but if you don't have any, you can toast slices of bread instead.

Variations – we sometimes add fresh basil to ours, which is good, and parsley would also work great. Potatoes are a great addition if they need using up.

Can we prep this in adavnce?

Yes, you can prep the whole soup in advance, but don't add the eggs until you are ready to serve it.

How to store leftovers

Leftover soup can be stored in the fridge for 1-2 days and reheated on the stove. We recommend poaching the eggs fresh when serving.

More Tuscan recipes to try

Did you know we have regional categories dedicated to sharing authentic recipes from each region in Italy? You can find more of our Tuscan recipes here.

Soups

Pappa al Pomodoro (Italian Bread Soup)

Soups

Carabaccia (Tuscan Onion Soup)

Soups

Ribollita – Tuscan Vegetable Soup

Mains

Trippa Finta (Fake Tripe in Tomato Sauce)

Ingredients

Makes 4 servings

• 2 cloves garlic
• 1 white onion
• 2 celery stalks
• 1 large carrot
• 7 oz rainbow chard or greens ((200g))
• 14 oz canned plum tomatoes ((400g) we recommend Mutti)
• 4 large eggs
• 1 pinch Chilli flakes
• 3 and 3/4 cups vegetable stock ((900ml))
• 4 slices crusty white bread
• Pecorino cheese (for serving)
• Salt and pepper
• Olive oil

Method

Prep

1. Chop the carrot, celery and onion into medium-sized chunks and place in a bowl. Finely chop the garlic, set aside. Wash and roughly chop the greens/chard, set aside. Drain the plum tomatoes. Make up your stock.

To make the soup

1. Put 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large pot. Once hot, add the onion, carrot, and celery and saute gently until softened (about 10 minutes). Add the chopped garlic, chilli flakes and a pinch of salt and pepper and saute for 30-40 seconds.

2. Next, add the chopped chard and stir through the vegetables. Add the drained plum tomatoes and vegetable stock. Simmer for 45 minutes uncovered.

3. 5 minutes before the end, toast the slices of crusty bread and place each slice at the bottom of your serving bowls. Top each slice with a drizzle of olive oil and a generous amount of grated pecorino cheese.

4. When the soup is ready, turn it down low and crack each egg into the soup. Cover with a lid and let the eggs poach for 6-7 minutes.

5. Once cooked, place each egg on top of the toasted bread and ladle over the rest of the soup. Top the egg with a pinch of salt and pepper and serve.

Kitchen notes

• You can adapt this recipe with whatever seasonal vegetables you like.
• The soup can be prepped in advance and stored in the fridge for 1-2 days, but we recommend only poaching the eggs before serving.