Almoço da Freira Spinach Soup (Alentejo’s Recipes)
There is no place in Portugal without its typical codfish soup. There are many variations. With or without vegetables, with or without stock, codfish soup is just another uplifting recipe made with our loyal friend.
This soup is originally from rural areas around the country, but it is mostly successful in Alentejo.
The so-called Sopa de bacalhau do conselheiro comes from the family recipe of Mr Domingos Pereira de Braga, who was the mayor in 1919. There are records showing that this soup was extremely appreciated in the whole region.
Alentejo’s codfish soup is often made with spinach. In Alto Alentejo spinach is replaced with curly dock.
The ‘Almoço da Freira Spinach Soup’ is also a variant of this region’s codfish soup. Farmers would prepare this soup on the day of the fair and serve it to family and friends.
Stock-free soup, which was usually prepared with meat or vegetables, became obviously worthy of a codfish variant.
Sauté two chopped cloves of garlic, a chopped onion, and a bunch of coriander also chopped in tiny pieces in a decilitre (0.1 pints) of olive oil in a pan. Then drop three bunches of spinach and leave them to sauté.
Add a little bit of water, season with salt, and add two small cheeses and four codfish fillets. Once the spinach and codfish are cooked, poach four eggs. Thinly slice the bread, place the slices at the bottom of a tureen, and pour the broth on top.
Serve the codfish, cheese, eggs, and spinach separately.
Guedes, F. (2001). As 100 maneiras de cozinhar Bacalhau e outros peixes. Lisboa: Publicações Dom Quixote, p. 64-65
Saramago, A. (2000). Cozinha do Minho. (pp.53) Lisboa: Assírio & Alvim, p. 53; 78
Selecções do Reader’s Digest. (1984). Tesouros da Cozinha Tradicional Portuguesa. Porto.