Roman Stracciatella (Egg Drop Soup) Recipe
How to make Roman stracciatella soup
No matter the season, Brandon McGlamery's stracciatella is a best seller at Prato, the casual and newly opened younger sibling to Luma on Park in Winter Park, Florida. Stracciatella comes from the Italian "stracciato," meaning "torn apart." The name alludes to the shredded look of an egg when it is whisked into hot chicken broth just before serving. McGlamery's secret to his intensely flavored brodo is to further concentrate a strained six-hour chicken stock over a low flame before rippling in the eggs. For a weeknight variation, he suggests simmering store-bought chicken broth with herbs and whole peppercorns, which turns an otherwise all-day preparation into a speedy house call.
Recipe adapted from Brandon McGlamery, Prato, Winter Park, FL
- 6 cups good quality store-bought low-sodium chicken broth or homemade broth
- 5 black peppercorns
- 1 sprig thyme
- 1 small dried bay leaf or ½ small fresh bay leaf
- 2 large eggs
- ¼ cup finely grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
- 4 basil leaves--stacked, rolled and thinly sliced crosswise
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 1 lemon, quartered
- In a medium saucepan set over medium-high heat, bring the chicken broth to a simmer. Reduce the heat to medium-low, add the peppercorns, thyme and bay leaf and cook gently to concentrate the flavors, about 30 minutes.
- In a small bowl, use a fork to beat the eggs with the Parmesan cheese. Return the soup to a simmer and while whisking the hot broth with a fork, slowly pour in the egg-cheese mixture, stirring until the eggs are set, 30 seconds to 1 minute.
- Stir in the basil and black pepper and serve the soup with a squeeze of fresh lemon juice.