Porra Antequerana
A thick, cold Andalusian tomato and bread soup finished with diced ham and tuna: 20 minutes of work and no cooking, then 2 hours in the fridge.
Photograph credit: Porra antequerana (image of Porra antequerana on Wikidata Q7230368) by Herrero Uceda · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons · this resized copy is shared under the same licence
Where This Goes Wrong
Use ripe tomatoes.
Add the bread a little at a time.
Season again once chilled.
Cooking Porra Antequerana
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Blend the tomatoes, garlic, vinegar and salt until smooth. Add the bread in stages, blending after each, until thick.
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With the blender running, pour in 100 ml of the oil in a thin stream.
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Chill for 2 hours. Taste and adjust the salt and vinegar.
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Serve in small bowls topped with the ham, tuna and the remaining oil.
Why It Works
It is a close relative of salmorejo, thicker and denser, and in Antequera it is served as a first course, as a dip with bread, and as a snack in bars. The name porra refers to the thick consistency, which is such that a spoon almost stands up in it. The difference is the toppings: ham and tuna in this one.
Blend ripe tomatoes with garlic, stale crustless bread, olive oil, sherry vinegar and salt until perfectly smooth. Add the bread in stages, tasting the texture each time, because the right thickness depends on how wet the tomatoes are. It should be as thick as a mayonnaise. Taste, and add more salt or vinegar as needed, remembering that chilling mutes the flavour.
Pour into a bowl and chill for at least 2 hours. Serve in small bowls or on a plate, topped with diced serrano ham, flaked tuna and a drizzle of oil. In Antequera, hard boiled egg is also traditional, but you can leave it out. Use the best tomatoes you can find, since they are the whole dish. Serve with crusty bread.
After You've Cooked It
Keeps for 2 days in the fridge.
Ingredient Swaps
- An eighth of a teaspoon of garlic powder per clove is the stand-in usually given when you are out of fresh garlic; it will not brown the same way, and it burns easily, so add it with the liquid.
Good With
- Crusty bread
- Dry sherry
- Cured ham
Common Questions About Porra Antequerana
How long does Porra Antequerana take to make?
20 minutes of preparation and of cooking, plus 2 hours of Chilling, so allow 2 hours 20 minutes from start to finish. The recipe serves 6.
Nutrition per Serving
Per serving, calculated from the ingredient list with USDA FoodData Central figures (SR Legacy). A calculation, not a laboratory analysis: brands, cuts and how you measure change the real numbers. How the figures are worked out.
Your notes on this recipe
Cooked this? Keep a note for next time
Compiled by Turab
Checked by script for timings, diet labels and nutrition arithmetic. How the recipes are checked.
First published ; last changed .
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