With the cold and the fog, few things are more desirable than some good garlic soup. With or without a crust, very hot, spicy in the right measure and flavored with a good chorizo, ham or even a bit of bacon. ummm! Our mouths are watering, right? And always, always, feel good. Eggs, paprika, bread and garlic. All very cheap ingredients that result in a very nutritious appetizer. This looks like an easy recipe, but… it will have a secret so they taste delicious.
This week, Die Noorde presents a route of businesses that have made this popular dish their watchword. If you are a fan of Castilian soup, don’t miss this tour. Let’s get started!
Carlos Sánchez poses with his baked garlic soups /
The first stop is in Tudela de Duero. In a place with tradition, very cozy and it is recommended by the Repsol Guide. Carlos Sánchez and Ana Belén García are in charge of their kitchens and their recipe is an authentic ode to Garlic Soup. They make it with zero kilometer products. “We use good olive oil. When it is very hot, we add the garlic and without letting it brown, we add the paprika from La Vera. The bread we use is also from Tudela, from the previous day. Add salt and water to taste. We personally don’t like them too thin or too thick. We put it in a saucepan and add a raw egg that we cover with another soup. We put the finishing touches with a crunchy Iberian ham from Guijuelo. We give them the last heat stroke in the oven, until a crust forms. The result is impressive”, invites Carlos. “It is a seasonal dish that is very appetizing in winter, with a good wine. It is good to justify these types of proposals that are lost by others of the most avant-garde cuisine. We must not forget our tradition,” he adds. And he’s right, because these soups are the kind that make you cry because they’re so delicious.
In this inn there are many other delicacies, such as al pastor potatoes, ratatouille, chickpeas with vegetables or zucchini scrambled eggs. “We are specialized in cooking vegetables and seasonal products. The king of our table is asparagus and these days we are working to give more prominence to Tudela’s thistle, which is a great product, although little recognized”, announces Carlos.
Gloria Domingo and Chuchi Potente with their soup made with homemade sauce and tomato. /
We continue our tour in another local Tudelano. Where Chuchi. The bar is attended by Chuchi Potente, who always has a grace for each of his customers. In the kitchen, his wife, Gloria Domingo, who does a quiet job but who cultivates passions among her diners. She is a cook who always puts her master touch on all her creations. Also in garlic soup, the original recipe of which is delicious. “Ours is not a typical Castilian soup”, he warns before serving and explains why. And it is that Gloria adds a homemade vegetable and white bone broth to her recipe and a touch of homemade tomato that she makes daily and that she adds to many of her recipes. “I always soak the bread in hot sauce while the garlic is fried. I never use klipkapper or candle bread because they are too thick for my taste. I prefer to use a bar that is looser and gives it the perfect touch,” he explains. “When the garlic is fried, I add Asturian chorizo and Iberian ham and then the paprika. I also add a chili to give it a happy touch. I add the salt and the soaked bread to the sauce. This is how they are made in the morning with sauce, until the chop chop of the casserole. And… They are very good!”, she says proudly. “They are the best in Valladolid,” adds her husband Chuchi without hesitation.
These garlic soups are on the house. They offer them for free with every drink and they are the star of the place. “As a rule, every day of the week, and from the time we open until we close, we give a tapa with the drink. The favorite tapas are the garlic soup, the homemade sauce and the torrezno. Every day someone comes in the kitchen and tell me how good they are. As the morning progresses and they rest more, they are more delicious. I like to tell that and it encourages me to keep working excitedly about what I do”, concludes Gloria.
Teresa Martín and Jesús Alejos, with their garlic soups with baked crust, a recipe from their mother Ángela /
Established in 1986, this restaurant is one of the classic restaurants in Valladolid. It’s a safe bet if you want to eat well and enjoy traditional Castilian cuisine with the perfect avant-garde touch. A pampering treatment and top quality raw materials sum up the good work of the brothers Jesús and Juan José Alejos and Teresa Martín, the wife of the first of them. The name of the restaurant is that of the brothers’ mother, a true master of the kitchen, who learned to cook in Cabreros del Monte. The decoration, unique and original, makes us move to the German beer halls. Another plus point.
Their crusty baked garlic soups are from another galaxy. They use the following ingredients: water, ham, garlic, paprika, bread and torreznos. Easier, impossible. The trick is in the preparation. This spoon dish was once prepared in the humblest homes because the ingredients are very basic and cheap. Today it is a real treat. “We do it in such a way that the top is left with a crunchy crust and the inside is a real melt-in-your-mouth mousse. Fantastic with Ferrán Adriá, they tried it and were surprised, “suspected Jesus Alejos. And it is that it is really creamy inside, with all its ingredients well combined. Definitely very turbulent and fragrant. They always make it to order.
“In a casserole we cook the ham bone and add some crushed garlic cloves and salt. We previously fried some torreznillos, in the frying oil we also put some garlic and paprika off the heat and pour it into the casserole with the sauce. Let it cook for about 25 minutes to get flavor. In a clay pot, preferably from Pereruela, we put thinly sliced bread. It must be white bread from Valladolid, one or two days before. After half an hour of boiling the sauce, we add it to the clay pot together with the bread. We put it in the oven for two hours at 160º C and we increase the temperature as the soup cooks. In total, they must baked, about two and a half hours, depending on the quantity. Add the torreznillos on top and leave them for another 5 minutes so that they finish browning and they are ready to eat”, says Tere Martín, who like to serve the soup on the table, in her casserole.
Breaded and fried is another of the specialties of the Ángela Restaurant. They are characterized by a fine batter which, far from masking the flavor of the raw material, enhances it. His calluses are a good thing too. “Everything we know about cooking we learned from our mother, Ángela, who compiled more than 400 different recipes for garlic soup. The most famous are the stewed ones and the so-called ‘Soups for the sick’, which are very light and contain almost no paprika. The possibilities of cooking this dish are numerous and my mother knew them all”, explains Jesús Alejos proudly.
Alejandro Burgos and the garlic soups that his father and uncle used to cook in the 70s /
We continue our route into what is the temple of the pucelana croquet. There is this product at ease in the local bar. There are many flavors and all delicious. But there is another recipe that lags behind in popularity, flavor and ease of digestion. The garlic soup. “We make them the same way my father, José Luis Burgos, and his brother Alejo cooked them, back in 1973, when the business opened,” says Alejandro Burgos, who runs the business with his brother David. “At first they were given free with the drink, but they became so famous that they started asking for them,” continues this hotelier, who explains that there is a big dilemma regarding this product. “For some it’s drink and for others it’s food. Some ask for the garlic soup to drink, along with some croquettes, while others consider it food and order it with a wine,” he explains.
They serve them in a small clay pot and their ingredients are those of a lifetime. Day-old bread, garlic, sweet and spicy paprika. Water and egg. “They are powerful and restorative while comforting the body and soul. Personally, I like to accompany them with a Verdejo, as the freshness perfectly counteracts the soupiness of the soup”, says Alejandro. He also says that many customers ask for a splash of red wine or sherry to be added to their soup. “Really like that mix of flavors,” he concludes.
Sana Jabbouri with his garlic soups in a tapa and appetizer version /
The soup at this restaurant is the best and the person in charge of keeping the traditional recipe intact is its chef Sana Jabbori, of Moroccan origin and who nails the flavor of the Castilian soup in every cuisine. Its manager, José Luis Salgado, assures that it is a recipe that comes from ancient times and that “his regular customers love it.”
“Add the chorizo, the ham, the bacon and the garlic. We make a sauce and add the bread. We don’t use just any bread, we use what we call ‘barronas’, which is a double loaf which is ideal for this recipe”, points out Sana. “We add the sauce we make with ham bones over low heat and then the eggs. Everyone wants more, it’s the typical dish of Castilla y León and demands this time of year they like it a lot”, adds this cook.
They offer it in two sizes, a tapa version, in a clay pot, and another as a main appetizer included in the daily menu. “This is a very nice dish in the winter. With this weather and this fog we have, it’s what feels best for the body,” he invites
What whet your appetite with these suggestions for Castilian soup? Leave us your recommendation on the best garlic soups you’ve tried in the comments of this news. If you want to know and enjoy other gastronomic routes, we recommend a few here: the most wonderful roscones de reyes, the best steaks or the best prepared gin and tonics in Valladolid. Everything, in our space dedicated to the best places to eat and drink in Valladolid. Take advantage!