Alentejo cooking runs on a short list of ingredients used very well, and this soup is a perfect example — peas, a good glug of olive oil, cilantro, and an egg poached right in the broth at the last minute. It sits in the same family as Sopa de Tomate Alentejana (recipe on the site) and Açorda Alentejana (recipe on the site), that quiet Alentejo habit of turning almost nothing into a full meal, and finishing it with an egg so the soup becomes dinner instead of a starter.

In the Alentejo this soup is made in spring when fresh peas come in from the garden, but frozen peas work beautifully year-round: they are picked and flash-frozen at peak sweetness, which can beat whatever has been sitting in the produce section for a week.

The trick to this soup is timing the egg. You want to slide it into the simmering broth right in the bowl or the pot at the very end, so it poaches gently in the hot soup itself rather than being cooked separately and added on top — that is what gives you a soft, barely-set yolk that turns into its own sauce the moment you break it with your spoon.

Sopa de Ervilhas com Ovos Escalfados Recipe

What you need

Ingredients

For the soup:
3 tablespoons olive oil, plus more for drizzling
1 medium onion, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 medium potato, peeled and diced small
4 cups chicken or vegetable stock
4 cups frozen peas (or fresh, if in season)
1 bay leaf
Salt and black pepper, to taste
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro, divided
For the eggs:
4 large eggs
1 tablespoon white vinegar (optional, helps the eggs hold together)

Cook along

Instructions

In a large pot, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion and cook until soft and translucent, about 5 minutes. Stir in the garlic and cook for 1 minute more.
Add the diced potato, stock, and bay leaf. Bring to a simmer and cook until the potato is just tender, about 10 minutes.
Add the peas and half of the cilantro, and simmer for another 5 to 7 minutes until the peas are tender.
Remove the bay leaf. Using an immersion blender, blend about half the soup until smooth, leaving the rest chunky for texture (or transfer half to a blender and return it to the pot). Season with salt and pepper.
Return the soup to a gentle simmer. Crack each egg into a small cup, then slide it carefully into the simmering soup, spacing them apart. Add the vinegar to the soup if using, which helps the whites set neatly.
Cover and poach the eggs directly in the soup for 3 to 4 minutes, until the whites are set but the yolks are still soft.
Ladle the soup into bowls, making sure each bowl gets one poached egg, drizzle with a little more olive oil, and scatter with the remaining cilantro.