Carabaccia
Carabaccia is a traditional Florentine slow-cooked onion soup served over toasted rustic bread and finished with grated pecorino cheese.
- Prep
- 20 min
- Cook
- 45 min
- Total
- 65 min
- Servings
- 4
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Calories
- 340 kcal
Equipment
- •Heavy-bottomed pot or Dutch oven
- •Wooden spoon
- •Chef knife
- •Toaster or grill pan
- •Soup bowls
Nutrition
Per serving, approximate
- Calories
- 340 kcal
- fat
- 14 g
- carbs
- 44 g
- fibre
- 6 g
- protein
- 11 g
- calories
- 340 kcal
Instructions
- 1
Peel the red onions and slice them thinly into uniform strips.
- 2
Heat the olive oil in a heavy-bottomed pot over medium-low heat.
- 3
Add the diced celery and carrot, cooking for 5 minutes until soft.
- 4
Stir in the sliced onions and half the salt.
- 5
Cover and sweat the onions on low heat for 25 minutes until sweet and translucent.
- 6
Pour in the white wine vinegar and simmer for 2 minutes to evaporate.
- 7
Add the warm vegetable broth and simmer gently uncovered for 15 minutes.
- 8
Toast the pane toscano slices until crisp, then rub them lightly with the cut garlic.
- 9
Season the soup with remaining salt and black pepper to taste.
- 10
Place a slice of toasted bread into each warmed soup bowl.
- 11
Ladle the hot onion soup directly over the bread.
- 12
Sprinkle generously with grated pecorino toscano and serve immediately.
Chef's tips
Cook the onions gently without browning to preserve their natural sweetness. Use dry, stale rustic bread so it drinks in the savoury broth without disintegrating instantly.
Ingredient substitutions
- pane toscano → crusty country sourdough or unsalted rustic white bread
- pecorino toscano → Parmigiano Reggiano or aged pecorino romano
- red onions → sweet yellow onions or Tropea red onions
Storage
Store leftover soup without bread in a sealed container in the fridge for up to 3 days.
Reheating
Warm the soup in a saucepan over medium heat until steaming, then pour over freshly toasted bread.
Common mistakes to avoid
- •Browning the onions too fast over high heat, causing bitter flavours.
- •Using pre-sliced sandwich bread that turns completely soggy in broth.
- •Boiling the soup vigorously instead of maintaining a gentle simmer.
Serving suggestions
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